Download Printable Article By Kristina Schneider, Executive Assistant Writing a business letter seems somewhat common knowledge or perhaps common sense to most people; however, it’s sometimes shocking to see how many administrative staff members – – even those with a college education – – are completely incapable of writing business letters. In this article, we will walk you through each step on how to properly write a business letter so that you can quickly and easily write correspondence on behalf of or for your boss without too much editing. Company Letterhead The first step to writing business letters is to…
Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples
By Alma Soongi Beck, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law After the historic rulings in United States v. Windsor and Rev. Ruling 2013-17, the playing field for same-sex couples has equalized dramatically. When married, same-sex couples are finally eligible for the same kinds of planning benefits that practitioners have leveraged with opposite sex married couples for years: Bypass trust planning, gift splitting, leveraging of the double step-up in basis for community property, joint tax return filings, among others. Moreover, under Rev. Ruling 2013-17, federal tax recognition now applies regardless of where the…
Sell More Life Insurance by Showing Prospects How to Avoid Income Tax
By Philip J. Kavesh, CFP®, ChFC, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation) The 2012 American Taxpayer Relief Act (“ATRA”) may have reduced the need for life insurance in estate tax planning, but it has opened numerous opportunities to utilize life insurance as an income tax planning tool. A big concern for taxpayers who may want to sell their home, stocks, rental property or business is the huge jump in capital gains taxes. The top federal rate bracket has moved from 15% to 20%, but when you add in the combined effect of the 3.8% Net Investment Income (“Obamacare”) Surtax, the itemized deduction phaseout or…
Year-End Roth Conversion Planning
By Robert S. Keebler, CPA, MST, AEP (Distinguished) Roth IRA conversions are an important part of bracket management and can be used to avoid the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT) and the higher income tax brackets. While some of the benefits of Roth IRA conversions may require a longer period of time to produce, these conversions are still an important strategy to consider at year-end. Advantages of a Roth IRA Roth IRAs have a number of advantages over traditional IRAs: Lower overall taxable income long-term; Tax-free, rather than tax-deferred growth; No required minimum distributions (RMDs) at age 70½;…
8 Year-End Practice Building Tips to Implement RIGHT NOW
By Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law As your business winds down near year-end (unlike 2012, when everyone was doing last-minute wealth transfer planning because of anticipated changes in the estate tax laws), it’s a good time to work on your business – – rather than in your business, as we practitioners are often trapped doing throughout the year. Hopefully, this article will serve as a brief checklist of action steps you can take now to assure a more effective, profitable and enjoyable 2014. By the way, this…