I had a friend in the 1970s who worked in the bond department of a major Wall Street firm. He dealt all day in $200 million sums. He couldn't balance his checkbook; his wife did it. As an aside, his salary at the time was $22k/yr for 10-hour days and two weeks vacation. But his bonus each year was $3-5 million so he retired okay. Another friend owned a small company where his salary was $1 million per year. He never saved a cent and died (by suicide) penniless and facing a return to prison for fraud. The tangled webs, eh?
The Holy Grail of investing is Total Return. This statement from the linked article is flatly wrong: "In the US, we pay the same tax rates on dividends that we pay on capital gains." eg, I don't think there are any bond dividends that are qualified.
I don't know about other HD readers, but I'm tired of seeing AI postings. I can ask AI myself if I want to see that tripe. I'm much more interested in what other readers have to say derived from their own intellects. PLEASE!!! Enough of this AI stuff on the HD forum.
Yesterday's wonderful posting by Bogdan Sheremeta indicated that the contributions would not be tax deductible and yes, the withdrawals would be fully taxable at regular income tax rates.Takes a bit of the sweetness out of it.
Truly a very informative posting. Thank you for going through the work required to create this. Two items: 1) I didn't see a mention of the new QCD reporting requirement (on the 1099-R) for custodians and 2) change "points" to "pounds".
There seems to be a lot of confusion about the new senior bonus deduction. The new senior bonus deduction is a "below-the-line" deduction so has nothing to do with the taxability of SS benefits. Taxability of SS benefits are determined by "above-the-line" income, deductions and exclusions. "The line" is the AGI or MAGI line on the 1040.
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Leave him on the MA plan unless he hates it for some reason.
Post: Helping a Sibling with Health Insurance Costs?
Link to comment from September 8, 2025
It's Roth IRA. Roth was a person.
Post: How Much to Save to Retire?
Link to comment from September 7, 2025
For those interested in what those early FAX (Qwip) machines looked like and how they operate, see the movie Bullit, near to the end.
Post: My thoughts on technology- can’t get enough
Link to comment from August 29, 2025
I had a friend in the 1970s who worked in the bond department of a major Wall Street firm. He dealt all day in $200 million sums. He couldn't balance his checkbook; his wife did it. As an aside, his salary at the time was $22k/yr for 10-hour days and two weeks vacation. But his bonus each year was $3-5 million so he retired okay. Another friend owned a small company where his salary was $1 million per year. He never saved a cent and died (by suicide) penniless and facing a return to prison for fraud. The tangled webs, eh?
Post: Still a Wild Child: When Spending Habits Never Grow Up
Link to comment from August 29, 2025
The Holy Grail of investing is Total Return. This statement from the linked article is flatly wrong: "In the US, we pay the same tax rates on dividends that we pay on capital gains." eg, I don't think there are any bond dividends that are qualified.
Post: Dividends Part II – At least
Link to comment from August 24, 2025
As my German professor used to say, "Take care of the little things and the big things will take care of themselves."
Post: The Main Thing … and the scourge of complexity
Link to comment from August 24, 2025
I don't know about other HD readers, but I'm tired of seeing AI postings. I can ask AI myself if I want to see that tripe. I'm much more interested in what other readers have to say derived from their own intellects. PLEASE!!! Enough of this AI stuff on the HD forum.
Post: The Most Cited Websites By AI Models
Link to comment from August 20, 2025
Yesterday's wonderful posting by Bogdan Sheremeta indicated that the contributions would not be tax deductible and yes, the withdrawals would be fully taxable at regular income tax rates. Takes a bit of the sweetness out of it.
Post: Trump Accounts
Link to comment from August 17, 2025
Truly a very informative posting. Thank you for going through the work required to create this. Two items: 1) I didn't see a mention of the new QCD reporting requirement (on the 1099-R) for custodians and 2) change "points" to "pounds".
Post: One Big Beautiful Act: Tax Breakdown and Planning Strategies
Link to comment from August 16, 2025
There seems to be a lot of confusion about the new senior bonus deduction. The new senior bonus deduction is a "below-the-line" deduction so has nothing to do with the taxability of SS benefits. Taxability of SS benefits are determined by "above-the-line" income, deductions and exclusions. "The line" is the AGI or MAGI line on the 1040.
Post: Free Social Security Taxability Calculator
Link to comment from August 15, 2025