Grow tax FREE?

February 27, 2015 by
Image3 Courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Image3 Courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

A ROTH IRA allows tax free growth of your after tax contribution. It is quite a deal! If you are married, you can open one for yourself and one for your spouse then make the maximum contribution to each.  It is as easy as opening a bank account. But it is just a holder for your money, you will need to pick a method to get your tax FREE growth! You can invest in lots of different ways, like money market accounts, stocks, bonds, real estate or mutual funds. Really whatever way you are comfortable with. If you are interested in trying out stock options, check out  www.lockeinyoursuccess.com or contact us regarding questions on real estate investing. This one is sure to set you up to succeed in your future with contributions to a ROTH IRA!

Click like if you are contributing to a ROTH IRA this year!

Filed Under: Money Management, Real Estate, Stock Market Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Market research is important!

February 20, 2015 by
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Ever wonder if you are getting a good deal? You should know if you are or not! With apps and the internet making information more available there is no excuse. One of the best ways to review prices is to check sold items on ebay.com. To search, enter the item into the search field, hit the REFINE tab, scroll down to “Sold items” and select it, then click done. A list of sold items and their prices will be displayed. It is a great tool.

Another way is to check a price is on Amazon.com. There are also many price checker apps available, the one that we are most familiar with is Amazon price checker. It has a bar code scanner so that when you are in the store you can scan the bar code of an item and it will give you pricing information. It has saved us multiple times from paying way more than we should have! Do that research!

What other sites can provide market research?  Please comment.

Filed Under: Money Management Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Cutting the cable

February 13, 2015 by
Image courtesy of arztsamui from freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of arztsamui from freedigitalphotos.net

Do you remember a time when you could watch TV for free? Maybe you had to buy an antenna.  I know it is a radical thought in this day and age where everyone has cable subscription service, but do you enjoy it enough to keep it? Is it just a habit to pay the bill every month?  Take back control of your television watching!  There are currently many options for your viewing pleasure beside cable television and usually with less commercials!  One is to watch programing from your computer, which can be streamed wirelessly with Chromecast or connected with an HDMI cable.  There are many programs available for FREE LIVE or sometimes you may have to wait for a short period of time after the show airs.  There are also online pay services like Netflix or Hulu that charge a MUCH lower monthly fee, mostly under $10 per month.  Consider it!  I am sure you could find a use for that extra $100 or more per month.  Couldn’t you?

What could you do with that extra $100 plus per month?

Filed Under: Money Management Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

BULLSEYE Target

February 6, 2015 by
Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici from www.freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici from www.freedigitalphotos.net

Target Department Stores has some great ways for you to keep more of your money!  Besides the usual manufacturer’s coupons and Target coupons, they have a smart phone app called “Cartwheel” that provides some great savings.  The app is easy to use and it can be used to scan bar codes of products in your cart to see if there are any additional savings!  After you have added the products to the app it will produce a bar code that the cashier can scan which will deduct savings.  Be sure to sign up for coupons to be mailed to you as well they provide some pretty good offers.  Also their clearance is usually located at the ends of some isles and can provide some super deals.  Lastly if you use the Target credit card they will give you 5% off everything you buy.  There is some significant savings to be had.  Target has hit the bullseye for savings!

Please share other stores that provide great savings.

 

Filed Under: Money Management Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Deal or no deal?

February 2, 2015 by
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

If you have elected to get your life insurance coverage through your employer, please take a closer look.  Generally the benefits offered by your employer are a good deal but life insurance may be a different story. 

Carefully look at the amount of coverage to make sure it is adequate to cover your dependents in the event of your death.  Chances are the coverage is much too low.  Typically the standard coverage recommended is 10 times your gross annual income.  If you don’t have enough you should seek additional insurance.

Another point to watch of course, is the cost of that coverage.  In many cases the insurance from your employer is much more expensive per thousand than traditional term insurance.  So be sure to price it out and make sure you’re getting the best DEAL!

Do you have adequate life insurance coverage?  Click like!

