THE economic maelstrom has brought with it tremendous opportunities for financial planning with retirement accounts. For this year only, people over 70 1/2 with traditional I.R.A.’s and those who inherited these accounts or Roth I.R.A.’s do not have to take the required minimum distributions. Congress suspended that requirement, along with those that apply to 401(k)’s, […]
Transitioning from single to married life can be a challenge, and the U.S. tax code doesn’t make it easier. Should you file jointly or separately? What if you change your name? And what’s this about a “marriage penalty”? Here are several things for newlyweds and engaged couples to keep in mind during tax season. File […]
Concerned about the economy and eager for help, taxpayers flooded the Daily News Tax Hotline Tuesday as the paper kicked off its annual free service. Phones rang nonstop, a Web chat attracted scores of questions and e-mails filled an inbox as a team from the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants fielded questions […]
SOME people who lost money in the financial turmoil last year may be able to get a measure of tax relief. Daniel Acker/Bloomberg News People who invested with Bernard L. Madoff may want to file for an extension on taxes. The tax code provides help for losses in stocks and mutual funds, in homes that […]
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Sec. 201 of H.R. 7327 suspends the 50% penalty for failure to take a required minimum distribution, for 2009, for distributions from defined contribution plans. Normally, if any individual passed his required beginning date, or any plan beneficiary, fails to take a required distribution during any year, the penalty is 50% of the amount that should have […]
Tens of thousands of small-business owners and sole proprietors may have invalid Keogh plans, and that a failure to fix the problem could prove to be very costly to them and to advisers.
Many people seem unaware how useful IRAs can be as savings vehicles Make no mistake about it: The IRA is America’s savings vehicle of choice. In 2007, assets in such accounts totaled $4.75 trillion, more than any other type of retirement account, according to an Employee Benefit Research Institute study published Wednesday. That’s the good […]
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — When economic times get tough, finding dollars to donate can get tougher, but there are ways to make your charitable dollar stretch farther. Certainly, plenty of people find a way to give, no matter what the broader economic trends. While charitable giving declines during economic slowdowns, it doesn’t slow all that […]