ONE MORE WEEK........... (need more time?)
Published April 7, 2010 5299 Views
TICK, TOCK. The deadline for your 2009 return is a week away. Not quite ready? Fortunately, the Internal Revenue Service has some sympathy for procrastinators; the paperwork for filing an extension is simple, and it will give you until Oct. 15, 2010 to file. In other words, the IRS will give you a...
Increase Your Contribution Along the Way
Published April 6, 2010 5483 Views
Ok, so you got started. After reading my blogpost a month ago you were inspired to march into your HR department and sign up for your 401k. An important step for sure, but rather than forget about your contributions completely, here are several ideas to put more away without taking too much of a blo...
2010 Health Reform - Part II
Published April 5, 2010 5890 Views
Last week I began my series on the 2010 Health Reform legislation. Specifically, I covered the portion of the legislation which contained the health coverage "individual mandate" for U.S. citizens that will be phased in beginning in 2014. This week we'll look at the centerpiece of the health care...
Better, Slowly.
Published April 5, 2010 5814 Views
Over a beautiful Easter weekend we learned that according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate held steady last month at 9.7%, with 162,000 jobs created. This is good if not great news for the economy. Democrats and Republicans each seized upon this latest opportunity...
On Principle
Published April 1, 2010 5503 Views
The first quarter of 2010 is officially closed for the markets. Both the Dow and the S&P 500 are up over 4% on a year to date basis, and nearly 50% on an annual basis. If we think back to where we were last year at this time, few pundits and TV personalities would have dared to imagine we would be...
Is it time to cut your college kid loose?
Published March 31, 2010 5299 Views
Many higher income parents gain little or no benefit from having their college bound children as dependants on their tax return. Your dependency write-off for your college kid is partially phased out between an AGI of $250,200 and $372,700 for joint filers and between $208,500 and $331,000 for heads...
Tax Changes Affecting Individuals In The 2010 Health Reform Legislation - Part I
Published March 30, 2010 5191 Views
Over the next several weeks, I will provide useful information related to the 2010 health reform legislation which is guaranteed to impact everyone. I will begin my initial focus on individuals and move into changes for businesses. Although my posts will be a brief overview of the changes, the mos...
Time for your annual check-up
Published March 30, 2010 5285 Views
...Your financial check-up, of course. With tax time less than a month away, there is a good chance that many of your important financial statements are on the kitchen counter or at least not too far out of your reach. Since you have them out anyways, it might be a good idea to take a look at your f...
Washington, Albany, and Athens.
Published March 29, 2010 5362 Views
What do all three have in common? (Hint: it's not classical architecture) The answer, sadly, is debt. Not just debt but growing debt. And possibly debt that is growing unsustainably. Worldwide, the Greek debt crisis has garnered headlines for threatening to sink the Euro as a common currency. Athens...
Across the River
Published March 25, 2010 5536 Views
During the financial crisis and impending bear market, the carnage was everywhere affecting both good and bad investments. With respect to the good investments that went down, there were many relevant clich?s being tossed around: The baby was thrown out with the bathwater; don't switch horses mid-s...