One silver lining in the current bear market is that this could be a good time to convert assets from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. Converted assets are subject to federal income tax in the year of conversion, which might be a substantial tax bill. However, if assets in your traditional IRA have lost value, you will pay taxes on a lower asset base when you convert. If all conditions are met,...
The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law on August 16, 2022, includes healthcare and energy-related provisions, a new corporate alternative minimum tax, and an excise tax on certain corporate stock buybacks. Additional funding is also provided to the IRS. Some significant provisions in the Act are discussed below. Medicare The legislation authorizes the Department of Health and Human...
Contributing to your 401(k) may help you build retirement savings over time - without impacting your take-home pay as much as you may think. Consider the hypothetical example below, which shows how a 2% increase in pre-tax contributions could potentially cost you only $30 per paycheck. Source: Schwab Retirement Plan Services* Want to learn more about saving for retirement? Visit BFSG University...
The S&P 500 index experienced its worst August in seven years as traders weighed the prospect of more aggressive action from the Federal Reserve (the Fed) on interest rates to rein in inflation — even if that means some pain for households and businesses. Here are 3 things you need to know: The unemployment rate in August backed up to 3.7% (from 3.5%) driven by a huge increase in the...
By: Arash Navi, CFP®, CPA, Controller & Wealth Manager Our goal is to help our clients build and grow their wealth and tax planning plays an important role in this process. We recommend that you mark your calendar to review your finances in the first week of October, annually. Take this time to review your income for the year from employment, businesses, investments, or any other...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager (This is part 4 of a four-part estate planning series) In the previous posting, we discussed how Mark Zuckerberg of Meta Platforms, Inc. had the same strategies available, that you have available in order to reduce or possibly eliminate your estate tax bill. In this final part of the estate planning series, we would like to review how gifting...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager (This is part 3 of a four-part estate planning series) In part 2 of this series, we discussed strategic ways that you can get assets out of your estate. In this post, we would like to go over how you can capitalize on minimizing your estate tax, while your heirs enjoy the appreciated value of your asset, and how you are able to have some benefits...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager (This is part 2 of a four-part estate planning series) In our previous installment in this series, we discussed what Estate and Gift Taxes are and why they exist. In this installment, we will discuss strategies that can help reduce your overall income tax burden from the estate tax. The most logical way to lower your taxable estate is to get...
We concluded our Summer Webinar Series in August of 2022. We had a great turnout and thank you to our clients and friends that joined us live. The educational series covered great topics such as planning for loved ones, retirement plan basics, behavioral investing, Social Security and Medicare. We hope you learned something new to help you achieve your retirement goals. For those that were...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager Our team at BFSG has done extensive research on the impact on the average American’s psyche when filing their income tax return and the results of our study concluded that there are two groups of people that don’t like paying taxes…Men and Women. This article will discuss tax planning from a federal estate and gift tax perspective and in future...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager One of the most heavily quoted statements that I’m sure that you have heard at some point in your life is, “Nothing in life is guaranteed, except for death and taxes”. I’m not here to tell you about a magical snake oil that makes you live forever (since that of course doesn’t exist). We live in the real world where death and taxes are unavoidable. I am...
September 2022 15th: Required contribution to Money Purchase Pension Plans, Target Benefit Pension Plans, and Defined Benefit Plans. Contribution deadline for deducting 2021 employer contributions for those sponsors who filed a tax extension for Partnership or S-Corporation returns for the March 15, 2022 deadline. 30th: Deadline for certification of the Annual Funding Target Attainment...
Q: I didn’t file my 12/31/21 plan year end Form 5500 by 7/31/22, now what? A: Contact your Form 5500 preparer! First, confirm whether or not an extension applies. This would occur with a Form 5558 filed before 7/31, or possibly a special extension or automatic extension. If so, you have until 10/15/22 to file the Form 5500. No extension? The Delinquent Filer Voluntary Compliance Program...
In June 2022, the IRS began piloting a pre-examination retirement plan compliance program. This is beneficial to plan sponsors because it provides an opportunity for plan sponsors to correct mistakes at a reduced cost and possibly avoid a full IRS examination. Anytime you receive a correspondence from the IRS or DOL, you should inform your TPA or service provider as soon as possible to determine...
Every year, most employers file a Form 5500 for each qualified plan that they sponsor. The purpose of the Form 5500 is to provide required information to the Department of Labor (DOL), but it can also provide valuable insight to the plan sponsor. The Form 5500 has several “types” and the type of form you file will vary based on the size of your plan. The Form 5500-SF is generally for small plans...
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*Please Note: Limitations. The scope of services to be provided depends upon the terms of the engagement, and the specific requests and needs of the client. BFSG does not serve as an attorney, accountant, or insurance agent. BFSG does not prepare legal documents or tax returns, nor does it sell insurance products. Please Also Note: Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk. Therefore, it should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended and/or undertaken by BFSG) or any financial planning or consulting services, will be profitable, equal any historical performance level(s), or prove successful.
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