Who among us wants to pay the IRS more taxes than we have to? While few may raise their hands, Americans regularly overpay because they fail to take tax deductions for which they are eligible. Let’s take a quick look at the five most overlooked opportunities to manage your tax bill. Reinvested Dividends: When your mutual … Read more
Between 30 percent and 60 percent of taxable property has an inflated assessment, which may lead to higher property tax bills. Moreover, typically fewer than 5 percent of taxpayers dispute their assessment.¹ For homeowners who think their local government may have assessed their property’s value too high, there are ways to appeal and potentially win … Read more
No one wants to see an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) auditor show up at their door. The IRS can’t audit every American’s tax return, so it relies on guidelines to select the ones most deserving of its attention. Here are six flags that may make your tax return prime for an IRS audit.1 THE CHANCE … Read more
The varied reasons to donate art include a personal affinity for a museum, the desire to create a legacy, and the tax consideration that may come with the donation. The tax rules surrounding the tax deduction of art are complex and confusing.¹ When donating art, donors can generally claim a federal tax deduction of up … Read more
While Americans are entitled to take every legitimate deduction to manage their taxes, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) places limits on your creativity. Here are some examples of deductions from the IRS that were permitted and some that were, well, too creative.¹ CREATIVE DEDUCTIONS THAT PASSED MUSTER Usually a child’s school-related costs are not deductible. … Read more
By April 19, 2019, 137 million taxpayers had dutifully filed their federal income tax returns.1 And they all made decisions about deductions and credits – whether they realized it. When you take the time to learn more about how it works, you may be able to put the tax code to work for you. A good … Read more
American educational reformer Horace Mann called education “the great equalizer.”1 In football, it’s been said that turnovers are the great equalizer. And anyone who’s ever watched CBS’s “The Amazing Race,” knows airport delays are the great equalizer in a race around the world. In taxes, there’s also an equalizer of sorts; it’s called the alternative minimum … Read more
According to the most recent information available, Americans have individual life insurance with a total face value of $12.4 trillion.1 Due to a variety of factors, these individuals may find themselves in circumstances where the specific life insurance policy or annuity contract they own does not suit their needs.2 They may want to exchange products without … Read more
“Audit” is a word that can strike fear into the hearts of taxpayers. However, the chances of an Internal Revenue Service audit aren’t that high. Between 2010 and 2018, the IRS only audited 0.6% of all individual tax returns.¹ And being audited does not necessarily imply that the IRS suspects wrongdoing. The IRS says an … Read more
Taxes are one of the biggest budget items for most taxpayers, yet many have no idea what they’re getting for their money. In 2017, as in recent years, Americans spent more on taxes than on groceries, clothing, and shelter combined. In fact, we worked until late April just to earn enough money to pay our taxes. … Read more
The Internal Revenue Service estimates that taxpayers and businesses spend about 8 billion hours a year complying with tax-filing requirements. To put this into perspective, if all this work were done by a single company, it would need about four million full-time employees and be one of the largest industries in the U.S.¹ As complex … Read more
By any measure, the tax code is huge. It is over 2,000 pages long, and even longer with footnotes.1 And almost weekly, the Internal Revenue Service publishes a 20- to 50-page bulletin about various aspects of the tax code.2 Fortunately, it’s not necessary to wade through these massive libraries to get a basic understanding of … Read more
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