Crumbs

[ark steel]

The ACA is a clusterfuck.

Here's a new one I learned this year...so we are self employed and our premium is 1465.00/month with a 6750 indivual deductible, 13000 family. So last year I was able to find a HSA qualified plan and we paid for our out of pocket expenses pre-tax. Found out that his year there are no HSA qualified plans being sold in my area. Why is my plan not HSA qualified? Because it pays some measly couple hundred dollars towards a sick appointment. That's it. Any plan that pays out any sort of benefit before the deductible is met, no matter how tiny, is disqualified from being HSA eligible.

What the ever loving ****?

What benefit do you derive from being Self Employed over being Incorporated as an S-Corp?

 

[SteelerInLebanon]

actuaries don't do taxes, we are just super-duper smart.

I have not delved into that much detail yet. I wouldn't have thought you could take the personal exemption for the daughter in college, though, either.

As long as she is dependent on me for a majority of her support I get to claim her.


Sent from my iPhone using Steeler Nation mobile app

 

[oneforthebus]

What benefit do you derive from being Self Employed over being Incorporated as an S-Corp?

We are an s-corp...sorry, that's what I meant by self-employed. We should get the corporate tax rate on our pass through income. However there are supposedly some kind of rules excluding professional services companies (i.e. doctors lawyers) from all or part of the corporate rate, or it being limited by income or something. It was one of the things that was getting changed around a million times before the law passed so I don't know exactly where it ended up. My husband is a consultant to the energy industry. I do his books, marketing etc. I don't know if that counts as a professional services business by the definition of the law or not.

Thankfully I don't do our taxes.

 

[oneforthebus]

I just found this explaining the new pass through laws. Why, it's crystal clear now! LOL.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kellyp...nesses-looks-like-in-chart-form/#71f45cc74a0f

To see the chart in full size, click here.

And some key definitions to help you navigate the chart:

APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE means 1 - PHASE-OUT PERCENTAGE
EXCESS TAXABLE INCOME means TP taxable income - THRESHOLD
NEW QBIF means APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE x QBIF
NEW QBIF - WCF DIFFERENCE means NEW QBIF - NEW WCF
NEW WCF means APPLICABLE PERCENTAGE x WCF
PHASE-IN RANGE means $100k for married taxpayers filing jointly & $50k for all other taxpayers
PHASE-OUT PERCENTAGE means EXCESS TAXABLE INCOME/PHASE-IN RANGE
QBI means qualified business income, which means the taxpayer’s share of income from a pass-through entity
QBIF means qualified business income factor which means 20% x QBI
QBIF - WCF DIFFERENCE means (20% x QBI) - WAGE-CAPITAL FACTOR
SPECIFIED SERVICE BUSINESS means, in general terms, a business with respect to which the services of one or more individuals is the main source of income, such as lawyers, doctors, accountants & consultants (architects & engineers are expressly excluded). For the full definition see page 553 of the Conference Report (downloads as a pdf).
THRESHOLD means $315k for married taxpayers filing jointly & $157.5k for all other taxpayers
TP means TAXPAYER
WAGE-CAPITAL FACTOR means TP's share of the greater of 50% x W-2 Wages OR (25% x W-2 Wages) + (2.5% x Capital Investment).
Of course, Rob being a lawyer, had a few caveats, notably:

In order to determine how best to structure a business for tax purposes, it will be necessary to take into account additional factors other than just what is in the Flowchart. For example, owners of S Corporations may be able to avoid a substantial amount of Social Security and Medicare/Self-Employment taxes which can add as much as (.9235) x (15.3%) or 14.129% of income. Actions that lower your amount of Self-Employment tax may decrease your pass-through deduction. Also, with the additional change of the corporate rate to a flat rate of 21%, without knowing all the rules and crunching numbers, it is not possible to determine whether taxation as a proprietorship, partnership, S- Corporation or C-Corporation will be optimal.

