Retirement
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If You Reconvert – You Lose Your Spread to 2011 and 2012
We had a reader ask this question as a follow-up to our previous post on ROTH IRA recharacterizations: “My wife and I converted our traditional IRAs to ROTHs in November of 2010. Since the market has gone down we are considering the recharacterization back to Traditional. You mentioned we would have needed to file for […]
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You Can Use an IRA Too – Maybe!
My post from yesterday resulted in several comments and questions that I would like to respond to. One comment is that code section 4975 deals with prohibited transactions regarding you and your pension plan or IRA. There are severe penalties for not obeying the rules regarding these transactions. However, if you obey the rules, the […]
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Tap Your 401(k) to Start Your Farm Business
I know that many of our readers currently have jobs not related to farming, however, you would like to leave that job and start farming on a full-time basis. One of the major drawbacks to doing this is the lack of capital. However, many of you could have a substantial asset that you could tap […]
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$70,000 of Taxable Income Equals Zero Tax
There is about a month left before the April 15 tax filing deadline (except for those people who file extensions) and one of the nice tax benefits still available this year is the long-term capital gains rates for those taxpayers in the normal 15% tax bracket and lower. For those taxpayers, the net capital gains […]
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The 3 P’s of Succession Planning
As advisors, we are actively involved in succession planning for farmers and other businesses. This is usually a long process and will change over time and as the generations involved grow and mature, their goals will usually change. There are three main goals related to this planning: Protect – The primary goal of any succession […]
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When No Estate Tax is a Bad Thing
Most farmers are assuming that since there is no estate tax for 2010, that this must be a good thing for all taxpayers. The reality is that many farmers may end up paying more in taxes than under the law in effect for 2009. This is due to the fact that carryover basis will no […]
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Make Family Meetings Civil Not a War
As a CPA, I have been involved in many family meetings. Sometimes, I act as an advisor to the participants. At other times, I may actually be part of the family that is having the meeting. I remember having a client several years ago that had several children that were actively involved in the business […]
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Legacy by Design
One of the shows that I have taped on my DVR each day is AgDay. It comes on in the morning at 6 am and when I get home from work, that is usually the first thing that I watch on TV. The parent of AgDay, Farm Journal Media has launched a new monthly TV […]
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What About 2010 Roth Conversions
The ROTH IRA has been around for many years. For many farmers and others that have income over $100,000 annually, they have either been unable to contribute to a ROTH IRA or convert a regular IRA to a ROTH IRA. Starting in 2010, these rules are changing for ROTH IRA’s. Here are 6 things that you […]
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Estate Tax Law Changes are Coming
I have been reading several articles lately on the possible estate tax law changes that will be coming. The Bush changes from about 8 years ago will be changed and soon. Most agree that the estate exemption will most likely be around $3.5 to $5 million and indexed for inflation. Also, the gift tax exemption […]