It looks like Congress won’t get around to fixing the estate tax before this year ends. Aside from boosting the incomes of estate planning attorneys, this doesn’t help anyone. Read the full article

For many people, December is the riskiest month in which to buy into a new mutual fund in a taxable account. This has nothing to do with the gyrations of the stock market, and everything to do with taxes. Read the full article

As the end of the year approaches, it’s always a good idea to take see if there are any last-minute moves that make sense for you. Here are four opportunities for tax savings: Read the full article

Congress just couldn’t resist the urge to give more money away. Read the full article

Under the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) for 2009 from IRAs were waived. People who inadvertently received a distribution were confused about their options, but the IRS has issued clarifying guidance. Read the full article

As the November 30th deadline for the $8,000 first-time homebuyers credit approaches, members of both the House and the Senate are floating ideas for ways to extend the credit. Read the full article

At this time of year it’s a good idea to look for last-minute opportunities to minimize your taxes. Most opportunities require some action before the end of the calendar year; here are several ideas to consider. Read the full article

Home mortgage interest has been a tax-deductible expense on Federal tax returns since 1913. But in a report issued recently, the General Accounting Office (GAO) has recommended that the IRS do a better job of enforcing the rules that apply to the mortgage interest deduction. Read the full article

SIMPLE IRA plans give small employers an easy way to make employer matching contributions to an employee's retirement plan. The administration of these plans is much simpler for employers than most other retirement plans, but SIMPLE IRAs involve twists and turns that can be confusing for the employees who own the accounts. Read the full article

The coming change in Roth IRA conversion rules has been discussed (seemingly) endlessly in the financial planning community, especially lately. What follows is a short summary of how the conversion laws will change. In future posts, I'll write more about the considerations that should go into a Roth IRA conversion decision. Read the full article

I can’t say I’m very surprised by this: the IRS is reporting its first prosecution of a fraud scheme involving the new $8,000 first-time homebuyer credit. Read the full article

The IRS is drawing attention to the fact that the cost of sending your children to a summer day camp can qualify you for lower taxes via the child care tax credit. Read the full article

New social media, like many relatively recent offspring of the internet, are in some ways an invention in search of a need. One thing that social media can be useful for is as a means to support and encourage your favorite charities. Read the full article

The IRS announced last week that its interpretation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is that new car buyers in states without a sales tax deserve a break this year. Read the full article

College graduation season, which lasts for several weeks, is upon us here in the Boston area. According to the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS), graduating seniors with educational debts carry an average debt load on the order of $20,000. More and more, college students are beginning their working lives with fairly heavy debt loads. It's more important than ever for newly-minted grads to hit the ground running with a plan for their finances. Read the full article

A couple of weeks ago I began a primer on ISOs and some of the tax implications of exercising them. I’d like to discuss some cases in which an ISO grant is employed in a manner that is “disqualifying.” Read the full article

There are a number of companies (mostly in high-tech) that reward their employees with a form of deferred compensation called incentive stock options (ISOs). The tax rules for these stock options are complicated, but if you receive this kind of benefit, you need to understand the basic rules for them to be able to use them effectively. For some time I’ve wanted to discuss how profits from stock purchased via ISO exercises are taxed. This post, which will be the first of two parts, is more of a primer than an exhaustive discussion, but I hope it will be useful. (Keep in mind that ISO-related tax calculations can be complex; you should consult a tax adviser before implementing transactions involving ISOs). Read the full article

Periodically the IRS issues a list of tax scams that it considers especially troublesome. Most of the 2009 “Dirty Dozen” Tax Scams involve fraudulent tax filings and other abuses of the tax system. However, the first item on the list is “phishing:” the use of e-mails that appear to come from the IRS but that are actually from crooks looking for ways to steal bank account information, social security numbers, and other personal information. Read the full article

The IRS provides a downloadable tax calendar that’s useful for self-employed workers and small business owners. Here’s a quick list of generally important dates: Read the full article

If you haven’t yet made a 2008 contribution to an IRA or Roth IRA, remember that you must do so before April 15th. You can contribute as much as $5,000 to an IRA for 2008 provided you qualify, and you can contribute an additional $1,000 if you turned 50 during 2008. Permitted contributions are limited to the lesser of your compensation or the contribution limit that applies to your age and Modified Adjusted Gross Income status. Read the full article

The IRS is reminding taxpayers that the 2009 Stimulus Bill included a little something to help boost auto sales. Those who buy a qualifying new car, light truck, motor home or motorcycle in 2009 can deduct state and local sales tax and excise taxes paid on purchase prices up to $49,500. The deduction will be available for 2009 tax returns (only) whether one itemizes or not. Read the full article

Recently I was listening to an IRS webcast on tax law changes (yes, it’s just as exciting as it sounds!) and something caught my attention. I was already aware that people living in disaster areas are eligible for various kinds of tax relief, but I realized that I’d missed an important fact. You don’t have to live in a disaster area to get a tax break; the Heartland Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2008 includes special provisions for educational expenses incurred by students attending college in areas struck by disaster in 2008. This article will be of interest even if you don’t qualify for the expanded disaster relief benefits but are interested in tax benefits available to households with college expenses. Read the full article

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. I’ve learned that it's not unheard-of for a professional tax preparer to advise a married individual to file his or her tax return using the single filer status. No! No! Bad tax preparer! Read the full article

Many employers offer Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) that can be used to pay for healthcare expenses not covered by health insurance. If you participate in one, the money that you have withheld in the account has use-it-or-lose-it status. In some plans, the deadline for spending funds contributed in 2008 was 12-31-08, but many plans have taken advantage of an IRS provision that allows prior-year FSA funds to be used up to 2.5 months after yearend. The deadline this year is March 16th (the 15th is a Sunday).

FSA funds can be used to pay for co-payments, deductibles, or other expenses not covered by your health insurance. In addition to prescription drugs, the IRS has ruled that FSA funds can be used for certain over-the-counter medications.

A number of online over-the-counter drug vendors provide information at their sites regarding which medicines qualify as FSA-reimbursable expenses. Medications for acne, cold medications, pain relievers, and a wide variety of other items can be purchased to use up remaining funds in your account (the IRS frowns on “stockpiling,” though, so don’t buy thirty bottles of Beano®). Be sure to maintain receipts showing the items purchased so that you can substantiate the eligibility of your expenses.

Any funds not used by the deadline are lost to you, so if you’re not sure when your FSA’s deadline is and you have money left from last year's funds, check to be certain. Read the full article

The final version of the 1071-page American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 is due to be signed by President Obama tomorrow. My summary of the bill's key tax items two weeks ago was not far off the mark, but there are a number of nips and tucks in the final version. Read the full article

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