Company-Provided Life Insurance

Does your company provide you with life-insurance?

If your employer sponsors a group term-life insurance policy, you can receive up to $50,000 of coverage tax-free.

Any coverage in excess of $50,000 is taxable to the employee, and the taxable amount is based upon an IRS formula.

Your spouse and dependents may also be covered by the group life insurance policy.  Up to $2,000 of coverage is tax-free.  An IRS formula is used to determine the amount of taxable income you will treated as earning for any coverage in excess of the $2,000 amount.

When the life insurance proceeds are eventually paid due to the death of the insurance, the life insurance proceeds are not subject to taxation.  This is even true if the benefits are received before death if the insured is terminally or chronically ill.

Your employer may even take a tax deduction for a portion of the premiums paid as long as the plan does not discriminate between employees and your employer is not a beneficiary under the life insurance contract.

All this sounds great, right?

There are significant limitations for self-employed individuals (which general includes sole proprietors, partners, members of an LLC, and more than 2% S-corporation shareholders).  As a self-employed individual, you are not treated as an employee for these purposes, and therefore you are not allowed to take a business deduction for the life insurance premiums relating to coverage on you or your family.

Also, if the employer owns the life-insurance contract, the business must include the death benefit proceeds paid (to the extent they exceed the premiums paid) in its gross income.  There are 3 exceptions to this:

1. The insured individual was an employee within 12 months before death;
2. The proceeds are paid to buy back an equity interest; or
3. The insured was a highly compensated employee at the time the contract was issued.

If you have questions about employer provided life insurance coverage, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

If you would like a referral to talk to someone licensed to sell life insurance policies, I would be happy to do that as well.

As always, please do not hesitate to leave your feedback in the comments section below.

Tax Consequences of a Personal Injury Settlement

Have you been injured in a car accident?

Hopefully you have been financially compensated for your injuries through a settlement, but the last thing you want to do now is have to pay taxes on this money.  The good news is that you likely won't have to.

Whether your settlement is taxable depends upon how the settlement is classified.

Personal Injury
If you receive a settlement for personal physical injuries, and did not take an itemized deduction for medical expenses related to the injury in prior years, the full amount is non-taxable.  However, if you claimed medical expenses related to the injury in a prior year, you must include that portion of the settlement in income.

Emotional Distress or Mental Anguish
If a portion of your settlement is for emotional distress or mental anguished originating from a personal physical injury, then it too is non-taxable.  However, the emotional distress or mental anguish must originate from a personal physical injury.

Lost Wages
If a portion of your settlement is for lost wages, that portion is fully taxable.

Property's Loss-in-Value
The taxable portion of a settlement relating to your property's decrease in value depends upon your basis in the property (original purchase price less any allowable deprecation).  If the decrease in value is less than the adjusted basis of your property, that portion of the settlement is not taxable.  However, if the property settlement exceeds your basis in the property, the excess is taxable income.

Punitive Damages
Punitive damages are fully taxable, even in personal injury cases.

It is very important when your attorney is negotiating a settlement that he/she classifies the settlement in a way that minimizes your tax burden.  The IRS will generally respect the classification of the settlement as long as it is consistent with the type of injury suffered.

If you have any questions about the taxability of a legal settlement, or if you would like a referral to a great personal injury attorney, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

As always, I appreciate you leaving your feedback in the comment section below.

Adoption Tax Credit

Are you considering adopting a child?

Adopting a child can be truly rewarding, but the process can be expensive.  However, the cost can be partially offset through the Adoption Tax Credit.

For 2015, families can claim an adoption tax credit worth up to $13,400.  You may qualify for the adoption credit if you adopted a child and paid qualified expenses relating to adoption.  While this tax credit is non-refundable, any unused portion may be carried forward for up to 5 years.

Qualified adoption expenses are reasonable and necessary adoption fees.  They include:

• Court costs;
• Attorney fees;
• Travel expenses; and
• Other expenses directly related to the legal adoption of an eligible child.

An eligible child is a child under the age of 18 (who is not the child of your spouse or from a surrogate parenting arrangement), or an individual of any age who is physically or mentally incapable of caring for him or herself.

If you are adopting a U.S. child with special needs, you may qualify for the full $13,400 regardless of your actual qualified adoption expenses once the adoption becomes final.

For adopting children without special needs, when you are eligible to claim the adoption tax credit depends both upon whether the child is a U.S. citizen or resident and when the qualified expense is paid.

