Brian Skrobonja shares practical tips on year-end tax planning so you can make informed decisions and take control of your financial future.
He explains why now is the perfect time to assess your financial situation and the type of strategic moves you can make to reduce your tax liabilities, maximize savings, and enhance your overall financial health.
- Brian starts the conversation by revealing the key elements of a well-designed year-end tax planning strategy.
- Tax planning isn’t an April 15th activity. The tax return itself is just a scorecard. For Brian, tax planning goes from January to December of the year you’re in.
- Brian talks about the benefits of being intentional about allocating resources and ensuring you remain in a reasonable tax bracket throughout the year.
- According to Brian, it’s unfortunate that most tax preparers recommend buying vehicles or equipment to save on taxes. Brian explains how that line of thinking may be costing you money, not saving you money.
- Brian reveals why he doesn’t defer taxes into retirement accounts.
- He explains how tax deferral is not a tax saving. For a strategy to be a tax saving, it needs to actually save you taxes. And a tax deferral is not a savings; the word defer gives it away.
- Brian goes through examples of real tax saving strategies that can reduce your current tax bill, build wealth, and help ensure you don’t have future tax liabilities.
- Brian talks about the best way to be paid as a business owner.
- While ordinary income may seem attractive, this form of income is also the highest taxed income in our tax system.
- Brian explains why business owners should not take ordinary income and instead take profits as a dividend. This can often carry a more favorable tax rate and can lead to some significant tax savings over time.
- The other mistake Brian sees people make is receiving an income and then making charitable contributions from their personal account. Often, this can result in overpaying on your taxes because of the standard deduction.
- Brian goes through investment options that carry unique tax benefits and lead to significant reductions in taxable income.
- The default approach for many people is to receive a salary, defer money into their 401k, pay down debt, and approach retirement with hands off the wheel. Brian explains why sometimes this is leaving money off the table.
- If you make money, there will be taxes to manage. Any tax-saving strategy you choose to deploy should be done legally and ethically. The good news is that there is nowhere in the tax code that says you have to pay the maximum amount in taxes.
- Brian highlights the benefits of keeping yourself updated with tax laws. Tax laws are always evolving and being informed about these changes can lead to better decision making.
- How to help ensure you’re taking full advantage of the potential opportunities and the numerous tax benefits available to you.
- As the year concludes, Brian recommends taking the time to engage in comprehensive tax planning. This can make a meaningful difference in short-term savings and your long-term financial health.
Mentioned in this episode:
Common Sense Financial Podcast on YouTube
Common Sense Financial Podcast on Spotify
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