How to Avoid Capital Gains Taxes
For many of the nation’s high net worth individuals, much of their wealth comes from capital gains. Capital gains are better than income because they are taxed at a much lower percentage than other income. While capital gains taxes could be going down under the Trump administration, it still pays to know every trick in the book to avoid paying more taxes on them than you have to.
With that mind, let’s look at some of the important tips you should know in order to keep your capital gains taxes low. One smart move is to use a tax-advantaged retirement account when you invest. When you use a retirement account to invest, your money is allowed to grow tax-deferred, instead of paying a tax on the gains like a normal investment. Plus, if you use a Roth IRA, even your withdrawals are tax-free.
Additionally, the longer you hold your investments the less you will pay in taxes. If you hold an investment for a year or less then you will pay a percentage rate equal to your ordinary income. If you hold them longer than a year your rates decrease substantially.
Always look for opportunities to sell your underperforming stocks in order to offset the gains from your successful stocks. This will lower your tax bill. Lastly, keep track of your home improvements so when it comes time to sell your home you can use those expenses as deductions from any gains you make on the sale price of your home.
https://www.fool.com/retirement/2017/02/07/4-tips-for-avoiding-capital-gains-tax.aspx
Tax-wise Gifts for Loved Ones
Tax-wise Gifts for Loved Ones One of the great joys of parenting (or grand parenting) is watching your youngsters reach milestones, large and small. Nurturing these loved ones. Offering them the emotional and financial support that they need in order to thrive. From an estate planning perspective, making gifts is an excellent way to accomplish…
10 Things Every Taxpayer Needs to Know About the Pension Law
10 Things Every Taxpayer Needs to Know About the Pension Law The Pension Protection Act, signed into law on August 17, 2006, is designed to address the nation-wide problem of under-funded pension plans. The law penalizes noncompliant companies and encourages employee contributions, but many of the changes directly impact taxpayers of all ages, regardless of…
Planning for Retirement
Planning for Retirement Unfortunately, Social Security’s assets are being rapidly consumed and the number of workers supporting it is shrinking. For us, this means we will have to rely heavily on our personal savings when the time for retirement finally comes. While there are a number of options to help each of us create a…
Ten Tax Tips for Individuals Selling Their Home
Ten Tax Tips for Individuals Selling Their Home The Internal Revenue Service has some important information for those who have sold or are about to sell their home. If you have a gain from the sale of your main home, you may be able to exclude all or part of that gain from your income.…