1. If you are adopting a child who is a U.S. citizen or resident:
• Any qualifying expenses paid before the year the adoption becomes final can be claimed the year after the year of the payment;
• Any qualifying expenses the year the adoption becomes final can be claimed that year; and
• Any qualifying expenses paid after the year the adoption becomes final can be claimed in the year of payment.
2.  If you are adoption a foreign child:
• Any qualifying expenses paid before the year the adoption becomes final cannot be claimed until the year the adoption becomes final;
• Any qualifying expenses paid the year the adoption becomes final can be claimed that year; and
• Any qualifying expenses paid after the year the adoption becomes final can be claimed in the year of payment.

Basically, if you are adopting a child who is a U.S. citizen or resident you can use the qualifying expenses to claim the adoption tax credit even if the adoption does not become final, but if you are adopting a foreign child the adoption must become final.

Additionally, if your employer has a qualified adoption assistance program, any amounts paid to you or on your behalf for the purposes of adopting a child may be excluded from your income.

The adoption tax credit does phase out based upon income.  In 2015, if your modified adjusted gross income is greater than $201,010 it begins to phase out and will be completely phased out when your modified adjusted gross income reaches $241,010.

If you are thinking about adopting a child and would like to learn more about the adoption tax credit, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

As always, I appreciate your feedback in the comments section below.

Estate Tax Planning

Congress radically changed the estate planning landscape in 2010 when it introduced the portability election, and it is time for you to learn how to take advantage of it.

 

Prior to 2010, the estate tax regime ignored the reality that married couples think of themselves as a single economic unit, and instead treated them as individuals.  Every individual was entitled to a basic exclusion amount (an amount of assets the value of which would not be subject to gift or estate taxes) which could be used by transferring their assets to any individual other than to a spouse (transfers to spouses were already excluded through the marital deduction).  This structure placed individuals in the difficult position of deciding how much of their assets to leave to their spouses for their support and well-being, and how much to leave to their children in order to take advantage of the basic exclusion amount.  This was a "use it or lose it" system because any unused portion of the basic exclusion amount would disappear.

 

This all changed in 2010 with the creation of the portability election.  If a valid portability election is made, a spouse may take the unused portion of their last deceased spouse's basic exclusion amount and add it to their own.

 

For example, Jacob and Sarah are a married couple.  Jacob dies in 2013 without having made any taxable gifts in his life, and his will directed his executor to leave his entire estate to his wife and to make the portability election.  This allows Sarah to inherit his $5.25 million basic exclusion and add it to her own basic exclusion.  Sarah would then be able to make gifts of up to $10.5 million in 2013 to her children without having to pay gift or estate taxes.

 

I would encourage you to talk to an estate planning attorney regarding your specific needs and desires.  The portability election is a great estate planning tool, but it should be used in conjunction with a will and trusts in order to ensure that your assets are disposed of in the manner that you want.

 

There are a number of issues relating to the portability election that I have not discussed here.  If you would like to learn more about this election or have any questions, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

 

Also feel free to contact me if you would like a referral to a great estate planning attorney.

 

As always, I appreciate your feedback in the comments section below.

End of Year Tax Planning

Its already October, which means that time is quickly running out for you to minimize your 2013 tax liability.  While there are a number of tax-saving strategies that can be employed before year end, after December 31st the only viable way to reduce your tax liability would be to make a contribution to a qualified retirement plan (Plan For Your Retirement; What is an IRA?).

End of year tax planning is more important this year than it has been in a long time.  Here is why:

• Tax rates have gone up for high-income earners.  Single individuals making more than $400,000 per year and married couples (filing jointly) making more than $450,000 per year will have to be a top federal tax rate of 39.6%.
• Those same individuals will now be paying a 20% federal capital gains rate on qualified dividends and long-term capital gains.
• Single individuals making more than $200,000 per year and married couples (filing jointly) making more than $250,000 per year will be subjected to the 3.8% Medicare Surtax on net investment income.
• In addition to all this, California has raised its top tax rate to 12.3%, plus a 1% surtax on taxable income above $1,000,000.

There are ways to minimize the impact that these additional taxes will have on you!

The first thing you need to do is talk to a CPA.  There is plenty of advice you can find online about how to reduce your taxes, but this is not a "one size fits all" issue.  You are a unique individual with a unique financial situation.  What may work for Joe down the street may not be the ideal tax-minimization strategy for you.

