Disclaimer:  I am not an accountant or a tax professional and any advice here should be verified with a professional before acting upon it.

I’m doing my taxes this week.  It’s going to be painful and I’m not going to like the answers it gives me, but I might as well bite the bullet.  If you’re in the same boat you may be looking for strategies to help you minimize your taxes this year.  There are several categories of expenses that we should consider as possible sources of tax deductions:

Business Expenses

Most of the minimization strategies you will see are for people with small businesses.  You open up a world of deductions by starting a business, however this who area of deductions doesn’t apply to most of us.  Consider starting a business if you have one in mind, but we’ll cover individual deductions instead since they are of the broadest interest.

Tax-Deferred Accounts

Make sure you put any money into your IRA, 401(k), HAS or any other tax advantaged accounts you have.  Not having to pay taxes can be a huge savings by itself.  When you throw in the capacity of some of the accounts to grow tax-free, this is a no brainer.

Unemployment

This is very relevant to all of us in this economic climate.  If you lost your job, many of the expenses that you incur in your job search are tax deductable.  Phone calls, agency fees, travel to potential employers as well as costs for printing resumes may all be deductible.  Be sure to take advantage of any opportunities to lessen your tax burden in this climate.

Medical

If you had serious medical expenses in 2009, you may be able to deduct some of them.  Most people will not qualify, but if you spent more than 7.5% of your adjusted gross income on medical expenses, you may be able to deduct the excess.  Once again, this can be beneficial to those of us who are experiencing this kind of hardship.

Charitable Donations

Be sure to keep these in mind as well.  You may have been glad to get rid of that bundle of clothes, but it also had some value and you may be able to deduct that amount.  Did you donate some money to Haiti?  You may have just wanted to help your fellow man, but why forget to take the tax deduction?

House Expenses

Do you still have receipts for any home improvements you did?  People often forget that these are deductible.  You also of course can deduct mortgage interest as well as property taxes.

Conclusion

Sadly there are not as many deductions available to individuals as there are for businesses.  Still it never makes sense to pay more in taxes than you have to.  Be sure to think back long and hard before you assume you didn’t make any donations or have any home improvement expenses.  They’re very commonly forgotten, but can often add up to a fair savings.  Minimizing your taxes is a great way to make your wealth build faster.  Make sure you take the time to make sure you do it well.

Photo Credit: Scott*Eric

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Tax Minimization Strategies

I write generally about three topics on this site:

• Personal Finance
• Investing
• Economics

I list them in that order based on what I perceive as the general public’s interest level.  Most people are concerned with getting out of debt and maintaining a budget – Personal finance issues.  Those who have succeeded at those tasks become more interested in how to put their savings to work for them and become interested in investing.  Very few people proceed to an interest in policy and economics, and perhaps rightly so.  It’s certainly not immediately clear that an understanding of economics is beneficial to your personal wealth.

The Case for Economics

There are obvious reasons to believe that an understanding of economics should be a great asset in your financial life.  Inflation is one of the examples.  If I judge accurately what future inflation will look like, this can greatly improve my ability to choose good investments.  If I can look at upcoming legislation and see what its effects will be, I should be able to capitalize on that.  It seems like a slam dunk that an economic view should be a great boon to my financial freedom.

However…

Sadly, economists have a habit of being spectacularly wrong.  Even when they aren’t completely wrong, it’s very difficult to profit off of their decisions.  For example, right now treasuries are already priced very low because of a perception that inflation in the future will be high.  So even if that perception is correct, the expected price change is already “baked into the cake;” and if they’re wrong, there’s a chance for spectacular loss.

So Why Bother?

Despite all this I have a nasty habit of continuing to write about the big picture, particularly policy.  One reason I do this is because I believe that a basic understanding of economics can help you make wise decisions in your day to day life, not just in your investing life.  The law of supply and demand may not be useful in deciding whether to buy Microsoft, but it can be useful in starting a business or in deciding what political policies to pursue.  While the value of economic understanding may be questionable for investing purposes, its value in life is much less questionable.

The More Things Change

Many sage investing professionals have a saying:  The most dangerous words in the English language are this time it’s different. Each time that politicians proudly proclaim that we’ve defeated the boom and bust cycle for example, we know how the story always ends.  The more things change, the more things stay the same.

