Plan Your 2025 Retirement Contributions

Plan Your 2025 Retirement Contributions

As part of your planning for next year, now is the time to review funding your retirement accounts in 2025. Recent cost of living calculations means much higher contribution limits for next year. Plus the higher income phaseouts for eligibility will make many more...
Tax Shifting Ideas to Reduce Your Bill to Uncle Sam

Tax Shifting Ideas to Reduce Your Bill to Uncle Sam

Is there a taxable income reduction idea you can use? Many tax experts talk about shifting your tax burden from one year to the next. While in theory it may make sense, how can you make it work for you in practice? The concept Since the tax code is complex in its...
Avoid Name Mismatch Audits

Avoid Name Mismatch Audits

If you were married, divorced, or changed your name for any reason during the past year, do not forget to file to change your name prior to preparing next year’s tax return. The IRS automatically conducts a name match on the first few letters of your last name....
Taxable or Not Taxable?

Taxable or Not Taxable?

Some of these items may surprise you. There are a number of areas in the tax code that cause confusion as to the taxability of money received. Here are some of the most common areas of confusion. Unemployment compensation. Unemployment compensation is typically...
15 Year-End Tax Tips

15 Year-End Tax Tips

At the end of each year there are a number of things to consider that may have a positive impact on your tax obligation. Here is a list of fifteen ideas that may be worth a quick review. 1. Make last minute charitable donations. Pay attention to your itemized...
Elections. Elections. Elections.

Elections. Elections. Elections.

Tax savings can be found in the elections you make! Every year is an election year when it comes to making decisions on your annual income tax return. Here are four common examples that can create tax savings opportunities if you elect the correct option. 1. Tax...
Hike in Social Security Benefits Announced for 2025

Hike in Social Security Benefits Announced for 2025

2025 Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) change The Social Security Administration announced a 2.5% boost to monthly Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for 2025, another rate drop versus last year’s increase of 3.2%. The increase is...
Understanding Tax Terms: Contemporaneous Records

Understanding Tax Terms: Contemporaneous Records

Understanding Tax Terms: Contemporaneous Records If you have problems getting to sleep at night and you turn to the IRS tax code for help, you might find some vocabulary that is very foreign to you. One of the more uncommon words used by the IRS is the...
Those Pesky Records!

Those Pesky Records!

What do I need to keep? Each of us needs to keep records that substantiate our tax return or other important life events for as long as they are needed. So what does this mean? The basic retention period. Federal tax return substantiation is generally three years from...
Estate Taxes: What EVERYONE Should Know

Estate Taxes: What EVERYONE Should Know

Most taxpayers ignore the federal estate tax, thinking they will never be touched by it. Unfortunately, you do this at your own peril. Why? Because states often have this tax AND politicians have a habit of frequently changing the rules. The most recent change is...