Get smart with your money
Dear Liz: My wife and I have purchased a few properties over the years and now we would like to give these properties to our children. I’ve read that the best way to gift properties is to wait until we pass away, which sounds terrible. Is there any way to transfer or gift properties without paying […]
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Dear Liz: This is the year I turned 73, and I’m planning how to take my required minimum distribution from my IRA and 403(b) accounts. I know from a Google search that I can redirect this distribution to charities without being taxed, up to a certain amount. However, the financial services company holding my 403(b) money […]
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This week’s top story: How to cope debt and chronic pain. In other news: Maximize your credit card rewards with minimal effort, what to do if your hospital drops your Medicare Advantage plan, and how a global pandemic made us richer four years later. Debt and Chronic Pain Can Be Connected. Here’s How to Cope Study […]
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Dear Liz: I’m a CPA and your answer about paying taxes electronically was spot-on. But there’s a pro tip you might share: I advise all my clients to establish accounts with the IRS and their state tax authority. That allows my clients to schedule payments more easily with a single log-on (rather than having to validate each time […]
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Dear Liz: My question relates to 401(k) rollovers. Are there different tax implications when it comes to rolling the money into a traditional IRA versus a traditional IRA brokerage fund? I’ve always associated the word “brokerage” with after-tax dollars. Answer: Financial terms can get confusing, so let’s start with the basics. Both 401(k)s and IRAs are tax-advantaged […]
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Dear Liz: In a recent column you wrote about the importance of paying online and the dangers of writing checks. Why does paying online come with a fee? Is it really justified to pay a “technology fee” of $12 to pay my insurance bill online? It seems to me that it should be faster and easier for the […]
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This week’s top story: Tackle overdue taxes this year. In other news: Businesses can still claim worker tax credit from the pandemic, 10 cities that have the highest minimum wage in the U.S., and 10 rising vacation spots. Tackle Overdue Taxes This Year The sooner you can deal with unfiled and unpaid taxes, the better. Businesses […]
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Valentine’s Day might put you in the mood to look for love online. Unfortunately, criminals are also on the hunt, but for victims, not romance. “Meeting people online has opened the door to romance fraud,” says Kim Casci-Palangio, program director of the peer support program at the nonprofit Cybercrime Support Network in Ann Arbor, Michigan. […]
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Dear Liz: We put four kids through college using 529 college savings. All four are out of college with good jobs and we have about $50,000 left over. Would you suggest just letting it build for the grandkids’ college in 20 to 30 years? The amount should grow considerably in that time and may pay for all the […]
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