Rob also notes that the flowchart is not meant to constitute legal or tax advice and is, instead, provided solely for educational and discussion purposes. Feel free to test the formulas, which were crafted to make it as easy to follow as possible - and not to incorporate every possibility - and reach out to him directly with feedback (click here for email). Changes may be required.

 

[Steeltime]

Your going to have to deduct the consequences of tax cuts for any additional money you pocket. The dollar has been tanking so gas prices and imports prices will be going up.

The price of gasoline does NOT increase with tax cuts. You inaccurately conflate causation here. "Congress cut taxes, and the Eagles win the Super Bowl" is just as accurate a statement of causation. In point of fact, lower corporate taxes and increasing oil prices (short term) give energy producers more money to search for and produce oil. Further, your claim about oil prices is simply not accurate:

The explosion of oil prices took place between 2011-2014,with limited drilling, millions of acres off the market, driving the price per barrel over $100, and up to $122. Since then, prices took a plunge in 2015, bottomed out in early 2016, and have been on a fairly even level for about a year, ranging between $55 per barrel to $63 per barrel. This graph shows longer term crude prices, and clearly refutes the claim that current prices are anything other than perfectly acceptable, and lower than at any other time over the past 10 years:

Further, the "dollar tanking" has no negative effects on US citizens. Quite the opposite. The dollar "tanking" means more exports as US goods are cheaper relative to currency, and more tourism into the US, because the prices here are better. The only individual citizens who would risk financial loss due to the dollar "tanking" are speculators engaged in arbitrage. Strike 2.

Interest rates will be heading way up, so anyone that has a variable rate mortgage or doesn't pay their credit card off each month, will be paying a lot more.

And if foreigners get scared off of funding our deficits, interest rates and inflation could be going way, way up.

Dude, just ... wow. You have so many incorrect statements in these few words. You fundamentally misunderstand and misstate the economic forces affecting interest rates, inflation, and investment in US debt. First, inflation for 2017 was 2.1%, or the same as 2016.

http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/us-inflation-grows-2-1-in-2017/100013399/#more-13399

I was searching for your posts, looking for one raising an alarm about the Obama inflation rate of 2.1% in 2016 and just can't seem to find it ... wait, so Bammy's economy has a 2.1% inflation rate and God is great, Trump has a 2.1% and the sky's falling? Is that about it?

Additionally, inflation is a byproduct, not a driving economic force, 21. Inflation is the "RBI" of statistics - it is what it is, but has almost no genuine meaning or forecasting value. Specifically, inflation is driven by money supply. Where M3 is pumped into the economy recklessly in an effort by lazy, stupid government officials to inflate economic growth, inflation remains steady. The current administration/Fed are not dousing the economy with money supply:

Strike 3.

Second, interest rates are increasing for one reason and one reason alone - Bammy forced interest to be effectively zero for 8 years, trying to spur the economy by monetizing the debt. I have already explained this to you in great detail, and need not do so again here.

So Trump is to blame for the market corrections to interest rates that should have occurred in 2012? And where the interest rates are increasing to very market-worthy levels? Once again, a simple graph of the data show how wrong you are regarding interest rates:

Notice the effective zero interest rate 2006-2015, and the current levels, still well below the rates between 1968 and 2005.

Further, investors put money into US treasury notes because this economy is the greatest the world has ever seen. Since 1792, when Washington appointed Alexander Hamilton as treasury secretary and Hamilton made certain that the US government paid its debts, this nation has been a favorite for investors not as a speculative jab but instead as the most secure investment available. Foreign citizens and foreign governments invest in US treasury notes for that reason. The United States economy is waking up to its potential, and US bonds will remain a staple investment for those interested on earning a profit and getting paid.

Strike 4.

Latest calculation on the deficit is that it is going from 516 billion in 2017 to 994 billion in 2018. After that it will be over a trillion a year. Market is starting to tank because some are becoming aware that the republicans might have miscalculated the effect of the tax cuts. With 4% unemployment more stimulus can cause a fire.

The budget deficit has been lowered and essentially squelched historically by economic growth and the resulting influx of tax revenues, not by increasing taxes. We saw this in 1948-1959, and once again 1983-1994. Booming economies, increasing tax revenues, deficit disappears.

