Home
>
Tax
>
A Taxing Investment

A Taxing Investment

April 15 - The most dreaded day of the year is right around the corner. Are you ready? Some of the most neglected (and misunderstood) tax issues are those related to your investments. If you invest with taxes in mind, you can avoid a nasty surprise when Uncle Sam comes to collect.

The tax advisors are chiming in left and right on this issue. They say that you should limit yourself - and your investments - in order to minimize your tax burden for the immediate future. Those in the high tax brackets should go mainly for retirement accounts (as in tax deferred investments) and tax free investments, and those in the lower brackets should feel free to invest as they see fit. I'm sorry, but I don't necessarily agree with their synopsis.

Dividends, interest, and short term capital gains from your investments are all taxable at your standard income tax rate. Long term capital gains (that is - those coming from investments that you have held for over a year) are taxable at a lower rate. It would make sense then, for someone in a higher bracket (and thus paying a larger percentage of his or her dollar to the government) to focus primarily on limiting these types of income, and for those in lower brackets to go crazy with them, since they're not losing as much money.

Tax deferred retirement accounts, such as your IRA, 401k, or other retirement account, allow you to contribute a specific amount of money each year to your retirement. This amount is deductible from your income. That's not to say that these retirement accounts are tax free - far from it. These accounts are tax deferred, which means that you do pay taxes, though not until you take the money out. This offers the advantage of reinvesting your yields before taxes, which if done well can end up making you more money, but the fact remains that when you do access those accounts, the going tax rate may be less favorable than it is today.

Tax free investments do exist - to some extent. Municipal bonds and certain money market accounts can be tax free, however, you should always make sure that you deeply understand the taxing situation on these instruments before you actually put your money into them. In some, federal taxes or state taxes (or in some cases local income taxes) may be waived, but one doesn't imply the other, and the last thing you want is the surprise that you do owe taxes on a supposedly tax free investment.

If your portfolio has taken a little drive over the past year, you may find some solace in the fact that you can write off some of your losses. Up to $3,000 in fact. After three grand, you'll have to carry over your losses each year. This can result in a ton of paperwork, so make sure that the assessed tax difference will make up for the extra effort these filings would take.

Also make sure that you don't mix and match tax-beneficial instruments. You shouldn't put municipal bonds or tax free money market accounts in your IRA, for example. Since they're both tax free, you can end up losing out on the tax break the other provides. It's typically a better idea to use these instruments in conjunction with your regular assets. This is one of the points that I agree with the tax experts on. It just makes sense.

But I just don't agree with their investment strategy, as I mentioned before. It's all well and good to keep your taxes in mind when you're planning your investments out - and it's essential when planning for retirement - however, I just can't justify their methods. If you have had a good year financially, and find yourself in a higher tax bracket, chances are that you have a pretty nice retirement plan already. For someone making six figures, the ceiling on retirement contributions is just not enough money to be their primary focus of investment attention. If you know what you're doing, you will make money. I would much rather make money that taxed at 99% than not make a cent. It just doesn't make much sense to say that you wont invest outside your retirement account, just because you don't want it to be taxed.

Of course, if you're in a lower tax bracket, the experts recommend that you go ahead and invest in taxable securities, since your tax rate is less than, say, Bill Gates. I'm sorry, but this is ridiculous. It's pretty unnecessary for someone in a lower bracket to focus on taxable accounts alone. Actually, it's probably more important for you to pour money into your retirement accounts. With the battles going on in Washington over the "social security crisis" (which we'll touch upon next month), the best way to secure your future is to actively invest in it. If you're an active investor, splitting your investment allocated income fifty/fifty for your retirement and taxable investment accounts isn't out of line. If you don't invest very actively, and you don't think you'll need access to your retirement money, don't think twice about putting the majority of it in a tax deferred retirement account.

Essentially, my point is that your investment decisions shouldn't be held back in fear of your tax burden. If you can balance the two out, you might just find that it does make sense (and hopefully, you'll turn out more financially fit than you were before). A whole new tax year awaits, and we're ready for it.

Jonas Elmerraji is the founder and editor of growFolio, the world's first free online investment and business magazine. Issues are available online at http://www.growfolio.com

disinfecting cleaning services Arlington Heights ..

In The News:

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

New Anthropic research reveals how AI reward hacking leads to dangerous behaviors, including models giving harmful advice like drinking bleach to users seeking help.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

Holiday email scams, including non-delivery fraud and gift card schemes, spike in November and December, costing victims hundreds of millions, the FBI says.

Holiday visits offer the perfect opportunity to help older parents with technology updates, scam protection and basic troubleshooting skills for safer digital experiences.

Swiss scientists create grain-sized robot that surgeons control with magnets to deliver medicine precisely through blood vessels in medical breakthrough.

Researchers exploited WhatsApp's API vulnerability to scrape 3.5 billion phone numbers. Learn how this massive data breach happened and protect yourself.

Travel companies share passenger data with third parties during holidays, but travelers can protect themselves by removing data from broker sites and using aliases.

Xpeng's humanoid robot moves so realistically that crowds believed it was fake, marking a major advancement in robotics technology ahead of 2026 commercial launch.

Researchers discover phishing scam using invisible characters to evade email security, with protection tips including password managers and two-factor authentication.

iPhone and Android users can reduce battery drain and data usage by restricting Background App Refresh to Wi-Fi connections instead of mobile networks.

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.