4 Tax Law Changes We Need To Make Permanent

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4 Tax Law Changes We Need To Make Permanent

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August 20, 2012

With the presidential election beginning to heat up in America over the next several months, we are all going to hear a lot about income taxes. We all know that with thousands of pages of tax code, it is impossible for the average citizen to really understand all of the different ways they can save money in taxes. There are many tax law changes set to take effect in 2013. If I had the opportunity to set the wheels in motion to make some tax law changes that would be permanent and easy to understand, here are four of them that I would recommend we change to become permanent.

1. Social Security Taxation - From the day you begin working and earning waged income, 6.2% of your paycheck (the last couple of years 4.2%) goes toward your future social security benefits. This is also known as your Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax. You only see the 6.2% that comes out of your paycheck, but your employer also pays 6.2% tax into the Social Security fund as well. If you are self-employed, you get the personal joy of having to pay both halves of the tax. After 30 to 40 years of paying into the system, the Government has a special surprise for you when you begin receiving benefits from Social Security. If you are married, for example, at $32,000 Modified Adjusted Gross Income your Social Security Benefits become taxable. At $44,000, your Social Security benefits will be 85% taxable. (source: irs.gov) All of us believe we should not have double taxation, but here is a great example for people who are supposedly at a 'higher' level of income in retirement. Since when is $44,000 a high level of income? We just make Social Security benefits non-taxable permanently.

2. Sale Of Your Primary Residence - Home ownership is supposed to be one of the American dreams. As we have seen over the past several years, real estate values can fluctuate up and down. Many of the people who are born in Generation Y are considering waiting to buy their first home or renting a house altogether and skipping the notion of home ownership. The current law allows up to $250,000 of profit from the sale of a primary personal residence per person ($500,000 per couple) to be excluded from taxation. The full amount is available if the seller(s) used the home as their primary residence for at least two (2) years out of the five (5) years prior to the sale. This does not mean that the property had to be owned for a full five years, as some believe. (source: taxguru.org). We should want home ownership to be one of the long term ways the next couple of generations build their wealth as the 'property ladder' has been a big wealth building source in many countries for many years. I'd like to see the capital gain exclusion on the primary residence be eliminated permanently.

3. Itemized Deduction Phaseout- Every year, we spend time on our tax returns putting together documents for our CPA. These include getting our real estate taxes, personal property taxes, mortgage interest paid, charitable deductions, medical expenses, and unreimbursed employee expenses are laid out in a neat file come tax time. All of these types of deductions are included on Schedule A which is called our itemized deductions which are set out to give us a tax break for things like home ownership and charitable donations. You may have noticed that the last couple of years there has actually been no phaseout of these itemized deductions where in years past if you made more than a certain amount of income these deductions were actually 'phased out'. For married couples that make roughly $167,000 or more, you will begin to see your deductions get phased out in 2013 if nothing changes through this election. My opinion is we just phase this rule out entirely as most taxpayers don't even pay attention to the rule let alone understand how it affects them.

4. Tax Credits For Employing The Unemployed - When unemployment is low and job growth is happening most people are happy. I believe people live much better in an environment of certainty rather than constant unplanned change. There are a ton of entrepreneurs who are trying to grow businesses, and we want to continue to give incentive to people to become entrepreneurs. Employers who hire unemployed workers this year (after Feb. 3, 2010 and before Jan. 1, 2011) may qualify for a 6.2-percent payroll tax incentive, in effect exempting them from their share of Social Security taxes on wages paid to these workers after March 18, 2010. This reduced tax withholding will have no effect on the employee's future Social Security benefits, and employers would still need to withhold the employee's 6.2-percent share of Social Security taxes, as well as income taxes. The employer and employee's shares of Medicare taxes would also still apply to these wages. (source: irs.gov)

In addition, for each worker retained for at least a year, businesses may claim an additional general business tax credit, up to $1,000 per worker, when they file their 2011 income tax returns. (source: irs.gov)

These were some of the temporary 'tax breaks' a small business would get for hiring the unemployed. I think what would be more beneficial is to see a larger tax break (in the $5,000 range) for every full time employee that you hire and retain for at least two years. This way, the small business owner would benefit as their company grows and their company incomes rises while also being focused on employing people who currently do not have a job.

Nobody really knows where all of the tax law changes will end up at the end of this election. Most people want some sort of simplicity to the tax code so they can make better smart money moves when they plan their tax strategy. Making these four changes permanent could help put us on the path to making the complex just a little more simple for the average American.

See Also: Can you name the 18 small business tax cuts?

Written by:

Ted Jenkin, CFP®, AAMS®, AWMA®, CRPC®, CMFC®, CRPS®

Co-CEO and Founder of oXYGen Financial, Inc - The Leaders in Gen X & Y Financial Advice and Services

Visit www.oxygenfinancial.net to request a free consultation with the leading financial experts for people in their 20's, 30's, and 40's in the country.

Securities and Investment Advisory Services offered through NFP Advisor Services, LLC (NFPAS), Member FINRA/SIPC. Oxygen Financial is not affiliated with NFPAS. NFPAS does not provide tax or legal advice. This site is published for residents of the United States only. Registered Representatives and Investment Advisor Representatives of NFP Advisor Services, LLC (NFPAS) may only conduct business with residents of the states and jurisdictions in which they are properly registered. Therefore, a response to a request for information may be delayed. Not all products and services referenced on this site are available in every state and through every representative or advisor listed. For additional information, please contact NFPAS Compliance Department at 512-697-6000. PLEASE NOTE: The information being provided is strictly as a courtesy. When you link to any of the web sites provided here, you are leaving this web site. NFP Advisor Services, LLC makes no representation as to the completeness or accuracy of information provided at these web sites. Nor is NFP Advisor Services, LLC liable for any direct or indirect technical or system issues or any consequences arising out of your access to or your use of third-party technologies, web sites, information and programs made available through this web site. When you access one of these web sites, you are leaving our web site and assume total responsibility and risk for your use of the web sites you are linking to.

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Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. oXYGen Financial is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS. Kestra IS and Kestra AS do not provide tax or legal advice. https://Bit.ly/KF-Disclosures

This site is published for residents of the United States only. Registered Representatives of Kestra IS and Investment Advisor Representatives of Kestra AS may only conduct business with residents of the states and jurisdictions in which they are properly registered. Therefore, a response to a request for information may be delayed. Not all products and services referenced on this site are available in every state and through every representative or advisor listed. For additional information, please contact Kestra IS Compliance Department at 844-553-7872.

PLEASE NOTE: The information being provided is strictly as a courtesy. When you link to any of the web sites provided here, you are leaving this web site. Kestra IS and Kestra AS makes no representation as to the completeness or accuracy of information provided at these web sites. Nor is Kestra IS and Kestra AS liable for any direct or indirect technical or system issues or any consequences arising out of your access to or your use of third-party technologies, web sites, information and programs made available through this web site. When you access one of these web sites, you are leaving our web site and assume total responsibility and risk for your use of the web sites you are linking to.