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Category Archives: Saving Money on taxes

Apocalypse 2012 Postponed Due to Extended Tax Breaks

Extended Tax Breaks Providing Tax-Cutting Opportunities!

According to MY calendar, not the Mayan’s, the only apocalypse you’re going to experience is the collapse of your cash flow and the raiding of your pocketbook if you don’t take advantage of your legitimate tax breaks! Remember, I always say…

“Plan like you’re going to live forever but live like this is your last day!”

Now, here are a few more tax tips to discuss with your tax reducing professional. And, if you don’t have a tax-reducing-professional, we should talk!

1.       Deep under Sec. 101 of the now famous, 2010 Tax Relief Act, the tax rate schedules for individuals remain at 10%, 15%, 25%, 28%, 33%, and 35% for a glorious two more years. All the way through 2012. Furthermore, the size of the 15% tax bracket for joint filers and their qualified surviving spouses remains at 200% of the 15% tax bracket for individual filers through the tax year of 2012.

2.       The standard deduction for you married taxpayers, filing jointly, and of course qualified surviving spouses, remains at 200% of the 15% tax bracket for all individual filers through 2012.

3.       There is no 3%/80% limitation on your itemized deductions for both 2011 and 2012.

4.       Parents rejoice! The $1k child tax credit has been extended and allowed to be used against regular income tax for two years, through 2012. But wait, there’s more! The formula for determining refundable child credit, with the earned income threshold of $3k (but not adjusted for inflation) is also extended for two more years, through, yup, you guessed it, 2012!

5.       Go back to school! Why? Because numerous education incentives have been extended two years. Nice incentive to graduate early?

6.       Uncle Sam generously boosted AMT exemption amounts for 2010 and 2011.

7.       Here’s a pile of nonrefundable personal credits. For example:

a. Dependent care credit
b. Credit for disabled and elderly
c. Child credit
d. Interest credit on certain home mortgages
e. Hope Scholarship and Lifetime Learning credits
f.  Non-business energy property credits
g. Residential energy efficient property credits
h. Plug-in electric vehicle credits
i. Alternative motor vehicle credits
j. And there’s more!

I don’t want to take all the credit but you should! Take your credits where you can get them! If you don’t have a money-saving, tax-cutting plan in place, you need to get with our Axe the Tax Program! It’s very simple.

We show you how to cut your taxes, legally, ethically, safely, and quickly to put more glide in your stride, more pride in your ride and more fun in your mun! Okay, that last bit was slightly over the top but my point is – Don’t pay taxes that Uncle Sam says you don’t have to!

Most American’s (especially, busy professionals with great cash flow) pay way too much in taxes because of three reasons.

1.      They don’t know how to reduce their taxes.

2.      They don’t have a plan to reduce their taxes

3.      They don’t have someone they trust to guide them to reduce their taxes.

None of those reasons is acceptable unless you like throwing away $10,000, $50,000, $500,000 in unnecessary taxes!

Remember, the above info is generalized and just for educational purposes. Everyone has a unique situation so talk to your tax planning professional before you do anything.

But REMEMBER! We put the AX in tAX. Please drop me a note if there is anything I can do to help you stash more cash! More tax saving tips from an earlier post.

Keep More – Leave More

Gabby Huguenin

208-263-7202

HURRY! The Tax Man Goes Retro! Tax Savings for 2011 Only!

The Clock has Been Turned Back on Certain Taxes but not for Long!

In my ongoing Axe the Tax campaign, I have been asked by a lot of doctors and other clients what some of the new tax changes will mean to their tax-reduction strategies.  It may seem a little strange but Uncle Sam really does give us ample money-saving opportunities to lower our taxes.  Unfortunately, the tax gods tend to make things a little too complicated for busy small business owners, doctors with thriving practices, and other mere mortals to grasp.

There are tons of new tax deductions available for the tax enlightened out there. So, if you have not been enlightened yet, let me tax-enlighten you a bit! Here are a few Tax Tips to look into and discuss with your tax advisor and/or CPA right now because they are going fast! Literally.

Retroactively Reinstated Tax Break – Extended through 2011

The following tax breaks for individuals that came to a screeching halt at the end of 2009 are back! They’ve been extended through the end of this year. Not perfect, but not bad! Take ‘em while you can get ‘em!

1.       The $250 above-the-line deduction for certain expenses of our beloved elementary and secondary school teachers. Yeah! They deserve a little extra help!

2.       The election to take itemized deductions for local and state general sales taxes instead of the itemized deductions permitted for local and state income taxes.