Here is what a CPA can do for you:

1. Explain the New Tax Laws.  The Medicare Surtax is a brand new tax that operates in a different manner than the income taxes that you are used to.  A CPA can explain exactly how it works in a way that will make sense to you.
2. Prepare a Tax Projection.  A tax projection will allow you to see what your tax situation will be if you do not employ a new tax-minimization strategy. This will allow your CPA to identify what issues affect your tax situation and begin to develop a strategy to minimize your taxes.
3. Develop a Personalized Tax-Minimization Strategy.  A CPA will work with you to determine the best way to reduce your taxes in a way that best fits your life and desires.

If you have any questions, or would like to talk to me about your end-of-year tax planning, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

As always, I appreciate you leaving any feedback you have below.

How does the Government Shutdown affect Taxes?

As I am sure you already have heard, as of October 1st, 2013, the federal government has "shut down" until a budget can be passed.  As you have been seeing on the news, this means that among other things national parks are closed and nearly 800,000 federal employees are on furlough.  But how does the government shutdown affect your taxes?

For individuals who have filed a tax extension, they must still file their tax returns by October 15th.

 

The IRS will only be processing tax returns that are filed electronically.  Any tax returns that are mailed to the IRS will not be deemed late, as long as they are still mailed by October 15th, but will not be processed until after the government shutdown ends.

 

The IRS will not be issuing any tax refunds.  Sorry, but this means that if the federal government owes you money you will not receive it until after the government shutdown ends.  I would expect that there will be delays even after the government is back to operating normally because it will take the IRS some time to process all of the tax returns.

 

Most customer service assistance will not be available.  There will not be any live telephone assistance and the IRS walk-in taxpayer assistance centers will be closed.  However, most automated telephone applications will still work.

 

IRS audits are on hold.  The IRS's auditors have been furloughed, so any meetings related to IRS audits, collections, or appeals have been cancelled.  If you are currently involved in an IRS audit, you should assume that it will resume once the government shutdown ends, but you have some extra time now to prepare for it.

 

Automated IRS notices will continue to be mailed.  This means that despite the government shutdown you may receive a notice from the IRS.  However, the IRS will not be working on any paper correspondence during this time.  If you receive an IRS notice, talk to your CPA about it just like you normally would.

 

If you would like to talk privately about how the government shutdown will affect your tax situation, please do not hesitate to send me an email.

 

What are your thoughts about the tax consequences of the government shutdown?  Please leave your comments below.

 

 

What is an IRA?

Everyone keeps telling you that you need to save for your retirement, but your company does not have a 401(k).  What are you supposed to do?  You can contribute to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA)!

 

The advice that everyone is giving you is right, you need to make sure you save for your own retirement.  One estimate projected that the Social Security trust fund will be exhausted by 2037 if not sooner.  I discussed this and provided advice for your retirement savings plan in Plan for Your Retirement: No One Else Will.

 

If your employer does not provide a company 401(k) plan, you will want to talk to your financial advisor about establishing an IRA.  But what is an IRA?

There are 2 basic types of IRAs:

 

1) Traditional IRA

 

Qualified contributions to a Traditional IRA help to reduce your taxes because they are tax-deductible.  Contributions to a Traditional IRA are one the few ways in which you can actually reduce your tax bill after the year ends.  The governments allows you to make a contribution up until April 15th of the following year, and to take the deduction in the preceding year.

 

The amount you are allowed to contribute to a Traditional IRA changes frequently as it is adjusted for inflation, but in 2013 you are allowed to make a contribution up to $5,500, or $6,500 if you are age 50 or over.

 

Once invested into a Traditional IRA, all of the funds grow without being taxed.  You will not be taxed until you withdraw the funds! 

 

There are a few basic requirements in order to make a contribution to a Traditional IRA:

• The contributor must be an individual (not a trust, company, etc.)
• You must be under the age of 70.5
• You must have sufficient earned income or compensation (at least as much as you contribute to your IRA)

 

Be careful though.  The ability to make a tax-deductible contribution phases out based upon whether or not your employer provides a company retirement plan, your tax filing status, and your income level. 

 

2) Roth IRA

 

The principal difference between Traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs are that with Traditional IRAs the contributions are tax-free while with Roth IRAs the distributions are tax-free.

 

In 2013, you are allowed to make a contribution up to $5,500 or $6,500 if you are age 50 or over.  However, the contribution limitation changes based upon your tax filing status and your income level.