So perhaps the best things we can learn from economics are the basics.  There’s no point trying to guess what’s going to happen in the short term, and play the game for the long haul.  If you do the things that have always worked, you’ll likely meet with success.  Work hard, save, and be wise with your investments.  An understanding of the economy has many benefits, but probably won’t make you rich overnight.  That doesn’t mean it’s not worth having.

Photo Credit: Chi King

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Do Economics Matter?

Today’s post is a guest post by David Brown,  a financial writer with Oak view law group

Have you been hit by the money bug? Are you suffocating under the burden of multiple debts? Well, debt consolidation can be one of your options. However, you need to know certain things before you decide to consolidate your debt. Read on to know more:

How can debt consolidation help me?

• If you have a poor monthly income right now then debt consolidation provides you the option of making lower installments over a longer period of time. It might certainly suit your current financial condition

• If you have several loans right now then you might be facing a tough time calculating interest rates. With debt consolidation you take a single loan to pay off all your debts. So you can manage your finances in a more organized manner.

• You need not handle calls from the collection agency. The debt consolidation company does that for you.

What are the shortcomings of debt consolidation?

• In most cases debt consolidation loans are secured loans. This means that you have to pledge some asset (your car or your home) as collateral for the loan. So you risk losing your assets in case you fail to pay back the loan. You should be confident about health, job and other unpredictable issues which can cause financial trouble. To be eligible for unsecured consolidation loans you must have a pretty good credit rating. Even if you manage to get a unsecured consolidation loan with a poor rating, it will probably not be big enough to pay all your debts.

• Many people wrongly assume that all consolidation loans have low interest rates. However it’s a different story altogether. In most cases the payment is lower because of the extended term and not the interest rate. Secured consolidation loans sometimes have a low interest. But it can still cost you if you are taking a long term loan, say for 30 years. In such cases you have to pay interest for a long period of time and over the years the interest might grow even bigger than the original debt amount. Depending on your present debt, the interest rates for these consolidation loans can be more than those on the pre-existing debt. That is what makes debt consolidation a profitable business for your lenders.

• Debt consolidation does not address the root cause of your debt-unwise money management. In most cases after someone consolidates his debt, it grows back. People have deceptive feeling that their debts have evaporated and they refuse to do away their poor financial habits. If you can’t spend less then there is no point in consolidating your debt.

• Sometimes it can take a long time to get a consolidation plan approved by your debtors. Your accounts can go unpaid for that time. They will show as delinquency on your credit report. Sometimes a consolidation company can negotiate debt with your creditors to reduce the amount you have to pay. This again will affect your credit report.

• Finally, if your financial condition is extremely critical then you might not be eligible for debt consolidation at all. With so much debt, you may be refused an additional loan.

Is debt consolidation an answer to your monetary problems? The answer to this question is different for everyone. Analyze your financial condition, consider the above things and then decide whether you really need to consolidate your debt or not.

Photo Credit: Photos8.com

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Is Debt consolidation the right solution for you?

This is a guest post from Fred from Credit Card Finder. Fred helps people to compare and choose the best credit card online.

If you’re in debt with credit cards, or personal loans and a mortgage you may be feeling a little nervous when you think about your lack of savings – but does it make sense to direct funds towards a savings account when the interest earned there will be overshadowed by the interest you are paying on your debt. There are ways to save when you are in debt, and there are financial products which can help specifically with this situation. So here are five years you can save, even if you have debt.

1 Consolidate credit cards to one balance transfer card

Try and avoid using equity or a line of credit on your home loan to pay off your credit card debt because you are in fact just stretching out your credit card debt for another 30 years, when you can target it now and get it out of the way for good. Instead, find a balance transfer card with a low interest rate which will allow you to transfer all of your credit cards to be charged one low rate. In this way you have your debt under control, you have a manageable monthly repayment and you have a payment plan which will help you get rid of your credit card debt.

2 In debt to 9%

Many financial planners and advisors will use the 9% rule – if you have debt which is charging you interest of more than 9%, you should direct as much of your income as you can towards paying down that debt. This means you should continue to pay your home loan as usual as it is unlikely to be charging you more than 9% interest in the current financial climate, and any personal loans you have are probably below 9% too. Instead you can focus your debt repayments on your credit cards as in the first point, after which time it makes sense to start looking at a savings plan.