3.       An increased contribution limit and a carry forward period for contributions of appreciated real property for conservation purposes (may include partial interests in real property).

4.       An above-the-line deduction for your qualified tuition and other related expenses.

5.       This one’s BIG!  URGENT- The provision that permits taxpayers aged 70 ½ or older to make tax-free distributions to charities from their Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA) in amounts up to $100k per tax payer per tax year. In addition, those individuals will be allowed to treat their IRA transfer to charitable organizations during January of 2011 as if it was made back in 2010. Retro is good! Talk to your tax advisor today!

6.       The treatment of any mortgage insurance premiums as a deductible of qualified residence interest and the exclusion of 100 percent of the gains on certain small-business stocks.

7.       Retro-refrigeration news: The energy efficient appliance credits may apply but they will be in new amounts and with some new requirements.

8.       The Code Sec. 25C credit for energy-efficient improvements made to existing homes. Reinstating the credit as it existing prior to the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The standards for which property is eligible under Code Sec. 25C have been updated to reflect improvements in current energy efficiency standards.

That’s the retro news and the tax-saving views from here! The clocks have been set back for a little bit so check with your tax pro and find out which way to go. The list above is far from complete but these are all tax-saving opportunities you should be aware of. Chat with your advisor or give me a call!

Understanding how to use the tax rules to your advantage is what I teach my students in a variety of programs. Find out more about our coaching programs and let’s Axe the Tax from your life! I’ll cover more on the tax changes soon but move quickly, some of these tax savings are only good for January 2011! Here’s more info on tax extensions.

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby Huguenin
Wealth Coach
208-263-7202

Plan for Retirement While Planning to be Here

Does your plan for retirement include you being there, fit and fine? I got a lot of feedback from my students yesterday on a few of my simple wealth building, health building tips so I thought I would add a few more.

If you want to see your retirement planning efforts pay off then you’ve got to take care of yourself in the meantime! We always talk about estate planning, establishing asset protection strategies and creating wealth in a tax-advantaged environment but we don’t always talk a lot about our health!

You need to be strong and healthy to enjoy the fruits of your financial labor! Here are a few more health tips/wealth tips that we all need to be practicing by the time the retirement planning process ends and the retirement living begins!

Breathe to Achieve!
Too many of us live on caffeine while operating on high stress and low energy but the truth is, you’ll achieve more when your stress level is low and your energy is high. By learning to calm your nerves with focused breathing throughout the day you’ll have more energy, a lot more fun, and maybe make a lot more mun!

•    Let go of stress before a meeting starts by asking everyone to take just a minute or two to close their eyes, relax, and concentrate on relaxed breathing. Do the same thing for yourself when you are alone and about to start the next project.

•    “Slow down and breathe” is not a metaphor. Actually slowing down and taking a few extra deep breaths every hour refreshes the mind and re-energizes the body.

•    Be aware of your breathing throughout the day and actually focus your breathing on “inhaling all that is good” and “exhaling all that is not.”

Manage the Snack Attack
Snarf down some donuts and coffee and you’ll be flying high for an hour or two but unless you get another sugar fix soon, you’ll hit the wall hard! Having balanced energy throughout the day assures higher productivity, more pleasant communications, and a lot less stress! Here are some snacking tips to keep your energy up and the stress levels down:

•    A great snack in between meals is a combination of raw or dry roasted nuts (for protein) and some fresh fruit (for healthy carbohydrates and natural sugars). It might be an apple, walnuts and light cottage cheese or non-fat low-sugar yogurt.

•    Avoid so called energy bars on the market that boost energy with massive sugars, artery clogging fats, and excessive carbohydrates. Avoid snack bars that use sugar alcohols. Sugar alcohols are a major reason many people cannot stomach most energy bars on the market today.

•    Make sure your snacks are tasty and enjoyable. Keep healthy snack options convenient and available at all times so you make healthy choices. Carry only snacks that include a balance of high quality proteins, healthy fats, and energy enhancing carbohydrates. The best snacks are natural. Fruits, nuts, and veggies!

Start Your Stress Reduction Action Plan Now!

There is no time like the present to implement a plan for change! If you are planning your retirement and haven’t included your health maintenance strategy, this might be a good day to start!

Wealth without health is not that much fun!

Have a prosperous day!

Gabby Huguenin
Wealth Coach
208-263-7202

P.S. Total financial freedom doesn’t have to be hard but it does take a little effort. But we’ve made it a lot easier with weekly classes, one on one wealth coaching and all kinds of audios, videos, and books to help you create your wealth building action plan. Have a question? Call me!