 

Once invested into a Roth IRA, all the funds grow tax-free.  Furthermore, all of the distributions are tax-free provided that you are over the age of 59 1/2 and have had the Roth IRA account for at least 5 years.

 

Again, there are a few basic requirements in order to make a contribution to a Roth IRA:

• The contributor must be an individual (not a trust, company, etc.)
• You must have sufficient earned income or compensation (at least as much as you contribute to your IRA).

 

You will notice that unlike with Traditional IRAs, there is no age restriction on being able to contribute to a Roth IRA.

 

Of course these are only the 2 most basic types of IRAs.  You may want to discuss non-deductible IRAs, SEP IRAs, and SIMPLE IRAs with a financial advisor to determine what type of IRA makes the most sense for your situation.  If you need a referral to a great financial advisor, please do not hesitate to ask me.

 

If you have any tax questions that I can answer, please send me an e-mail.

 

Please feel free to leave your feedback below.

 

Business Networking

Want to grow your business?

There are a number of ways that you can promote yourself and your business.  In my opinion, one of the most effective methods is to network.

By going to a networking event, you are likely to meet someone who is either interested in your services or who knows someone who would be interested in your services.  Of course it is difficult to get a new customer/client based on one meeting, but it can be the first step to creating a new relationship.  I have met a number of professionals at various local events, and have followed up with them through e-mails and meetings in order to find out how we both can help each other.  You never know what chance encounter you may have at a networking event that can be a major benefit to your business.

So why I am talking about business networking in a tax blog? 

It is because the costs of business networking are tax deductible.  Like other forms of advertising, the IRS treats networking as an ordinary and necessary business expense and allows you to deduct it on your tax return.

The cost of admission to a networking event...deductible.

The cost of taking someone you met at a networking event to lunch to talk business... 50% deductible.

The dues paid to a business referral group...deductible.

The cost of traveling to a networking event or business referral group... deductible.

The requirements to claim these deductions are very simple.  First, you have to be able to prove you spent the amount you are deducting (save your receipts).  Second, you have to have had a valid business purpose.  For example, if you take someone you met at a networking event out to lunch you have to talk business with that person.  You cannot simply talk about sports and the weather.

If you have any tax questions, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

What are some of your favorite networking events?  Please let me know in the comment section below.

Paying for College

College is expensive.  There is no getting around that one simple fact.  In one survey, it was determined that for the 2012-2013 school year, the average cost for an in-state public college was $22,261, and the average cost for a private college was $43,289.  Keep in mind that is a per-year cost, and included is the cost of tuition, fees, book, and housing.

Who thinks that the cost of higher education is going to go down?  Yeah, I don't either.

So what can you do to make college more affordable?

Of course there are academic and athletic scholarships.  If you can get any type of scholarship that is of course the ideal situation.  Not only is it "free" money, but it is non-taxable to the extent that it is used to pay for your tuition, fees, books, and other course-related supplies.

It is also very common to take out student loans.  There are a variety of types of student loans, but a common feature for tax purposes is that the interest paid on student loans is deductible.  This deduction phases out for single individuals with income over $75,000 and married couples with income over $155,000.

Already paying for college?  There are several federal tax credits that you can take advantage of.

• The American Opportunity Credit. This credit is worth up to $2,500 per year per eligible student.  This credit is available for the first 4 years of higher education at an eligible school.  You are able to claim the credit to cover the costs of tuition and required fees, books, and other course-related materials.   An added bonus with this tax credit is that it is partially refundable.  This means that you can get a tax refund of up to $1,000 even if you do not owe taxes.
   
• The Lifetime Learning Credit.  This credit is worth up to $2,000 per year per tax return.  The credit is available even after the first 4 years of higher education.

There are also several ways to help to save for college that have tax advantages.