3 High interest savings accounts

If you are going to save effectively while paying off your debt, you need to be getting the most out of the dollars you are directing towards a savings plan. Therefore, choose a high interest savings account which will give you the best return on the money you are able to put away. .

By depositing your regular savings to a high interest savings account, even if you have debt you are going to be able to earn a regular and attractive interest rate on your savings as the interest is calculated daily and compounds into a monthly payment. Even if the interest rate on your savings can’t top that on your home loan, it is sure to be higher than the balance transfer card you are using to pay off your credit card debt.

4 Save for your retirement

Regardless of any debt you have you should be thinking about your future and about building a retirement fund. Retirement savings accounts and superannuation funds have different tax rates and can make your contributions go even further, even if you are also directing some of your income to pay off debt. In saving for your retirement you can also take advantage of employer or government contribution schemes which will match your personal contributions up to a certain amount. Therefore, make personal contributions to your retirement savings up to this amount, get all of the tax and government incentives you can, and you can still focus on paying off your debt while sticking to a savings plan for your future.

There is no point in directing all of your income to pay off your debts if there is nothing put aside for the future. Therefore, don’t be in a rush to pay off your mortgage in lieu of saving for your retirement, because if you haven’t been contributing to your nest egg, it won’t matter that your nest itself is paid off.

Photo Credit: The Consumerist

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

How to Save When You’re in Debt

The unemployment statistics in America are confusing.  Sometimes you will see unemployment go down without jobs being created.  How can this be?  As it turns out there are many different definitions of unemployment and the number you see is only one of them.  In fact, if you don’t have a job for a certain amount of time, you’re considered to be “out of the workforce,” and no longer counted in the common measure.  As it turns out, long-term joblessness is a danger to societies and this has implications for many of us in our personal life.

Measures of Unemployment

In understanding the impact of long term joblessness, it’s good to understand how unemployment rates are calculated.  In America there are six different unemployment numbers, U1 through U6:

• U1: Percentage of labor force unemployed 15 weeks or longer.
• U2: Percentage of labor force who lost jobs or completed temporary work.
• U3: Official unemployment rate per ILO definition.
• U4: U3 + “discouraged workers”, or those who have stopped looking for work because current economic conditions make them believe that no work is available for them.
• U5: U4 + other “marginally attached workers”, or “loosely attached workers”, or those who “would like” and are able to work, but have not looked for work recently.
• U6: U5 + Part time workers who want to work full time, but cannot due to economic reasons.^[1]

So as you can see, sometimes a job seeker simply “gives up.”  They’re no longer counted in unemployment statistics, but they certainly don’t have a job.  As it turns out, this is actually the worst kind of unemployment, even though we don’t see it measured very often.

Long Term Havoc

A study by the Cologne Institute for the German Economy is one of many supporting the belief that the longer a person is out of a job, the less likely they are to return to the workforce.^[2] Their job skills atrophy and they lose hope.  They basically get locked into a self-reinforcing cycle of poverty.  You may know someone like this, who used to be in the workforce, but now seems unable to return.

Think of all the ways in which this affects people’s lives.  Think about what being in prison for a few years means for your odds of employment, even disregarding the effect the sentence will have on people’s willingness to hire you.  You have whole communities who don’t believe they can find a job and thus make it true in their own mind.  As a society this kind of long-term unemployment can be decimating, but it also has implications for you personally.

What Does this Mean For You

For individuals like you and I this is something to consider as well.  At some point it may make sense to take a job in which you are underemployed, just to keep your frame of mind as a “worker.”  Rather than become chronically unemployed, it may make sense to do some work that helps you keep your professionalism as well as the mindset of a worker.  This can also help with the bills a little bit.  The only concern is to make sure that taking some temporary work doesn’t deter you from finding a job that truly makes use of your skills.

Photo Credit: Hamner Fotos

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Long Term Joblessness

1. Wikipedia — Unemployment
2. German Think Tank Says Joblessness Behind Poverty

Today’s post is by Nick Barber who works for UK discounting site VoucherCodes.co.uk

Personal finance has moved on and people are now roughly separated into two groups; those that are savvy online and those that are not.  There is a myriad of tips of tricks beyond the usual blanket “buy online” advice that can slash your usual monthly spend painlessly by about 20%.  These personal finance tips however can be leveraged in the worlds of investing and of small business too so you offset the hefty start-up costs that are often incumbent on the budding entrepreneur.

