Dear Liz: My wife and I are in our 70s and receive required minimum distributions from IRAs. We make our charitable contributions out of our RMDs. We have considered a donor advised fund. Which vehicle provides the best tax savings? Answer: You would typically get the most tax benefit from qualified charitable distributions, which allow people 70½ […]
Recent Blog Posts
Q&A: What’s the most tax efficient way to donate your RMD?
Q&A: Why your credit score keeps dropping despite autopay
Dear Liz: My credit scores have gone down every few months for about a year. The credit bureau says this is due to a late payment of a credit card balance. My card is on an automatic monthly payment that pays the balance in full every month. Somebody explained to me that if the credit card’s […]
Q&A: Can you tap your equity without triggering capital gains?
Dear Liz: I know from personal experience after selling a longtime residence that tax return information is shared with the Social Security Administration. If the two-year look-back shows high enough modified adjusted gross income, Medicare premiums can increase significantly. There are appeal options, but a one-time home sale doesn’t necessarily qualify. Should the couple consider a […]
Q&A: Why selling a valuable home can cost more than you think
Dear Liz: Why do you seem to discourage older people living in homes that have appreciated over the years from selling because of the tax consequence? Recently, someone complained they could not move out of their family home because they would owe $400,000 in taxes. Why don’t you show the math: If they owe $400,000, even […]
Q&A: Can you convert an RMD to a Roth IRA?
Dear Liz: I’m supposed to start required minimum distributions soon. Can I deposit my annual distribution into a Roth IRA? I understand that I have to pay taxes on the RMD, but if I can put it in a Roth, I would guess I don’t have to pay future capital gains taxes. I am retired and […]
Q&A: Why you might want to skip your IRS tax refund
Dear Liz: I’ve heard too many delayed refund stories to trust the process, so I always request that my overpayment be applied to the following year’s taxes, which allows me to stop withholding on IRA required minimum distributions via Form W-4R and stop making estimated tax payments until I’ve “used up” the amount of my refund. […]
Books
Some of the links below are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission.
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Your Credit Score: How to Improve the 3-Digit Number that Shapes Your Financial Future (5th edition)
Improve your credit score, for real, with the #1 best-selling guide you can trust! Today, a good credit score is essential for getting credit, getting a job, even getting car insurance or a cellphone. Now, best selling journalist Liz Pulliam Weston has thoroughly updated her top-selling guide to credit scores, with crucial new information for protecting (or rebuilding) yours.
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Deal with Your Debt: Free Yourself from What You Owe
Struggling with debt? Get realistic help that's actually useful.
In this extensively updated guide, you can discover how to control and manage debt effectively. You'll learn which debts can actually help build wealth over time, and which are simply toxic. You'll find up-to-date, real-world strategies for assessing and paying off debt, money-saving insights on which debts to tackle first, and crucial information about everything from debt consolidation loans to credit scores and credit counseling. Weston offers practical guidelines for assessing how much debt is safe -- and compassionate, realistic guidance if you've gone beyond the safety zone. If you've ever worried about debt, you'll find the new edition of Deal with Your Debt absolutely indispensable.
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There Are No Dumb Questions About Money: Answers and Advice to Help You Make the Most of Your Finances
There’s a myth in our society that some people are just naturally “good” with money. So naturally, everybody else must be “bad”--or at least, dumb--if they’re not sure what to do.
The reality is, no one is born a money expert. Those who are “good” with money had to learn: by reading, asking questions, and consulting people who know more than they do. No one knows everything, and the only dumb questions are the ones you don’t ask.
This collection of money questions and answers can help you solve your most pressing concerns about your finances. You can buy this ebook on iTunes or on Amazon.
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The 10 Commandments of Money: Survive and Thrive in the New Economy
From the #1 personal finance columnist on the Internet (Nielsen/NetRatings)-a clear prescription for financial health in the 2010s and beyond.
For previous generations, living within your means was a simple formula. Now, with the staggering rise in education, health care, and housing costs, millions of people find themselves skating from paycheck to paycheck with no idea how to move forward.
As the most-read personal finance columnist on the Internet, Liz Weston has heard the questions and has the answers. Her 10 Commandments of Money will help readers avoid critical mistakes, survive the bad times, and thrive in the good ones.
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Easy Money: How to Simplify Your Finances and Get What You Want Out of Life
Common sense. Easy solutions. Plain English.
Best selling author, Liz Weston, takes on the problem everyone has, and nobody talks about: the sheer hassle of managing your money! Weston offers practical guidance and easy checklists for every decision: investments, credit cards, insurance, mortgages, retirement, college savings, and more! Discover how to consolidate, delegate, and automate your finances…save time and money…and live a more rewarding, secure life!