• Savings Bond Interest Exclusion.  All of the interest income from Series I and Series EE bonds issued after 1989 are tax-free.  To qualify, the bond owner must have been at least 24 years old when the bond was issued, and the money must be used to pay qualified education expenses for yourself, your spouse, or a dependent.  This tax benefit phases out based upon your income level.
• 529 Savings Plans.  Your investment into a 529 Savings Plan grows tax-deferred, and the distributions from the plan that are used to pay for the beneficiary's college costs are tax-free.  With a 529 Savings Plan, the full value of your account can be used at any accredited college or university in the country.  Any non-qualified distributions are subject to a 10% penalty on the earnings and will be taxed.
• 529 Prepaid Plans.  Prepaid tuition plans are guaranteed to increase in value at the same rate as college tuition.  This means that tuition rates are locked in, offering peace of mind if you expect college tuition to rise. If the student attends an in-state public college, the plan pays the tuition and the required fees.  If the student decides to attend a private or out-of-state college, the plans typically pay the average of in-state public college tuition.  If a student decides not to attend college, the plan can be transferred to another member of the family.  529 Prepaid Plans are exempt from federal income taxation.  If no member of your family attends college, any non-qualified distributions are subject to a 10% penalty on the earnings and will be taxed.
• Education Savings Account.  Up to $2,000 can be contributed to a Coverdell Education Savings Account in any year.  The amounts deposited into the account grow tax-free until distributed, and the distributions are tax-free as long as they are used for qualified education expenses.  If a distribution exceeds qualified education expenses, the portion attributable to earnings will be subject to a 10% penalty and will be taxed.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask in the comment section below or send me an e-mail.

Do you know a high school athlete who is hoping to earn an athletic scholarship for college?  I can refer you to someone who will evaluate that athlete and help him or her get a scholarship.

I would also be happy to refer you to a great financial advisor who can discuss strategies for saving for your or your children's education.

I appreciate your feedback.  Please feel free to leave a comment below.

Why Have a 401(k)?

What financial advice have you been given?

Throughout my life I received 2 main pieces of financial advice.  1) Save for my own retirement.  2) Contribute enough to a 401(k) plan to maximize the employer match.

Every 401(k) plan is different as businesses set them up in order to best meet their needs and the needs of their employees.  However, a typical arrangement is for employers to match their employees contributions to their 401(k) plans $0.50 on the dollar, up to 3% of the employees gross salary.

If that is how your 401(k) plan works, you should contribute at least 6% of your gross salary to your 401(k) plan.  That effectively increases your salary by 3%! Why would you want to leave money on the table?

I would encourage you to actually contribute more than that to your 401(k) plan, as long as you can afford to do so.  In a previous blog post, Plan For Your Retirement: No One Else Will, I discussed why you should contribute to your own retirement and the significant advantages to doing so.  Please read that post and see why you should contribute what you can afford to your qualified retirement plan.

But what is in it for employers?  As an employer, why should you set up a 401(k) plan and put your money into your employee's retirement fund?

• $1,500 Tax Credit. Employers are entitled to claim a tax credit equal to 50% of the cost to set up and administer the plan, and to educate employees about the plan.  The credit is worth a maximum of $500 per year for each of the first 3 years of the plan.  If you are unable to use this credit in any given year, the unused portion can be carried back or forward to other tax years.  There are a few basic requirements that you should discuss with a CPA.
• Tax Deduction.  Every penny that an employer contributes to a 401(k) plan, including to his or her own, is a tax deduction.  As an employer, you are also able to deduct the cost of administering the plan and educating your employees about the plan.  This is because the IRS considers the operation of a 401(k) plan to be an ordinary and necessary business expense.
• Better Employee Recruitment and Retention.  For any business, having great employees is essential.  They represent you, so it is important that you are able to recruit the best possible employees and retain them once you have them.  All else being equal, I would choose to work for a company that has a 401(k) plan over one that doesn't.  It shows employees that you care about them and their retirement.  It helps to build loyalty to your company.

If you would like to discuss the tax benefits of establishing and operating a 401(k) plan, or you have any questions, please send me an e-mail.

I would also be happy to refer you to a great financial advisor who can discuss all the non-tax aspects of your existing 401(k) plan or help you to establish a new 401(k) plan.

I appreciate your feedback.  Please feel free to leave a comment below.

Is Working From Home an Option for You?

Because of advances in technology, it is increasingly easy for people to work from home and save money doing so.

Having a home office means that you do not have to spend hours every month sitting in traffic trying to get to work, and you do not have to spend as much on fuel for your car.  It also means, if you own your own business, that you can save thousands of dollars in rent.  But it also is a tax deduction.  By claiming the home office deduction, you are allowed to deduct a portion of your living expenses such as utilities, that would otherwise be non-deductible.

This deduction is available to you whether you own your own business or work for someone else.  But if you are an employee, you must be working from home for your employer's convenience and not your own.  If your employer requires that you work from home, then that test is met.

Unfortunately, this deduction has been greatly abused by taxpayers and now the IRS is very strict in ensuring that your home office meets all of the requirements for the tax deduction.