In fact, the ONLY way to get the budget deficit under control is massive economic growth, not taxes. Only idiots believe that "taxing the 1%" will have any appreciable effect on the deficit. Such talk is silly, stupid bleating of the economically-uneducated goats who think the Huffington compost is a good source for economic news.

And as to "Republicans overstating" the economic benefits of the tax cuts ...

Real disposable income and real consumer spending increased significantly the last quarter.

Private goods and services, not government spending, are spurring the current economic growth


GDP growth, spurred by private industry and consumer spending and not government spending, continued in the 4th quarter. This chart shows the long-term GDP growth after the 4th quarter 2016/1st quarter 2017 slowdowns:

Sustainable, private-industry and consumer-driven economic growth = exploding tax revenues and the disappearance of the deficit. Fact.

Strike 5, 21. You're out.

 

[deljzc]

The only fear right now in the economy is inflation. I said this before (like a week ago) before the word caught on fire and made the stock market go for a tumble.

Our economy is so warm right now, it is bordering on hot. And when you get too "hot", inflation becomes everyone's favorite word.

There was a pretty decent bump in inflation back in 1982 after Reagan's tax cuts too, but it settles down eventually and this will as well. Have no fear, a little inflation right now is a good thing (we've been pretty stagnant in prices) and if wages are rising, that means cost of goods will rise as well.

It's worth keeping an eye on as an investor this year. And what the fed does will matter because they desperately want to raise rates up to normal levels.

I think our economy is very strong. Everything is looking great. The stock market will cool off - always had too - and probably adjust to only a 4-5% increase this year (as opposed to like a 20% increase last year). Hell, after this big sell-off it might just get back to 26k or 27k by Christmas. No issues. Keep buying in with your 401k deductions.

But wages, inflation, jobs, manufacturing, consumer confidence all look excellent in both the short and long term.

 

[21STEELERS21]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/mark...n-fears-infect-world-stock-markets/ar-BBILX9u

Bloomberg is saying many of the same things I said. We aren't worried about 2017 inflation, 2% is fine. It's future inflation that could be the problem.

When a country owes $170,000 per taxpayer they are on the way to becoming a credit risk. The tax cuts aren't paid for and US citizens don't save enough
to pay for them. We have to rely on foreigners, mainly from Asian countries to fund our deficits. The riskier we are the more interest they are going to want.

 

[21STEELERS21]

steeltime all your data and charts are old data/history. The stock market is reacting to what will happen in the future.

 

[Superman]

steeltime all your data and charts are old data/history. The stock market is reacting to what will happen in the future.

"reacting to what will happen in the future"

think about what you said, 21. think about it really hard.

 

[BLITZ]

steeltime all your data and charts are old data/history. The stock market is reacting to what will happen in the future.

and it rebounded a bit today. Not sure about you but I am still insanely happy that the dow hit 20k let alone 26k. the stock market is reacting.

 

[Steeltime]

http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/mark...n-fears-infect-world-stock-markets/ar-BBILX9u

Bloomberg is saying many of the same things I said. We aren't worried about 2017 inflation, 2% is fine. It's future inflation that could be the problem.

Future inflation could be a problem if (1) the Fed starts pumping money into the economy to spur economic growth (not happening, not going to happen) and if the Fed keeps interest rates artificially low.

You do realize, don't you, that the prime rate increases stifle inflation? Right? So when you complain simultaneously about inflation and increasing prime rates, you are arguing with yourself.

When a country owes $170,000 per taxpayer they are on the way to becoming a credit risk. The tax cuts aren't paid for and US citizens don't save enough to pay for them. We have to rely on foreigners, mainly from Asian countries to fund our deficits. The riskier we are the more interest they are going to want.

False. First, I did not hear a ******* word about the accumulated debt as it double under the great-and-powerful Bammy. Not ONE ******* WORD.

So now it's cause to run screaming into the street? Yeah, sure.