Before you know where you are going to make savings however, you need to know exactly how your finances are shaping up. In recent years there has been a proliferation of online software packages that will help you keep your bookkeeping in order. Mint is a great example. Once you sign up and enter your details, it will automatically pull in your balances from different accounts, updating in real time, so you can always keep on top of how much you are laying out each month. This information can then be used in conjunction with their budgeting software and there is even functionality to check how your investments are doing.  What is more – it’s completely free!

The second tip for knowing where you stand financially is to check your credit report. Your credit report is, put simply, a record of all the debts you have taken out in the last 6 years, right down to cell phone contracts, as well as a record of how well you have managed to repay them. Experian offer a free credit report when you register with them. It is essential to check for mistakes – which happen more regularly than you think. Even the smallest error can reflect badly on you which is especially important with banks having access to your records. If it seems you have missed just a few payments, this can result in a much higher rate of interest on your mortgage and other borrowings. Correcting mistakes can result in savings of hundreds of dollars a month; as well as opening up more finance to you.

Now you know where you stand; it’s time to make savings. One painless way is to use online coupons which became something of an online phenomenon in 2009. They are, in a nutshell, a revamp of the old cut out coupon.  In the main they are offered on a B2C basis. However FedEx, Dell and many stationers offer such codes which can lead to reductions of anywhere up to 50% when setting up a small business of a home office as a hub to run your investments from. A simple Google search for “Coupons” will bring up lots of sites dedicated to bringing together such discounts in one place.

If you are new to investment too there are many financial spread sites offering sign up bonuses. So long as you remain disciplined, this can give you a great introduction to get the feel for the markets with no risk. TradeFair – part of a British company that has won numerous awards including the coveted Queen’s Award for Enterprise – are offering a £100 ($160) sign up bonus, and will send you introductory guides to spread betting as well as having many introductory materials around their site.

Lastly, if you looking to make the jump from amateur investor to becoming self employed, or even if you are just looking to ramp up your investing activities then you will no doubt be looking at a fair bit of admin work too. However, recent years have seen the rise of “virtual PAs”. These are companies of remote personal assistants who will complete admin tasks you send to them.  They can usually be hired on an hourly basis so can provide very flexible work that can be invaluable when just starting out. Similarly if you are looking to research an investment then Amazons “Mechanical Turk” could be the answer. This service gives you access to a scalable workforce. You simply load in the task you want such as “Information on X business’ financial results”, and set the price you will pay for each piece of information (often just cents per item).  Combined these two tips can give you access to resource that can be unlocked at any time you need for a very cheap price; a hidden army for the new entrepreneur.

All in all a little bit of web knowledge can help you cut costs and increase resource at the same time, so you can put yourself in the best possible position whether you are a seasoned pro of the investment world or just starting.

Photo Credit: Wonderlane

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Web 2.0 Personal Finance

Photo Credit: WWarby

Today’s post is a guest post by Fred Schebesta who writes for Savings Account Finder where he helps people to choose the best savings account and term deposits.

While it is easy to spend all the money which comes in from your wages, and then some, today is the day you will start a savings plan and start using your money more wisely, for two reasons – firstly you’ll see how important it is to have a savings plan, and secondly you’ll see how easy it is to open a dedicated high interest saving account which practically manages and runs your savings plan for you.

Who Needs a Savings Account?

Not everyone needs a savings account, for example if you have a mortgage you should be directing your extra funds to pay off your debt before you start trying to earn interest on a savings account. Similarly if you are nearing retirement then an approved Retirement Savings Account will offer you better tax benefits and more attractive fee structures than a typical high interest savings account could offer in your situation. Instead, a savings account can benefit:

