Happy New Year from all of us at Woodward Financial Advisors! Three years ago, the original SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) passed, bringing a host of changes, including an increase to the Required Minimum Distribution age from 70 ½ to 72 and the elimination of the “Stretch-IRA.” On December 29, 2022, the much-anticipated SECURE Act 2.0 was signed into law.
Each year, I get a tax bill for our family dog. This county tax pays for animal control and shelter services. Our neighbors get a similar bill for their cats. But this kitty tax is entirely different from what’s known as the “kiddie tax”, which is the topic of this article… sorry if this is a disappointment for you cat lovers out there! The kiddie tax comes into play when someone is considering giving to a minor-age family member. Many of our clients are very generous to their loved ones, so we find ourselves discussing this sometimes-overlooked rule often.
As we bid farewell to 2021, we hope that you have opportunities to connect with family and friends, to relax and take a break from your routine, and to consider what you’re looking forward to in the year ahead. In addition to setting goals about books you want to read, activities you’d like to complete, and personal milestones you aim to achieve, you might also take advantage of some small pockets of time during the holiday season to complete some financial housekeeping tasks. This can help you start 2022 feeling productive, and move your savings and planning in the right direction for the new year.
Folks are sometimes surprised to find out that Social Security benefits are taxable, like how salary is taxed as ordinary income at your highest marginal rate. But not all the benefit is taxable: depending on your other income, you may be taxed on as much as 85% of your Social Security benefit, or as little as 0%.
We recently had the opportunity to know exactly where to hit the machine when a client recently approached us with a goal of making a significant charitable contribution in 2020, with the hope and expectation of making the same contribution for as long as they are able in subsequent years. After determining that they could do this without jeopardizing their other spending goals, we set about figuring out the best way to make their gift this year.
When we review tax returns, our goal is not to double-check anyone’s math or redo the return. Instead, we’re looking to make sure that our clients are shielding as much of their income from taxes as is appropriate, both now and going forward.