2010 Roth IRA Conversions
Between now and the end of the year, we will introduce several tax planning considerations for this year and next. We begin this series with a look at Roth IRA conversions, which are available to a greater number of taxpayers in 2010. Not only are more taxpayers eligible for Roth IRA conversions, but 2010 conversions…
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New Tax Incentive: Carryback Losses as Far as 2004
On November 6, 2009, President Obama signed into law the “Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009” which extends the longer loss carryback election originally only available for the 2008 tax year. The new legislation permits most taxpayers (not just small businesses) to carryback a 2009 tax year net operating loss 3, 4, or…
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Liberalized Homebuyer Credit Extension
Congress has passed legislation that expands the timeframe and scope of the homebuyer credit; the President’s signature is a foregone conclusion. As you probably know, the first-time homebuyer credit was set to expire November 30th. Under this program, a first-time homebuyer would be eligible for a refundable tax credit of up to $8,000 on his or her income tax return providing the purchase took place by the program expiration date.
Under the new program, the credit for first-time homebuyers is extended to include purchases made by April 30, 2010. Providing a contract is executed by that date, the closing of the purchase must take place by June 30, 2010 in order to qualify.
Long-time residents can benefit, too. See full post for details.
Common Sense Health Care?
Over the last several months, I’ve done a substantial amount of reading to try and understand the proposed health care reform legislation. I’ve also learned much more about our current system and proposals to make health care more affordable, efficient and accessible.
I’ll try and stay away from political commentary and avoid quoting passages from the 1,100 pages or so of proposed legislation. There are a lot of information and statistics floating around. As Mark Twain said, “There are two kinds of lies, damn lies and statistics”. Based on my reading here are three of the most interesting common sense concepts I’ve encountered:
What’s Next for Estate Taxes?
With healthcare, energy, and the financial markets occupying most of Congress’ attention, the estate tax has taken a backseat, but expect that to change this fall. Barring legislative action, the estate tax will go away in 2010 and return in 2011 for estates valued at greater than $1 million. Lawmakers will not allow a repeal of the estate tax, not even for a single year, and so we expect action to be taken on the estate tax issue very soon.
Who’s Paying for Healthcare Reform?
The debate over healthcare reform has created the first major policy bump in the road for the Obama administration. While it seems unlikely at this point that we will see the sweeping reform that the President initially envisioned, it seems equally unlikely that we will emerge from this debate with no change on the healthcare horizon. So what does this mean for the American taxpayer?
For more information go to www.dentbaker.com.
State and Local Audits are on the Rise
One byproduct of the recent economic downturn is that state and local governments are scrambling to bridge the gap between budgeted and actual collections. One tool of the trade, of course, is the compliance examination, or audit. Audits have long been used to spot check tax compliance, but in years past, we have found these…
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