• · Children learning to save. Opening a savings account for your child can be the best gift you will ever give them as you are starting them on the road to financial knowledge and stability. Learning to save is an important skill and the earlier you teach your children about making regular deposits and how compounding interest is calculated, the sooner they will be in control of their money, rather than having it control them in the form of credit card and uncontrollable debt.
• · Young people saving for a house. A new home is a big investment and usually requires a big deposit too. Therefore, opening a high interest savings account can help you achieve the goal of a house deposit a lot sooner, as you can set up automatic transfers from your transaction account when your wages arrive so you are paying yourself first and allowing your house fund to regularly increase. You’ll also be earning a high rate of interest which is calculated daily and paid monthly so the more regular deposits you make, the more interest you will be able to earn on top of your own contributions.
• Families looking for more fun. When you are managing the family funds it can seem like there is never enough to go around. Unfortunately this could mean missing out on family holidays, trips to the movies or new bikes for Christmas. Whatever your family’s goals are, a dedicated high interest savings account can help make them a reality because your savings account safely guards your funds, adds interest to them and makes for a simple place for your family to save together and achieve their goals.
• · You there, with your dream purchase. If you have a dream purchase in mind, big or small, a high interest savings account can help make it a reality. By separating your savings from your everyday funds you are less tempted to spend the money you have so carefully saved, and you can instead watch it grow, contribute or reinvest it all online.

Features of the Best Savings Account

To achieve these savings goals you need to make sure you compare savings accounts and then choose it with your needs in mind. There is not one high interest savings account which is better than any other, instead you need to choose the account with the features, access, interest rate and benefits which suit you and your savings goal because the account which best suits you will be best suited to keep your savings on track.

How to choose the best savings account:

• Choose the best interest rate. High interest savings accounts often offer a higher promotional interest rate to new customers, which later reverts to a rate which can be much lower. To make sure you don’t miss out on interest earning options, choose a savings account with an interest rate to suit your savings plan. If you have a short term savings goal which you can achieve in just a few months, a high promotional rate can help you get there in that time, however if you have a more substantial goal like a house deposit, look for the best interest rate over the long term.
• Fee free savings accounts. A high interest savings account is opened and operated online and so should be fee free – not charging you for opening the account, or making deposits or withdrawals. However, to keep your savings entirely fee free, check the cost of transactions from your everyday account to your savings account – if you are being charged to withdraw funds to your savings account you are reducing your savings potential.
• · Access the account your way. While high interest savings accounts are primarily online accounts, some can be accessed in branch. If this is  an important feature for you, the best savings account will be one with branch access, cheque deposits and over the counter transactions included for free.
• · Understand all the account conditions. Some savings accounts will only pay you a high rate of interest if you make no withdrawals in a month and others require you to make a certain amount of deposits to be eligible for a higher interest rate on your savings. Therefore, it is important that before you decide which savings account really is best for you, that you have read and understood all the conditions of the account and you know that you can use the account within those conditions to achieve a high return on your savings.

A high interest savings account is an easy financial product to open and use, so make sure you follow our tips on choosing the best savings account for your needs, and you’ll have control over your money sooner.

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

How to Choose a Savings Account

A Subscription to the Economist – I have had subscriptions before, but I can’t ever get through them in a week so pretty soon I have a pile in my entryway.  That being said it’s SO much cheaper to get a subscription and if you giftee is a frequent reader of the Economist it could be a very appreciated gift.

A copy of Thomas Sowell’s Basic Economics – This is a great read for someone who is interested in economics.  While he occasionally dabbles in partisan politics, this book is much less “agenda driven” than many of his other books, particularly Economic Facts and Fallacies.

A Single Share of Stock Cerificate - Most of us trade almost completely electronically anymore and we almost never actually get to hold any physical symbol of our interests. You can get these from OneShare.com. Right now you can get $20 Off Complete Framed Stock: Use code HOLIDAY09.

Gold Coins – Much like the stock certificate, this gives us something physical to represent what we spend so much of our time doing.

Classic Books – Even if they’ve already read them, it can be nice to own a copy of something like one of Peter Lynch’s classics, or the Intelligent Investor.

Stress Relief – Get something to take the edge off during the trading day.  I like stress balls, but there are tons of options.

Report or Newsletter Subscriptions – If you’ve ever heard them mention a newletter or a research service they’d like a subscription for, this can be a great gift.  I’d never go out and buy one myself, but if I got one as a gift I’d use it.

Of course, in the end we know that we’re hard to shop for and will be happy with whatever you give us.  Especially if it’s not depreciating rapidly!

Post from: Personal Finance And Investing

Gifts for Investment Nerds