March Madness – Final Four Tax Tips!

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March Madness is here! The NCAA college basketball tournament is the second largest grossing sports event in America, slightly behind the Super Bowl. Though the tournament is set to begin on Tuesday March 17th, the real March Madness has already begun: tax preparation and planning!

Proactive tax planning means more than completing your tax return by April 15th. As our country tackles it’s massive debt and entitlement program obligations, additional taxes, including tax on retirement accounts, college saving accounts and the so called “Fair Share Taxes” leads for concern about where taxes will be 10, 15, or 20 years from now. Today we have choices: (1) we can choose to ignore the pending threat of higher taxes, and cross our fingers that they do not go up, or (2) we can implement some strategies to insulate and buffer ourselves against higher taxes. It’s time to lace up your shoes, get on the courts, and win yourself a financially secure future. Remember, we also still have a free TV to give away: just let us know what you are doing today to add more tax efficiency and shelter yourself from higher taxes, and you’ll be entered in the raffle. To help you with the process here’s our Final Four Tips!

rising taxes.

  1. Create a financial plan

Working with a professional to get an overall financial plan done can help to identify opportunities for more tax efficiency. Some people like to do things on their own, and that is perfectly okay, but the value that a financial professional can bring cannot be overlooked. There are many things that can be accomplished through hard work and learning from your mistakes but your finances should not be one of them. Read more

8 Threats for Retirement Accounts

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While supporters of President Obama’s 2016 Fiscal Budget say the budget will make it easier to save for retirement, the proposal is giving mixed messages when it comes to retirement planning.  I have identified eight budget provisions that would have a negative impact to many retirement accounts. Read more

Turn Your Taxable Portfolio Into A Tax-Free Retirement Account

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Long-time federal workers have a unique opportunity for tax-free retirement income…but

immediate action is vital. Under President Obama’s proposed budget, aftertax rollovers to Roth IRAs will end next year. Throughout 2015, Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and CSRS Offset employees can still lock in the benefits.

THE REWARDS OF ROTH IRAs

Savvy investors understand the advantages of Roth IRAs. Contributions arn’t tax-deductible,
but all withdrawals can be tax-free. So you don’t have to share your investment earnings with
the IRS.

However, contributions to Roth IRAs are limited to modest amounts. Besides making
contributions, you can convert a traditional IRA of any size to a Roth IRA—but that could mean paying a huge tax bill. Some federal employees can overcome those obstacles. If you are in the CSRS, you can contribute to the little-known Voluntary Contribution Program. Read more

The Need for Proactive Tax Planning – And a Chance to Win a FREE TV!

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The debt crisis that the US Government and individuals face is a pressing issue.   This crisis needs to be confronted for the financial health of the United States.  We complain about taxes now… they could get a whole lot worse.

David Walker, President and CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation and former comptroller general of the United States, believes that by 2030, without significant reforms to our government programs and policies, federal taxes could double from current levels.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that, as the economy recovers, revenues under current law will increase over the next couple of years, reaching about 18 percent of GDP in 2024. Individual income taxes and social insurance taxes (largely social security payroll taxes) account for most of federal government revenue.

In its latest long-term budget outlook (July 2014), the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that, within 25 years, federal debt held by the public would rise under current law to 106 percent of GDP and to 183 percent of GDP under less optimistic assumptions. Debt at those levels would put our economic future at risk. Read more

When Will Interest Rates Rise?

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Carol Schmidlin, President of FedSavvy Educational Solutions exclusive interview with Mike Sorrentino, CFA, Chief Strategist at Global Financial Private Capital in Sarasota, Florida.

THE GOOD OL’ DAYS

Carol: Conservative investors have realized next to no return on bank CDs, money market funds, and other cash investments since the financial crisis in 2008. This war on seniors and savers has forced investors to choose to earn nothing in cash or use risky investments to generate an attractive return.

 Mike:  Expectations around when the Fed will raise interest rates has become the talk of both Wall Street and Main Street, as investors yearn for the days when a bank CD paid 5% in yield.  I receive countless inquiries from investors asking this very question and during our conversation will run through a quick but thorough analysis to determine when we could see the first rate hike by the Fed.

 

Carol:  Can you share your thoughts with our readers on when rates will rise?

 Mike:  In order to answer the question of when rates will rise, it’s first important to understand why the Fed would even want to raise rates.

 

If our economy is growing very fast, overall demand for products rises as consumers and businesses spend rapidly, which will often cause inflation to surge. Too much inflation can be devastating, so the Fed tries to manage the level of inflation in our economy at all times.

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