|
|
Thank you for your patience. This month's newsletter
is a week behind due to all of our work with our Paws
for a Cause event-which was a great success!
 |
|
|
The Big Picture
Do you know where your taxes are?
This is typically the last time of year we think about
taxes. The leaves are changing colors, the holidays
are
around the corner, and we still have to pick a good
costume for Halloween! As usual, taxes are put on
the
back burner with the hope that our CPA can repair the
damage next April. October, however, is a month in
which you can have a significant impact on your taxes
for both the current year and the year to come.
This is the season for benefit selection through your
employer. This is the time to decide which health
insurance plan you want or how much disability or life
insurance to select, and how much to allocate to your
flexible spending account. Flexible spending
accounts (or SATs) are accounts that allow for you to
put a portion of your paycheck away tax free (state,
federal, AND FICA) to reimburse you for a future
expense. Many companies offer FSAs for medical,
vision, and child care expenses. Some will even allow
these accounts for public transportation expenses.
For someone who spends a fair amount for those
costs, could stand to save a significant amount in
taxes for the year. The only catch is many of these
accounts are use or lose.
As we approach the end of the year, you can also work
with your financial advisor to evaluate your portfolio to
determine if you should sell any of your investments
where you might have a loss. By evaluating these
positions now, you save the rush at the end of the year
when all of the advisor's clients may be inquiring
about these tax loss strategies.
With three months in the year, you can also contact
your CPA to determine if you should adjust your
withholdings. Now that you should have a good idea
of your income for the year as well as your deductible
expenses, you may find that you will receive a refund
in April. If you adjust your withholdings now, you can
receive more money in your paycheck over the last
three months of the year. That could go a long way to
helping you through the holidays.
This is also the time of the year when those who are
highly compensated have made the maximum
contribution to their 401k for the year. As a result, you
may have extra income that you may want to save for
the future. If this is the case, contact your financial
advisor to discuss tax-friendly options for that money.
Before you implement these or any other tax
strategies consult your accountant or CPA. He/she
may have additional strategies specific to your
financial situation that you can use before year's end.
|
|
Feel free to forward this newsletter to friends, family,
and coworkers by using the link on the bottom left.
They are more than welcome to register for our
newsletter by using the box on the left side of the
screen. As always, thank you for your referrals!
Best Regards,
|
|
Earlier this month, Heidi and I became certified
sailboat skippers. We took a two day sailing class at
a school in Annapolis and had a blast learning the
ropes. We survived a fairly choppy day in the water
and managed to sail into downtown Annapolis and
around the Chesapeake. If anyone wants to go out
with us, we're looking
for our first victims...I mean passengers.
