Retirement Watch Weekly
How to Reap More From Selling a Business
Business sellers often leave a lot of money on the table. They pay extra taxes on the sale, because they do not use some key tax breaks. We’ll look at one of those strategies in this visit. There are two problems a business seller must solve. One is liquidity. The seller wants cash for the […]
Best Estate Planning Strategies to Help with Education
Numerous vehicles are available to help prepare for education expenses. Parents and grandparents need to compare carefully to choose right vehicle for them. The Section 529 college savings plan gets the most attention. It is open to anyone regardless of income level. The investment earnings compound tax-free and can be withdrawn tax free if used […]
Key IRA Decisions for 2005
It’s another year, and many IRA owners have to focus on required minimum distributions (RMDs). The right strategy for these and other aspects of an IRA can make the account last longer. RMDs are mandatory after an owner is age 70 1/2. The rules apply to all qualified retirement plans, though we’ll focus on IRAs […]
New Estate Planning Danger in State Taxes
Federal estate taxes are shrinking for many estates. That shifts the focus of savvy estate planners to state death taxes. State death taxes now loom prominently over many estates for several reasons. Before the 2001 tax law, there was a credit against federal estates taxes for state death taxes paid. Because of the credit, the […]
Estate Planning: New Looks in 529 Plans
States are making big changes in their 529 college savings plans. These are the tax-advantaged plans that help people save for the education expenses of their children or grandchildren, or anyone else for that matter. Numerous forces caused the changes. It has been pointed out, in this newsletter especially, that after the 2003 tax law […]
Tapping Real Estate Equity, Part 2
The rapid real estate appreciation of recent years endowed many families with substantial real estate wealth but not enough cash. Real estate appreciation does not produce cash. But it does result in higher property taxes, and there are maintenance expenses to pay. Some families also are disappointed with having paper wealth that cannot be spent […]
How to Buy the Right Amount of Life Insurance
Most Americans ignore what insurers tell them about the amount of life insurance to buy. That’s probably a good thing for them. Even so, most people own the wrong amount of insurance. They ask the wrong question and get the wrong answer. The insurance industry generally recommends buying life insurance benefits equal to seven times […]
How to make the best of a rollover of a retirement plan?
One of the biggest obstacles to effective retirement planning is the number of complicated decisions that are made only once or twice in a lifetime. A lot of research is required to make the right decisions, and the wrong decision can cost thousands of dollars in taxes or more in reduced benefits during retirement. Yet, […]
