Friday, January 25, 2013

Tax avoidance has doubled and we pay


Tax avoidance has doubled and we pay
There are now 70-plus “business-friendly jurisdictions,” as tax lawyers say, and they’re sheltering $21 trillion to $32 trillion, up from $11.5 trillion in 2005, according to the Tax Justice Network, a group of tax haven opponents that see no difference between tax avoidance and tax evasion.
We taxpayers will have to pick up the slack for these people. You need to shield your retirement nest egg from higher taxes and fees using the IRS’s own legal tax shelter, 26 USC § 408:http://www.amazon.com/Your-Pension-Box-tax-FREE-employer/dp/1481945157/

Does your student need a debit card without a bank account?
Now you/they can have a card when needed without the dreaded bank account fees or high balance. There are other fees to pay for the service if you/they need them. Pay as you go. Great for starting a business so all your records are in one place.

Which statements and forms do you need to take to your tax preparer?
In case you have not found doing taxes the easy way—online via FREE efilershttp://www.irs.gov/uac/Free-File:-Do-Your-Federal-Taxes-for-Free
—you need to take the forms listed below to your preparer. You may want to compare what you submitted last year so find your 2011 return.
If your income is less than $51,000, IRS volunteers will do it for you.http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Free-Tax-Return-Preparation-for-You-by-Volunteers
The list of what you need is here: http://www.jacksonhewitt.com/do-your-taxes-in-office/what-to-bring/ It is just a list. I don’t endorse any paid preparer.

Ever had a question on your taxes?
IRS says it has about 13,500 customer service representatives answering taxpayer calls and mail in 2011 and 2012, down from 15,000 in 2010. So even though the IRS has added more automated features to handle some calls, the average wait for a human grew to 17 minutes last year, from 9.5 minutes in 2010 and just 4.6 minutes in 2007, when 81% of callers got through to a human, before either becoming discouraged and hanging up or being cut off. (For the IRS, 81% is considered good service.)
My answer: write a letter and pay what you think you owe. When they reply you won’t be penalized for not filing on time and paying at least what you paid last year. I have called the big paid-preparers—Block, Jackson, etc—to get someone to help EARLY in March when they are idle. It worked. However, BOTH the IRS and preparers have been wrong: over 10 million words in code.

Hope for FL non-insured
Florida lawmakers considering how to implement the federal health care overhaul sought information from two economists on the Massachusetts initiative that served as the blueprint for the national plan.

Coastal community groups are forming homeowner insurance co-ops
Community groups along our coastal areas are going into the home insurance business. The major firms have left or raised premiums beyond reasonable limits. People are getting together to insure themselves against storms and everyday perils. It may be time to do your own research to save on homeowners: http://www.amazon.com/Homeowners-Insurance-Beware-Coverage-Policy/dp/1480100870

Are variable annuities with Guaranteed Minimum Income Benefit right for you?
As interest rates continue at low levels, insurers are cutting the benefits on new products. Instead of 5% withdrawals, annuity owners can only take 4%. The withdrawal and roll-up rates appear to have hit a floor for now, but don't expect features to rise even if interest rates increase. MetLife, along with Jackson National Life Insurance Co. and Prudential Financial Inc., have dominated the variable annuities market. You have alternatives to the 4% income that can last for 30 years or more at less cost. Plus annuities are not refundable. The cost of the GMIB annuity is high compared with alternatives: http://www.amazon.com/Not-Buy-That-Annuity-Guaranteed/dp/1466494573

Annuity companies are now paying a cash bonus to agents to sell you!
This is the email agents just received from one of them:
“This offer may not be available in all distributions. This incentive is not available in New York.Contact your marketing area to confirm eligibility. Cash Bonus is non-cumulative and only paid to the writing agent.” Don’t let the sales person talk you into one before you know the facts.http://www.amazon.com/Not-Buy-That-Annuity-Guaranteed/dp/1466494573


Longevity Insurance
Is it right for you? Are there better alternatives?
Longevity insurance is expensive
If you die early, your family gets nothing
There are better alternatives
>>>>Do NOT buy a policy before you compare alternatives<<<<
Longevity policies are a great deal if you know you will outlive everyone else at your age. You pay $20,000 to an insurer at age 60 and you receive about $920 a month for the rest of your life, beginning at age 85. If you die before age 85, the insurer keeps your principal. Even if you don't use your entire premium, your family gets nothing. 
Dan Keppel is also the author of Long-term Care Insurance: Is it right for you?

ObamaCare supported by majority
A majority of Americans put the creation of state-based health insurance exchanges at the top of the priority list for health policy in their state this year, according to a survey. Smokers may have to pay more for same policy. Penalty increases with age. 49 million Americans do not have health coverage now. Buy only what you need: http://www.amazon.com/Health-Insurance-ONLY-right-policy/dp/1480125083/

Costco selling health insurance
Aetna is selling individual health benefit plans for individuals and families to Costco members inCalifornia, bringing to 10 the number of states where the insurer is going retail at the warehouse store chain. Other states where Costco members can purchase individual/family plans includeArizonaConnecticutGeorgiaIllinoisMichiganNevadaPennsylvaniaTexas and Virginia.Aetna expects to expand to other markets in coming months. More information is available at costcopersonalhealth.com.

SCAMS           “Deficits don’t matter” GOP grandfather Dick Cheney 2002

Fed gov warns we will pay for bank bad behaviors AGAIN
“I submit that these institutions, as a result of their privileged status, exact an unfair tax upon the American people,” Fed gov Fisher told his audience. “Moreover, they interfere with the transmission of monetary policy and inhibit the advancement of our nation’s economic prosperity.” Mr Fisher thinks big banks “believe themselves to be exempt from the processes of bankruptcy and creative destruction.”

Who owns your account now?
Aetna Inc. will sell a Missouri Medicaid business that manages care for more than 100,000 people to fellow health insurer WellCare Health Plans Inc. due to Aetna's pending acquisition of Coventry Health Care Inc

IAN
41 Watchung Plaza, B242
MontclairNJ 07042
973.746.2014

No comments: