In a recent general information letter the IRS reiterated several RMD rules and the Required Beginning Date (“RBD”) for taking RMDs: IRAs: The requirement to take RMDs begins on April 1st of the year following the calendar year in which the taxpayer reaches age 70 ½. EXAMPLE: Taxpayer reaches age 70 ½ in 2016. S/he [...]
For everyone who bashed us for this post we’ll now be “fair and balanced” (but not in the Fox News standard for those terms – ha!). Once again the following is factual and not intended as a swipe at any one person or political party. Once again we suspect it will be construed as such. [...]
On April 20, 2016, Representative Sander Levin – the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee – introduced legislation to restore the estate tax rate and exemption level to the same amounts as in 2009. The proposed legislation known as The Sensible Estate Tax Act of 2016 would be a trip back to [...]
The following info is factual. It isn’t intended to be a swipe at any one person or political party although we suspect it will be construed as such. That’s life in 2016. So be it. According to papers released by The White House President and Mrs. Barack Obama had $436,000 of income in 2015 on [...]
Earlier this week the Department of Labor (“DOL”) released new rules aimed at ensuring providers of retirement investment advice adhere to a fiduciary standard – that is, to put the best interests of clients first and above all. This may seem like an obvious point but as we wrote here many investors have no idea [...]
We’ve all heard stories so bizarre they must be true. Planning to send your daughter to Penn State? Make sure she doesn’t rent an apartment with more than one friend because in State College, PA any residential housing unit occupied by three or more unrelated females is considered a brothel. Live in NJ and plan [...]
Many ‘experts’ advise waiting until age 70 to claim Social Security benefits. The reasoning is sound on its face – the longer you wait the larger your monthly check. According to the SS Administration the following is how much of your full benefit you will receive depending upon the age you file: age 62 - [...]
As one of America’s forefathers I thank you for celebrating me today – Presidents’ Day. I accomplished a great deal in my time. Some of my major contributions: I wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence. Four others (John Adams, Ben Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston) joined me in reviewing and revising [...]
It’s nice to see Hillary Clinton pandering once more . . . or does she really believe tax, redistribute and spend will actually grow the pie and kick start the economy? Speaking at an organizing event in Waterloo, Iowa, the Democratic frontrunner railed against all those evil / unethical / immoral people of wealth. "It’s [...]
First the good news... The recently enacted Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2016 includes a subsection that eliminates the state residency requirement for Achieving a Better Life Experience (“ABLE”) accounts. ABLEs are tax-free accounts (similar to §529 qualified tuition plans) that allow individuals who become disabled before reaching the age of 26 to pay for certain [...]