FREE 88 Page Ebook “10 Mistakes that Could Jeopardize Your Financial Future”:
Having success is often related to avoid deadly wealth destroying mistakes. In this ebook, I share ten of the most common mistakes I have seen people make over the past 16 years of my financial advising career. Come lean and make sure you avoid these mistakes like the plague!
Big Mistake #1: Paying too much $$$ in fees
Big Mistake #2: Getting advice from the wrong places
Big Mistake #3: Choosing the wrong places to store wealth
Big Mistake #4: Failing to plan ahead
Big Mistake #5: Failing to properly account for inflation, taxes, and long-term health care
Big Mistake #6: Spending more than you make
Big Mistake #7: Failing to properly understand risk
Big Mistake #8: Failing to save regularly
Big Mistake #9: Using debt to consume rather than to conserve
Big Mistake #10: Gambling with your assets instead of investing
Download the ebook here:
10 Mistakes Ebook
A last-minute gift to 160 million Americans. On December 23, Congress approved a 2-month extension of the payroll tax holiday that President Obama quickly signed into law. So we will not see shrunken paychecks come January. The new law also extends long-term unemployment benefits through February 29 and authorizes a 2-month reprieve on pay cuts to doctors by Medicare.
- Prior to 2011, wage-earners were paying 6.2% in Social Security taxes. If Congress agrees to lengthen the payroll tax holiday across 2012, workers will merely pay 4.2% on the first $110,100 of wages next year.
- The latest extension in jobless benefits means that about 1.8 million Americans out of the workforce will keep getting unemployment checks averaging about $296 per week.
- Medicare payments to physicians will not diminish by 27% come January.
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What happens if you weren’t here tomorrow?
Having a plan in place for your beneficiaries is something many fail to consider. What if you are the beneficiary? Do you know how to be properly protected?
If your loved ones have invested, saved or insured themselves to any degree, you may be named as a beneficiary to one or more of their accounts, policies or assets in the event of their deaths. While we all hope “that day” never comes, we do need to know what to do financially if and when it does.
Legally, just who is a “beneficiary”? IRAs, annuities, life insurance policies and qualified retirement plans such as 401(k)s and 403(b)s are set up so that the accounts, policies or assets are payable or transferrable on the death of the owner to a beneficiary, usually an individual named on a contractual document that is filled out when the account or policy is first created.
In addition to the primary beneficiary, the account or policy owner is asked to name a contingent (secondary) beneficiary. The contingent beneficiary will receive the asset if the primary beneficiary is deceased.
Some retirement accounts and policies may have multiple beneficiaries. Charities, schools and nonprofits are also occasionally named as beneficiaries. If you have individually listed one (or more) of your kids or grandkids as designated beneficiaries of your 401(k) or IRA, that designation should override a charitable bequest you have stated in a trust or will.
A will is NOT a beneficiary form. When it comes to 401(k)s and IRAs, beneficiary designations are commonly considered first and wills second. If you willed your IRA assets to your son in 2008 but named the man who is now your ex-husband as the beneficiary of your IRA back in 1996, those IRA assets are set up to transfer to your ex-husband in the event of your death. Sometimes beneficiary forms are revised; often they are never revised.
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How would you like to save hundreds or even thousands on your 2011 federal tax return?
Some year-end moves might allow you to do just that.
The fourth quarter of 2011 is passing by quickly and taxpayers now find themselves in the “stretch drive”, with just a few weeks left to make those moves that could help them address tax issues this year and next.
Here is a list of some year-end tax moves to consider, and a few items you might want to review before 2011 ends.
Of course, you should consult a qualified tax or financial professional before taking any action.
Part 1 … some ideas for everyone.
1 Think about estimating your 2011 taxes.
Have you ever tried to estimate the tax you will pay next April? It does take time, and very often it is time well spent. Estimating your taxes will give you some clues about where you can potentially save some tax dollars before 2011 ends.
If you know roughly how much you will owe or receive from the IRS for 2011, then you can act on that information. If hundreds or thousands of dollars might be coming your way, you can start thinking about the destiny of that money – how it might be invested or used to accomplish a goal. If you’re going to be writing a check next April, you can make a payment before the end of 2011 or adjust your withholding to bring you tax bill down.
Download the 12 page guide below:
2011 Stretch Drive Tax Guide
Avoid investment scams contact Jay Peroni today at 866-594-9919 for a 2nd opinion on your investment strategies.
Is SS Income Tax Free?
Many new retirees assume that Social Security income is tax-free. That is not always the case. The Social Security Amendments of 1983 opened the door to taxes on some SSI, depending on the amount of income someone earns in a calendar year.
How much of your SSI is potentially taxable? As much as 85% of it, under certain conditions. Four factors determine how much of your SSI will be taxed:
- The total amount of income that you earn.
- Where it comes from.
- Your taxpayer filing status.
- Your provisional income – a MAGI calculation which you can figure out by using Worksheet 34-1 in IRS Publication 915 or the Social Security Benefits Worksheet in the instruction booklets for IRS Form 1040 and Form 1040A.
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With all the focus on the U.S. debt problems and raising taxes, I thought it would be interesting to take a look at a few ways to potentially save on taxes…
Could you end up paying higher taxes in retirement?
Do you have a lot of money saved in a 401(k) or a traditional IRA? If so, you may be poised to receive significant retirement income.
Those income distributions will be taxed. As federal and state governments are hungry for revenue, you may see higher marginal tax rates in the near future.
Poor retirees with meager savings may rely on Social Security as their prime income source. They may end up paying less income tax in retirement, as up to half of their Social Security benefits won’t be counted as taxable income. On the other hand, those who have saved and invested well may retire to their current tax bracket or even a higher one.
Given this possibility, affluent investors would do well to study the tax efficiency of their portfolios. (Some investments are not particularly tax-efficient – REITs and small-cap funds, for example.) Both pre-tax and after-tax investments have potential advantages.
What’s a pre-tax investment?
Traditional IRAs and 401(k)s are classic examples of pre-tax investments. You can put off paying taxes on the contributions you make to these accounts and the earnings these accounts generate. When you take money out of these accounts come retirement, you will pay taxes on the withdrawal.
Pre-tax investments are also called tax-deferred investments, as the invested assets can benefit from tax-deferred growth.
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Do you live in one of the worst tax states for retirees? Are you fortunate enough to live in one of the best states to do business? Here is a roundup of the miscellaneous, fascinating rankings offered by leading magazines and websites.
What are the best (and worst) states for business? Well, CNBC has ranked all 50 states based on 43 criteria including quality of work force, cost of doing business, quality of life, state economies and access to capital. Coming in at #1: Virginia. Number two is Texas, number three is North Carolina. The state with the lowest cost of doing business – Iowa – ranked 9th. The bottom three? Hawaii (48th), Alaska (49th) and … Rhode Island? Yes, it was dead last. CNBC cited its 10.9% jobless rate and a corporate tax rate nearly as high.
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Having success is often related to avoid deadly wealth destroying mistakes. In this ebook, I share ten of the most common mistakes I have seen people make over the past 16 years of my financial advising career. Come lean and make sure you avoid these mistakes like the plague!
