Many adults look forward to collecting social security benefits once they retire. The problem comes when your spouse dies and you have to choose between receiving earnings based on your work history or survivor benefits based on your deceased spouse’s work history. You cannot collect both benefits. One strategy is to take the smaller benefit… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Asset Proection
Living Comfortably in Retirement
There are a few things you can do to live comfortably in retirement. First, you can practice living on less. Put more of your monthly income into savings while you’re working so that you will know what it is like to live on less when you are retired and do not have a steady salary.… Continue Reading
Of IRA’s and Taxes
(from “Death and Taxes, The Sequel”) Most people do not need to worry about federal estate taxes. However, retirees should be concerned with taxes imposed on their retirement accounts. Stretch IRAs, which allow beneficiaries to gradually draw funds out of retirement accounts, may become a thing of the past. Instead, beneficiaries may eventually be required… Continue Reading
Trusts For Everyone
I repeatedly hear from clients that they are worried about an adult child losing his or her inheritance to creditors or a divorcing spouse. These are valid concerns. If a child owes money to the IRS or other creditors, an inheritance can be grabbed to satisfy the debt. Similarly, if a child receives an inheritance… Continue Reading
Bitcoin Taxed As Property
The IRS issued a notice yesterday stating that it will view virtual, or cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, Altcoin and Litecoin as property and not as currency. This is presumably good news for those who have invested in Bitcoin as any transactions will be taxed at capital gains rates, although capital losses will be limited. However,… Continue Reading