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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
Everyone has a story about finding money on the ground. For most of us, I’d bet it was no more than lose change, or if lucky, a few bucks. That’s nothing compared to what a California couple found. It was 1,400 gold coins worth $10,000,000! Talk about stumbling onto a fortune. Continue Reading…
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The tax code is full of ways to lower to your taxes. The Saver’s Credit (formerly the Retirement Savings Contribution Credit) is a tax credit for something we should be doing anyways, saving for retirement. This is on top of the great tax benefits already offered by retirement plans. With a little tax planning you can turn this tax credit into big savings.
The Saver’s Credit helps those taxpayers who save for retirement but are on the lower end of the income scale. Consider it a reward for being a responsible saver, in that it helps offset part of your contributions each year.
Here’s how it works. The Saver’s Credit offsets 50%, 20%, or 10% of the first $2,000 ($4,000 if married filing jointly) of your retirement contributions each year. That gives you up to a maximum tax credit of $1,000 ($2,000 if married filing jointly) each year. Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
An old pricing model is back in fashion. It’s found in tech circles were buyers wear blinders to real valuation metrics. Who needs earnings or revenues when you have users!
Price per user is nothing new. The dotcom boom was the first iteration. It’s built on the prospect of turning users into dollars eventually. For now, user growth and engagement matter and the price per user is rising. Continue Reading…
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Investors should keep an eye out for some extra tax forms each year. When you deal with interest income, form 1099-INT is the form you need to get your tax return done.
This form isn’t limited to investors either. Anyone earning interest on savings accounts, money market accounts, CDs, or bonds is a potential candidate.
However, it won’t report earnings from mutual funds invested in bonds. Mutual fund earnings are reported on 1099-DIV for dividends and distributions.
This can be confusing without some good tax software or an accountant to help sort it out. It’s also why TurboTax comes in handy when I do my tax returns every year because it sorts out all the tax forms for me. Continue Reading…
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Welcome to the end of the week and another edition of Happy Hour! Just sit back, relax, and enjoy your end of the week roundup of all things interesting in the land of money.
While you’re lavishing your partner with cards, candy, flowers, and dinner today, understand you could have gotten it all for less tomorrow. Ah…the price of love.
This is nothing new. Holidays are big business. And businesses take advantage of our willingness to conform. Continue Reading…
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Investors with taxable accounts have a bigger pile of tax forms to deal with every year. Form 1099-DIV is one form you get when your investments pay out dividends and distributions. If you’re like me, it means you spend a little more quality time with tax software each year. Or, maybe you pass it off to your accountant. But do you really understand what is reported in each box of a 1099-DIV? Do you know how it affects your taxes or your investments?
Unfortunately, not all dividends and distributions are taxed the same. And it’s not always easy to figure out. I use TurboTax for help when I get stuck. Regardless, you should still understand what is reported on the 1099-DIV, the tax consequences of each box, and how it might affect your investments. In turn, it might even help you build a more tax efficient investment strategy and lower your taxes in the long run. Continue Reading…