The home office deduction is only permitted if the home office is used exclusively on a regular basis either: 1) as the principal place of business for any trade or business of the taxpayer; 2) as a place of business that is used by patients, clients, or customers in meeting or dealing with the taxpayer in the normal course of his or her trade or business; or 3) in the case of a separate structure that is not attached to the dwelling unit, in connection with the taxpayer's trade or business.

To qualify under the "regular use" test, the home office must be used on a regular basis.  Working from home once a month does not count.

To qualify under the "exclusive use" test, you must use a specific area of your home exclusively for your business.  Even after "business hours," you cannot use the space for non-business purposes.  Something as simple as your children "hanging out" in that room when you are not conducting business disqualifies the whole deduction.

However, if your home office meets these tests, the deduction can be substantial.  Under a new safe-harbor, the deduction is $5 for every allowable square foot, up to 300 square feet.  The deduction can be even greater if you keep track of all of your actual expenses, such as your mortgage, property taxes, and utilities.

If you have a home office, or are thinking about having one, and you want to make sure that it qualifies for the tax deduction, please send me an e-mail.  I will walk you through what qualifies, explain how the deduction is calculated, and answer any other questions you have about this deduction.

I can also recommend a great IT consultant.  It is improved technology that is allowing so many more people the opportunity to work from home, so you need to make sure that you are properly set up to do so.

I would love to get your feedback through the comment section below.

Plan for Your Retirement: No One Else Will

The Social Security trust fund will be exhausted by 2037.  This is according to one estimate provided by the Social Security Administration.

This means that it is up to you to provide for your retirement. But don't worry, you can make sure that you have a comfortable retirement if you follow two pieces of advice:

1) Start saving for your retirement early.  Start now.  I know, you have a lot of bills to pay and it will be decades until you retire.  You feel like you can start saving when you are more financially secure, and will just make up for starting later by saving more in the future.  This could work, but it comes at a cost.

For example, take Bill and his friend Bob.  Both are young men with a lot of bills, but Bill's family taught him to start saving for his retirement as soon as he could.  Both got hired to full-time jobs when they were 24 years old.  Bill looked at his expenses, and realized he could contribute $2,000 a year to his retirement at the end of every year.  He invested conservatively, and earned a steady 5% return without taxes every year.  At the age of 65, he had just under $270,000 saved.

Bob, on the other hand, did not set aside any money in his 20s or 30s.  It took Bob 20 years to feel financially secure enough to start contributing to his retirement account.  Bob, now 44 years old, wanted to catch up with Bill and decided to put  $7,000 a year into his retirement account at the end of every year.  Bob invested the same as Bill, and earned the same steady 5% return without taxes every year.  At the age of 65, he had just over $260,000 saved.

As you can see, in order to have between $260,000 and $270,000 in their retirement accounts, Bill only had to contribute $82,000 while Bob had to contribute $147,000 ($65,000 more).  This is all because Bill started saving at an early age.

That is the power of compounding investment returns.

2) Invest through a qualified retirement plan.  The IRS gives special tax treatment to certain types of retirement accounts including, but not limited to:

• 401(k)
• 403(b)
• Traditional IRA
• Roth IRA

There are different features and tax incentives attached to each of these types of retirement accounts, but they share one very important feature.  All the earnings grow tax-free.  Bob and Bill both had their money invested in a qualified retirement account, so all of the earnings grew tax-free.  If they decided to put their retirement savings in a normal investment account, they each would have had far less in their retirement accounts because they would have a significant amount taken out each year in taxes.

It is very rare for the government to allow you to invest your money without taxing it for decades, if ever.

These types of retirement accounts have another significant tax incentive.

Contributions to 401(k)s and 403(b)s reduce the amount of taxable wages you report on your tax return.  For example, if you earned $100,000 in a year, and you contributed $5,000 to your 401(k), your W-2 would only show $95,000 of gross wages.

Contributions to a Traditional IRA are deductible for the year of the contribution.  Thus, if you earned $100,000 during the year and contributed $5,000 to your Traditional IRA, you would take a deduction on your tax return for $5,000, leaving you with gross income of $95,000.

Assuming you are in a 25% federal tax bracket, you would save $1,250 in federal taxes for making a $5,000 contribution to your own retirement.

Distributions from a Roth IRA are tax-free.  This is delayed gratification, but if you expect to be in a higher income tax bracket when you retire or you think that tax rates will go up, you can choose to put your money into a Roth IRA and let it grow tax-free and then eventually take it out of your retirement account tax-free.

