According to Morningstar (http://news.morningstar.com/articlenet/article.aspx?id=823957), 52.3% of those turning 65 will have a long-term care need during their lifetimes. The cost of this type of car...
Tax Returns
You may be entitled to claim various deductions and credits, but unless you follow the rules you’ll lose out. Here are a number of recent cases that highlight what you should or shouldn’t do if yo...
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 made a number of significant changes to various write-offs that can be claimed without itemizing. Most of the changes in deductions from gross income affect 2018 retu...
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 made a number of significant changes to various itemized deductions. Most of these changes affect 2018 returns (and in many cases, returns through 2025), but a few as...
The child tax credit first appeared on tax returns for 1998 as a $400 nonrefundable credit. Over the years, the credit amount has increased and part of it has become refundable (i.e., payable even if ...
Attorney’s fees you pay to help you right a wrong can be very costly. Whether the fees are charged hourly or a flat amount, you may or may not be able to deduct them. Here’s a roundup of the situa...
As the year is winding up, there’s still time to take actions that can pay off when you file your return. The clocking is ticking... 1. Review your gains and losses. The final trading date on...
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, two thirds of American workers don’t put money into a retirement plan at work, either because they aren’t offered one or they choose not to contribute. The res...
In response to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, which impacted people in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, the IRS has provided various types of tax reli...
Hurricanes Harvey and Irma have demonstrated how easily tax records can be lost. What can you do to protect them? And what if you lose valuable documentation? Document key information Organizati...
When it comes to taxes, things don’t ways move in one direction. You make a payment, only to receive something back. Or you have income now, only to find you must repay some or all of it. How do you...
The devastation to Houston and a large part of Texas and beyond because of Hurricane Harvey is historic. Homes and businesses have been lost, and it will take months or years for some areas to recover...
A new tax year is set to dawn shortly and recently released cost-of-living adjustments can help you plan for 2015. Due to low inflation, increases in the tax brackets and other tax items are minimal; ...
This year has been a bumpy ride on Wall Street, with dramatic swings up and down. Now is a good time to review your retirement account and your personal portfolio. While changes you make in your retir...
Medicare is a government health program primarily for the 49 million Americans age 65 and older. Those covered by Medicare are deemed to have minimum essential health coverage as required by the Affor...
Concerned about care if you should experience a chronic condition or just old age requiring assistance for your daily living activities? You should be, because the cost of long-term care—in your hom...
Amended Returns: Why, When, and How If you’ve filed a federal income tax return that you know does not accurately reflect your income and deductions, what should you do now? It depends on the ye...
Taxes are complicated, so it’s no wonder that everyone makes mistakes from time to time. But some actions go beyond incorrect arithmetic or thinking something is deductible when it’s not. Some act...
There’s no flat tax for individual taxpayers. Because of graduated income tax brackets, phase-outs of certain write-offs, and additional taxes that can apply, determining your tax rate isn’t easy....
Interest on municipal bonds is exempt from regular federal income tax. However, the interest may be taxable—directly or indirectly—under certain circumstances. State income taxes Not all sta...
