2021-2022 business meal deductions are back!
Have you missed partying and having business meals with your prospects, customers, and employees? Well, get ready to start again. Soon, COVID-19 will behind us. It could be just a [...]
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Filed under Miser Tip, Personal Finance
2021 Key Financial and Tax Facts
Updated PDF file for download: https://www.theadvisoryfirm.net/2021KeyFinancialFacts.pdf
Last minute tax tips for business owners
Tax tips newsletter: https://www.theadvisoryfirm.net/2020taxtips.pdf
The markets
Could a crazy year get even crazier? I’m tracking a market scenario where we go on to hit new highs in the next 2 months, but take another leg down into the election. Be prepared that a repeat of March type behavior could happen again. No guarantees, maybe we just keep going up and up, but its a possibility you need to consider. Want to discuss ways to make sure you don’t have to live through another potential decline? Let’s talk.
As always not investment advice, so do your own due diligence.
Resources for Small Business Owners/ SBA emergency loans
The US Chamber put together a good overview of the stimulus plan for small businesses to help with payroll:
Confused about how much to withhold from your paycheck?
Everyone remembers the 2018 tax year where payroll tax withholdings were messed up due to the tax law changes. A lot of folks ended up owing tax due to not withholding enough throughout the year.
The IRS has completely changed the W-4 tax withholding form that you fill out for your payroll department. The new form does not have the old number of exemptions that we are all used to, but instead has a dollar amount that you calculate to either increase or decrease tax withholding on each paycheck.
Best part is the IRS has a great tool to help you figure out if you will owe or get a refund and how to adjust accordingly. It only takes a few minutes and all you need is the most recent copy of your paystub: www.irs.gov/w4app
Best part is when you get the results you have the option to print out a new W-4 form with the changes already entered.
New law limits the options with inherited IRA’s
Despite this headline, this affects everyone, not just the wealthy. If you inherit Mom or Dad’s IRA, you now have to completely liquidate within 10 years. Before you could stretch it out over a much long period based on your lifespan.
Fee-Only vs. Fee-Based
As a consumer you need to understand how your financial professional is compensated:
https://blogs.wsj.com/moneybeat/2013/09/20/decoding-fee-only-sometimes-it-isnt-what-you-think/
CFA vs. CFP: what they are and how they differ
Great article explaining the top two credentials in personal finance. Having gone through both programs I’ll have to agree with everything they state, but in the end why not work with someone who is both, instead of choosing one or the other?
One of my biggest pet peeves
If you are holding “active” mutual funds within a taxable account, you can end up with a tax nightmare. 2018 was a good example, market was down on the year but many unsuspecting investors got 1099′s because of active mutual fund cap gain distributions. So your account is down but you still owe taxes!
This year the market is up, but you may still get some unwelcome taxable gains. Here is a good article to explain it:
https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-looming-mutual-fund-tax-hit-51569523180?