Please note that this is only a very brief overview of retirement plans.  I plan to discuss different aspects of retirement plans and the benefits to employers to sponsoring a 401(k) or 403(b) plan in future blog posts.

I strongly encourage you to talk to your financial advisor about setting up a retirement plan if you do not have one already.  If you need a referral to a financial advisor, I know a great financial advisor who would be happy to answer any of your questions.

I would love to get your feedback through comments below.  If you have a question that you would like to discuss with me privately, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.

The Value of Rental Real Estate



 

Like most people, I want to be financially successful.  As a tax practitioner with a number of financially successful clients, I have the unique ability to see what traits they have in common.  One particular trait stands out to me: they diversify their investments among stocks, bonds, and rental real estate.

 

What makes rental real estate an attractive investment to the wealthy?

 

It could be the simple business model.  Person A needs a place to live.  Person B owns an extra house.  Person A pays Person B to live there.

 

It could be that it is a tangible investment.  An investment simply feels more real if you can see it before your eyes.

 

Or it could be that the investor expects the property value to rise and wants to finance the property through others paying rent.

 

In addition to all those reason, I think the tax incentives that the government gives rental property owners is a big factor. 

 

 

There are a number of tax advantages to owning rental real estate.

• Depreciation.  When you are renting out real estate, you are entitled to depreciate the full value of the building over a number of years (how many depends on whether it is a residential or non-residential property).  This means that you can depreciate both the amount of cash you paid plus the amount that you borrowed on the property.  Note: Only the building is depreciable, not the value of the land.
• Expenses are deductible.  All the expenses you incur in renting the property are deductible.  This includes mortgage interest, property taxes, a property manager, HOA fees, utilities, etc.  Of particular value is the mortgage interest deduction.  As I mentioned above, you are already allowed to depreciate the mortgage, but this deduction allows you to deduct the interest paid as well.
• Capital Gains.  When you eventually sell the property, assuming that you purchased as a rental and operated it in that manner, any gain will be taxed at capital gains rates which are significantly lower than ordinary income tax rates.

Taking advantage of these incentives means that in some years investors may have a positive cash flow but little to no taxable income.

There are some limitations on these benefits.  Because of tax games that were played in the 1980s, Congress has categorized all rental income as "passive income" and only allows passive losses to offset passive income.  There are two exceptions. 

The first is for real estate professionals, which we will not discuss here.  The second exception allows individuals to deduct up to $25,000 of rental losses if they actively participated in the real estate activity.  This exception phased out for individuals with modified adjusted gross incomes of greater than $100,000.

Some successful investors choose to participate in real estate investment groups instead of purchasing properties themselves.  In addition to all the tax benefits, this lets the investors avoid the traditional landlord responsibilities, gives them access to professionals to select the best investments, and allows them to invest smaller amounts.  For example, I know of one San Diego-based real estate investment group that allows investors to join for as low as $10,000.  This is significantly less than the 20-30% downpayment that a bank may require to finance a rental property.

I would love to get your feedback and answer any questions you may have.  If you want to ask me a question privately, please send me an e-mail.

Also, please let me know if you would like a referral to any of the following professionals:

• Real Estate Agent
• Property Manager
• Mortgage Broker
• Home Owners Insurance Agent
• Real Estate Investment Group

Initial Blog Post

Hi and thank you for checking out my new weekly blog!

I am a practicing CPA/ Tax Attorney at Reid, Sahm, Isaacs & Schmelzlen, LLP, a San Diego CPA firm.  My focus is on tax preparation, planning, and controversy resolution for individuals and businesses.
If you would like to learn more about me, please click here, or check me out on LinkedIn.

This blog will be about various topics to discuss their tax implications.  For example, I will soon be writing about the tax advantages of owning rental real estate.

In every blog post, it is my goal to help educate people about the potential tax consequences to a certain action, and to give my commentary.  Please consult a tax professional before acting on anything I discuss.  Everything I discuss is in generalities, and because of your specific situation different rules may apply.  Also, as blog posts live on the internet forever and tax laws change frequently, you will want to check to see the tax laws that I am discussing still apply.

Finally, I have a network of professionals that I trust and would be happy to refer you to.  If I know a professional who works in an industry I am discussing in a certain blog, I will mention that at the end of the blog.

This blog will be updated at least once a week.