Have you been putting off estate planning? I know you know it’s important so this month I’ve decided to peek at the estates of Robin Williams, Frank Sinatra and Marlon Brando. There are a number of lessons we can learn. Robin Williams Robin Williams was a comic genius who won four Golden Globes, two Emmys […]
A few weeks before the presidential election, my friend Ted sent me a link to a YouTube video that had a strong political bias. Since I’d never known Ted to be a particularly political guy, I started watching out of curiosity just to see what he’d found so intriguing. The gist of the video was […]
When it comes to saving for a child’s college education, I know two things: It’s bloody difficult to pay for college. It’s just ridiculously expensive, and one ought to start saving for it right away, the sooner the better. Anytime you saved in the past you had to deal with taxes. So, how would you […]
If you own a profitable business, and you plan to purchase property, vehicles or equipment for the business, you may want to act quickly. The increased section 179 expense deduction limit of $500,000 expires by the end of 2011. Also, the definitions of section 179 property will be changing after this year. What does this […]
In September, the Internal Revenue Service announced some relief for 2010 estates. Here are the details: The large estates of people who died in 2010 will have until January 17, 2012, to file Form 8939 and pay any estate taxes due. The special carryover basis form was previously to be due on Nov. 15. In […]
As the end of the year approaches, it’s worth taking a look at the possibility of harvesting capital losses. Doing so may save taxes and can be a positive in years when the markets don’t provide strong returns. If you’ve been a client for a long time you know that in the ’90s we probably […]
Early in the new year is a good time to gather financial information in order to prepare your prior-year tax return. You and your tax advisor will be looking at your sources of income, capital gains and losses, and other financial information for the prior year. A review of your investment portfolio may reveal strategies […]