Money Today That Matters Tomorrow
I sometimes ponder where I would move if I had to leave my current state (VA). And more and more, Texas seems to come to mind. This is because of three main factors – strong employment, housing affordability and quality of life (good weather, diverse cities, lower taxes etc). And clearly …
[Update March 31st 2013] Extension to purchase health coverage may now be in the works. The original deadline to purchase coverage, before incurring penalties was March 31st, 2014. But a number of state exchanges, like Covered California said that, “Individuals who start an online application by 11:59 p.m. on March 31, 2014, will have until …
The table below presents the average IRS federal refund payments over recent years, based on official year-end IRS data. These figures may be updated over time as late filings and additional refunds are processed. Source: IRS filing statistics by year When Can I Expect My Refund? Generally, if you e-file …
The following are 8 signs that you may owe the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT), or the rich-mans tax, this year. If you one or more of the above apply to you, I suggest you start planning for a bigger tax hit this year. If your AMT bill exceeds your regular …
Like millions of Americans I use Vanguard and Fidelity for managing most of my Mutual funds and ETFs. As a result of selling some stocks and lowering my automatic fund investments (due to a brutal stock market) I have about 20% of my portfolio in cash. I figured that with …
Around this time of year many people get renewal notices for their auto insurance. More often than not they will briefly scan the notice and if the premium hasn’t increased substantially from the prior period they’ll just file away the renewal paperwork and let the auto-payment on file continue to …
I have two family friends. One lives in the DC Metro Area (Bethesda, MD) and the other lives in Appleton, Wisconsin. Classic Big Town vs. Small Town. I met them over Thanksgiving and we got talking about the cost of living and how it varies so much across America. Both …
Teachers play such an important role in our lives. We can all remember a great teacher who directly or indirectly had a bearing on where our lives went and what we achieved. I see this even more clearly as I see my son go through elementary school. Last year he …
The stock market is hitting new highs on a seemingly daily basis. The job market is rebounding strongly as evidenced by the plummeting unemployment rate. Market analysts are overwhelmingly saying buy stocks, sell bonds. All this implies the economy is positively booming and surely everyone is getting richer. Sadly this …
Article summary: Should I take my pension as an annuity in retirement where I receive monthly payments or take a lump sum that I rollover into an IRA account and manage the investments myself? Answer : It depends on whether you can invest the money better than the returns you …
See this article for the latest Earned Income Credit tables – including eligibility expansions and refund delays (due to PATH act) when claiming this credit in your tax return. _________ [2014 EIC Update] The IRS has released 2014 Earned Income Tax credit (EITC) details which are shown in the table below. There have …
See this article for the latest IRS updates to federal tax brackets and standard deductions. ____________ Below are the 2014 IRS federal tax brackets based on annual inflation adjustments. Given the low inflation environment there were only moderate increases in tax brackets, standard deductions and to the personal exemption. The main changes …
See this updated article for the latest 401(k) and IRA Contribution, Eligibility, Income and Tax Deduction Limits The IRS has released updated 2014 limits for defined contribution (or pension) plans such as 401(k) and IRAs. This was delayed from the usual mid-October release due to the government shutdown. The annual limits …
[Update] – The Obama administration announced that it will give Americans who buy health insurance through the new online marketplaces an extra six weeks (until March 31st, the end of open enrollment) to obtain coverage before they incur a penalty. With all the news around the glitches plaguing the Obamacare website …