Second, the deficit and debt are addressed with economic growth and spending control. Economic growth is greatest with very reasonable tax rates. Economic growth promotes private wealth, property ownership, personal income growth, GDP growth, and burgeoning tax revenues.

Finally, if United States treasury notes are no longer a reliable investment, then the world's economy is ******. The idea that Asian markets will now say, "Oh, what the ****, I will invest in Borneo," is ludicrous.

The United States produces and consumes and drives the world's economy. If the US is no longer worthy of investment because our country is a "credit risk," then ****-all. Things like inflation and GDP growth are going to be secondary to the impending economic apocalypse.

 

[Ron Burgundy]

False. First, I did not hear a ******* word about the accumulated debt as it double under the great-and-powerful Bammy. Not ONE ******* WORD.

Democrats only care about the debt and deficit when they're not running the government. Everybody knows that.

 

[SCSteeler4life]

11 % bonus, 2% raise. Thank you Mr. Trump.

 

[TDX27]

The tax cuts won't increase our debt unless the economy stays as anemic as it was under Odumbfuck. If it grows from 1.9 to 2.3, which it already has, the tax cuts will start paying for themselves and we will be able to start paying down Odumbfucks debt. The loony libtards and their MSM won't tell you that. Get the GDP well above 3, where it should be and we are in very good shape.

 

[Smash]

11 % bonus, 2% raise. Thank you Mr. Trump.

Congrats. Think my tax break nets me an extra $550/yr. give or take. Not much, but every little bit helps.

 

[Troglodyte]

You do realize, don't you, that the prime rate increases stifle inflation? Right? So when you complain simultaneously about inflation and increasing prime rates, you are arguing with yourself.

First, I did not hear a ******* word about the accumulated debt as it double under the great-and-powerful Bammy. Not ONE ******* WORD.

What? He isn’t arguing against himself at all, it’s a causal relationship. Go back to the early 80’s, there was simultaneous inflation AND interest rate increases as the Fed struggled to control inflation.

I know I questioned why nobody paid attention to the debt anymore prior to Trump winning the election. A decade ago the debt made big news with every trillion dollar milestone. That disappeared under Obama and hasn’t come back under Trump.

 

[Ron Burgundy]

I know I questioned why nobody paid attention to the debt anymore prior to Trump winning the election. A decade ago the debt made big news with every trillion dollar milestone. That disappeared under Obama and hasn’t come back under Trump.

There is no debt, unemployment, or homeless people under a Democrat President. It all magically disappears. Everybody knows that.

 

[Superman]

There is no debt, unemployment, or homeless people under a Democrat President. It all magically disappears. Everybody knows that.

quoted for speaking the gospel

 

[oneforthebus]

There is no debt, unemployment, or homeless people under a Democrat President. It all magically disappears. Everybody knows that.

Exactly. Obama doubled the national debt and it was all good. As long as the money was funding Solyndra and the autoworkers union and federal bureaucrats and not going back into people's pockets it's good.

 

[tapeANaspirin2it]

It trickles down, doesn’t it? If giving huge tax breaks to corporations and 1%ers is what is best for the economy, why not give all of it to them? There are hundreds of millions of middle and lower class people getting small individual tax breaks, the sum of which is huge. Think about how much that could do for the economy if given to the job creators! Right?

It will be given to them when people buy stuff with their new money.

 

[ark steel]

It will be given to them when people buy stuff with their new money.

What if we passed a law that forces people to buy specific stuff even if they do not need or want it? BOOM goes the economy!

 

[Superman]

What if we passed a law that forces people to buy specific stuff even if they do not need or want it? BOOM goes the economy!

you mean, like cough medicine?

 

[DBS1970]

you mean, like cough medicine?

You making a big batch of Purple Drank?

 

[Ron Burgundy]

What if we passed a law that forces people to buy specific stuff even if they do not need or want it? BOOM goes the economy!

Sen. John Kerry explains the Democrat position.

 

[CharlesDavenport]

Sen. John Kerry explains the Democrat position.

That is perfect.