Stern Advice: The year-end race to Roth
WASHINGTON, Nov 24 (Reuters) – All year, investors and
savers have been hearing about the special 2010 opportunities
for saving taxes with Roth Individual Retirement Accounts. So
far, there hasn’t been a lot of action.
That’s about to change. Financial firms like Charles Schwab
(SCHW.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Fidelity Investments are bracing for a last-minute
rush as account holders race to convert their traditional IRAs
to Roth IRAs before the sun sets on those 2010-only deals.
US IRS interest rate cuts to prompt year-end gifts
WASHINGTON, Nov 22 (Reuters) – The interest rates the
Internal Revenue Service uses to calculate the value of
annuities, gifts, family loans and trusts will sink to an
all-time low in December and, prompting advisors to encourage
wealthy clients to give away money before the end of the year.
“We haven’t seen this kind of favorable gifting or transfer
environment in our lifetime,” Don Weigandt, managing director
for wealth advisory with J. P. Morgan Private Bank, told
Reuters in an interview.
The IRS is sitting on $165 million: is any of it yours?
The Internal Revenue Service has $164.5 million in refunds that it can’t send out because it doesn’t know where to send it, the agency said today. Roughly 111,893 taxpayers are owed an average of $1,471 each, and “the sooner you update your address information, the quicker you can get your money,” IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said.
Those refund checks sometimes go awry when taxpayers move between the time they file their taxes and when the IRS actually sends off their refund check. Sometimes, the checks get lost in the mail when there are errors in the mailing address. The IRS says it never notifies people when their checks are returned. That’s not very helpful, but it does mean this: If you do get a notice that the IRS has money for you, it’s probably a scam and not really from the IRS.
Stern Advice: Hurry up and save with year-end tax moves
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Forget the sales and the 37 shopping days until Christmas — it’s the 44 days until the end of 2010 that can really affect your bottom line.
Year-end tax planning is now even more confusing than usual, because there are a slew of tax provisions up in the air until Congress acts.
Corrected: Even the affluent are stretched: MetLife survey
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Even the affluent are living pretty close to the margin, spending what they have and borrowing on credit cards for everyday emergencies like household repairs, says a new study by MetLife Inc.
As a result, the well-to-do are keeping their retirement savings liquid in bank accounts and certificates of deposit so the funds will be available for emergencies, says the study, titled “Money on the Sidelines.” The report is slated for release on Wednesday, November 17, but Reuters obtained a copy early.
Even the affluent are stretched — MetLife survey
WASHINGTON, Nov 16 (Reuters) – Even the affluent are living
pretty close to the margin, spending what they have and
borrowing on credit cards for everyday emergencies like
household repairs, says a new study by MetLife Inc (MET.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz).
As a result, the well-to-do are keeping their retirement
savings liquid in bank accounts and certificates of deposit so
the funds will be available for emergencies, says the study,
titled “Money on the Sidelines.” The report is slated for
release on Wednesday, Nov. 17, but Reuters obtained a copy
early.
Deficit plan: no cause for snap investor decisions
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – There’s no need for homeowners, investors, retirees, taxpayers or anyone else targeted in the controversial deficit-cutting plan unveiled on Wednesday to panic.
The proposal by the leaders of President Obama’s deficit-reduction panel was shot down almost immediately by observers who believe it is too controversial and pain-spewing to be enacted anytime soon — but its ideas may be under debate for years.
U.S. deficit plan: no cause for snap investor decisions
WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) – There’s no need for
homeowners, investors, retirees, taxpayers or anyone else
targeted in the controversial deficit-cutting plan unveiled on
Wednesday to panic.
The proposal by the leaders of President Obama’s
deficit-reduction panel was shot down almost immediately by
observers who believe it is too controversial and pain-spewing
to be enacted anytime soon — but its ideas may be under debate
for years.
Gift cards as popular as ever, and on sale, too
Want to spread some plastic cheer this holiday season in the form of gift cards? So do more than half of all holiday shoppers, reports American Express today. Gift cards are more popular than any other category of gift, including clothing, toys and electronics, the firm said. And consumers are more than twice as likely to give a gift card (53 percent) than to hand over cash (26 percent).
There are good reasons for that. Besides being fun for the recipient, gift cards got some added protection in last year’s credit card legislation. The cards now have to remain valid for at least five years, and issuers aren’t allowed to deduct any fees from the cards until they’ve been unused for a full year.
Energy steps to take for a less pricey winter
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Last winter’s “Snowmageddon” is not expected to do a repeat performance on the East Coast this year. That’s the good news for anyone who pays their own heating bills. But the bad news is that most fuel rates have risen.
The resulting bottom line is this: Most people will pay roughly the same amount for heat this winter as they did last winter, the Energy Department predicted on Tuesday. The average household heating costs between October 1 and March 31 will be $962, the Department said. That’s just $11 more than last year’s total.
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