 

Filed Under: Career Development, Money Management Tagged With: , , , ,

Expect the unexpected

January 30, 2015 by
911 by Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

911 by Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Establish and maintain an emergency fund of at least six months of expenses.  This is extremely important and should only be used in emergencies.  It should be easily accessible so that you can withdraw the funds quickly.  It should only be used for unexpected costs, it should not fund vacations, new expensive clothing, dining out or other luxuries.  Be sure to keep the emergency fund in a separate account so it is not mixed with other funds for other purposes.  Stay away from temptation!  A good way to make it grow consider is to set up automatic monthly transfers to ensure it gets fully funded.  The emergency fund is for unexpected expenses like appliances that stop working, getting laid off from a job, long illness or an accident.  Be sure to keep this fund for the unexpected and you will be prepared!

Please click “Like” if you have an established emergency fund.

Filed Under: Money Management Tagged With: , , ,

Taxes; The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

January 23, 2015 by

Just in case you missed it…A fantastic webinar, Taxes; The Good, The Bad and The Ugly with Kim Landry, CPA from Landry and Associates.  Kim gave us some great tax strategies and planning techniques to be able to keep more of what you make.

What is a tax strategy that has saved you from paying more taxes than necessary?  Please share.

Filed Under: Business Boost, Money Management, Real Estate, Stock Market, Webinar Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Please use tools only as directed.

January 23, 2015 by
Image courtesy of vectorolie from freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of vectorolie from freedigitalphotos.net

Credit cards cause a lot of pleasure that could ultimately cost you a lot of money and pain if used incorrectly.  Our theory is to use credit cards as a tool only to make your life easier, BUT NEVER CARRY A BALANCE, EVER!  If you can’t pay for the item you are purchasing by the time the bill is due, don’t buy it.  This concept is very, very important.  Many other finance specialists will tell you to never use credit cards, but I would like to believe there are some disciplined adults out there who can benefit from their use.  Be sure to use them only if the total monthly payoff rule is ALWAYS, ALWAYS followed!

What type of cash back or rebate program does your credit card provide?  Please comment.

 

Filed Under: Money Management Tagged With: , , ,

Worth their weight in gold!

January 22, 2015 by
Image courtesy of digitalart from freedigitalphotos.ne

Image courtesy of digitalart from freedigitalphotos.ne

A CPA can be a very important member of your investing team who can guide you through the labyrinth of taxes.  They are worth their weight in gold to you and your business.  A true CPA professional can ease your stress and save you lots of money you may have given Uncle Sam because you didn’t know any better.  Here are some tips when working with a CPA to make the most of your time and money.

Form a good relationship.  Once you find a good CPA, stick with them.  They become familiar with your business and they will ask important questions to lead you to a lower tax bill.  Of course, telling the truth is very important because it may make your CPA terminate your relationship and will hurt you if you are dishonest.

Lower your annual bill by being organized.  If you hand over a shoe box fill of receipts instead of a categorized report of expenses, your bill will most certainly be much higher.

Use your CPA in making decisions.  Be sure to consult your trusted CPA regarding purchases and don’t make assumptions.  Those assumptions could be very costly.

We are proud tonight to have our trusted accountant and friend Kim Landry, CPA with us tonight for our FREE webinar to go over the topic of taxes.  Don’t miss it!

 

Please comment on what you learned from the webinar.

 

 

Filed Under: Business Boost, Money Management, Real Estate, Stock Market Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Capital gains, hopefully not losses…

January 21, 2015 by
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles from freedigitalphotos.net

Capital gains (or losses) are recognized when you sell a capital asset.  A capital asset is almost everything you own and use for personal, pleasure or investment purposes.

 Capital gains are categorized either as short term, held less than one year or long term, held for one year or more.  Long term gains have beneficial treatment in the US tax structure since they are taxed currently at 15% where short term gains are taxed at the individual’s tax rate which can be much higher.  One exception to the rule is the treatment of stock options under section 1256 where gains or losses open at the end of the year or terminated during the year are treated as 60% long term and 40% short term regardless of how long the contracts were held.

We all know taxes are very tricky so there are exceptions to most rules and we encourage always seeking the guidance of a professional.  Check out our webinar on Thursday, January 22, 2015 with Kim Landry, CPA to discuss “Taxes; The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” and she will help clarify some of the tax laws for us.

 What tax strategies are you planning on using in 2015?

 

Filed Under: Money Management, Stock Market Tagged With: , , , , ,