Personal saving
Here’s how to fight a higher-than-expected property tax bill
Momo Productions | Digitalvision | Getty Images If the value of your home ballooned during the Covid pandemic, you may receive an inflated property tax assessment in the mail. There are ways, however, to combat a higher bill, experts say. Despite double-digit growth in single-family home prices, property taxes only increased by 1.8% in 2021, […]
Read More
Millennial in Atlanta quits $180,000 job, moves to Lisbon: ‘You get a lot of bang for your buck here’
Sharolyn Wynter recalls feeling “so proud and happy” when she hit a six-figure salary for the first time as a consultant for Deloitte. “And then it was such a fleeting moment,” says Wynter, now 37. “I was still going to work every day, working long hours, not being able to enjoy this money that I’d […]
Read More
Here’s when tax-loss harvesting makes sense … and when it doesn’t
When the stock market dips, a strategy known as tax-loss harvesting can be a silver lining. But it doesn’t make sense for all portfolios, financial experts say. Here’s how tax-loss harvesting works: You can sell declining assets from your brokerage account and use the losses to offset other profits. Once losses exceed gains, you can […]
Read More
Your next quarterly 401(k) statement may be alarming. Here’s why
Your internal alarm bells may ring when reading your next 401(k) plan statement — at first blush, at least. Traditional 401(k) statements — regular notices that arrive by mail or online — show investors how much money they’ve saved for retirement, among other information such as investment allocations. Soon, they’ll also see how their nest […]
Read More
This 52-year-old early retiree left the U.S. for Portugal with his family—and spends $2,450 a month: ‘We cut our expenses by 50%’
In 2011, at 41-years-old, I retired early from my six-figure career in law. My wife joined me in retirement four years later after quitting her job as a nurse. By the time she retired in 2015, our portfolio of high-yielding stocks and mutual funds paid roughly $130,000 a year in dividends, which covered most of our living expenses in […]
Read More
Retirement tax breaks benefit higher earners, leaving middle-class savers behind, report finds
Fstop123 | E+ | Getty Images Tax breaks designed to boost retirement savings may primarily benefit higher earners, leaving middle-class workers behind, according to a report from the National Institute on Retirement Security. With most Americans receiving less than half of preretirement income from Social Security, many rely on employer-sponsored savings plans and individual retirement […]
Read More
House Democrats push Treasury, IRS for repeal of rule blocking state and local taxes cap workaround
Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., speaks during a news conference announcing the State and Local Taxes (SALT) Caucus outside the U.S. Capitol on April 15, 2021. Sarah Silbiger | Bloomberg | Getty Images Three House Democrats are still pushing for relief on the $10,000 limit on the federal deduction for state and local taxes, known as […]
Read More
The IRS is working to increase its audit rates for higher earners
Jeffrey Coolidge | Photodisc | Getty Images The IRS is working to boost its audit rates for the wealthiest Americans, according to a statement recently released with the agency’s annual Data Book, covering activities for the 2021 fiscal year. While plummeting audits have drawn scrutiny from Congress, percentages have doubled for filers making over $100,000 to more […]
Read More
Investors revisit muni bonds amid higher yields and strong credit
David Jakle | Image Source | Getty Images It’s been a tough year for municipal bonds, with investors cashing out amid rising interest rates. However, higher yields and strong credit may be sparking a shift, experts say. While investors piled a record-breaking $96.8 billion of net money into U.S. muni mutual and exchange-traded funds in […]
Read More
Need to tap your 529 college savings plan soon? Here’s how to handle a stock market downturn
Klaus Vedfelt | DigitalVision | Getty Images Months of stock market volatility may deliver a costly surprise to parents sending children to school this fall: smaller-than-expected 529 college savings plan balances. The average 529 account size was $30,287 in 2021, according to the College Savings Plans Network, but families may now have lower balances, financial […]
Read More