495 entries
Taxes
Investor-facing tax concepts: capital gains, qualified dividends, cost basis, tax-advantaged structures.
- Marital Deduction (Estate) Unlimited transfer of assets to surviving spouse free of federal estate tax.
- Master Limited Partnership Tax Treatment How MLPs distribute taxable income and depletion allowances to unitholders via K-1 forms, creating complex passive-loss and basis-management issues.
- Medical Payment Gift Tax Exclusion: What Qualifies and What Does Not Pay medical or tuition bills directly to the provider—no gift tax, no limit. Reimburse the person instead, and it counts as an ordinary gift under your annual exclusion.
- Medicare IRMAA and Roth Conversion Planning Understand how Roth conversions trigger income-related surcharges on Medicare premiums and how to size conversions to avoid IRMAA brackets.
- Medicare Surtax 3.8% tax on net investment income for high-earning individuals, enacted to fund the Affordable Care Act.
- Medicare Surtax on Investment Income The 3.8% Medicare surtax on investment income applies to high-earning individuals. Learn the thresholds, which income types are covered, and how to calculate MAGI.
- Minority Interest Discount in Estate Valuation How lack-of-control discounts reduce the fair market value of non-controlling stakes in private businesses for estate tax purposes.
- Mixed-Use Property Tax Allocation How to prorate rental property expenses between personal and business use for tax deduction purposes.
- MLP K-1 Unrelated Business Taxable Income in IRAs How MLP ownership inside an IRA generates unrelated business taxable income (UBTI), triggering tax on otherwise sheltered accounts and the thresholds that determine liability.
- Municipal Bond AMT Preference Item Understand which municipal bonds generate an alternative minimum tax preference item, how AMT is calculated, and how to screen your muni portfolio for exposure.
- Municipal Bond Tax Exemption Explained How municipal bond tax exemption works: which investors benefit most, calculating tax-equivalent yield, and when AMT applies.
- Mutual Fund Capital Gains Distribution Tax Why mutual fund investors owe capital gains tax on distributions even in years they don't sell shares, and how timing affects the tax bill.
- Net Gift Technique in Estate Planning A net gift is a transfer where the recipient pays the resulting gift tax, reducing both the taxable gift amount and the donor's estate while leveraging the donor's lifetime exemption.
- Net Investment Income Calculation How to determine the income base for the 3.8% net investment income surtax by reducing gross investment income with allocable deductions.
- Net investment income tax The net investment income tax is a 3.8% federal tax on investment income for high earners (over $200,000 single / $250,000 married). It applies to capital gains, dividends, and interest.
- Net Investment Income Tax (3.8% Surtax) Net investment income tax 3.8 percent surtax applies when modified AGI exceeds thresholds; covers interest, dividends, capital gains, rental income.
- Net Investment Income Tax for S Corporation Shareholders How S-corp owners' distributive shares are tested for passive vs. active income under NIIT rules, and how reasonable salary affects tax exposure.
- Net Investment Income Tax on Partnership Income: Active vs Passive Rules How 3.8% net investment income tax applies to partnership income based on material participation versus passive rules under Section 469.
- Net Investment Income Tax on Real Estate Learn how the 3.8% net investment income tax applies to rental income and property gains, and how real estate professional status can exempt you from NIIT.
- Net Investment Income Tax on Rental Property Income Understand when the 3.8% net investment income tax applies to rental income. Learn about material participation, grouping elections, and how NIIT is calculated.
- Net Operating Loss Carryforward How business losses can be carried forward to offset future taxable income, subject to the 80% limit under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
- Net Operating Loss Rules for Real Estate Professionals How real estate professionals convert passive rental losses into active losses, enabling net operating loss creation and carryforward use.
- Net Unrealised Appreciation A tax election on lump-sum distributions from qualified plans that lets you pay capital-gains rates on employer stock appreciation instead of ordinary income rates.
- Net Unrealized Appreciation Tax strategy deferring gain on appreciated employer stock in retirement plans by distributing in-kind and paying capital-gains tax later.
- Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA) Tax Treatment How the NUA strategy allows employer stock to be distributed from a 401(k) with only cost basis taxed as ordinary income and appreciation qualifying for long-term capital gains rates.
- Net Unrealized Appreciation Tax Treatment Explained Net unrealized appreciation (NUA) lets employer stock moved from a 401(k) receive long-term capital gains treatment on the appreciation, not ordinary income.
- NIIT and Real Estate Professional Status: Escaping the 3.8% Surtax How real estate professionals use material-participation rules and hours tests to treat rental income as non-passive and avoid the 3.8% NIIT surtax.
- NIIT on the Sale of a Business: When the 3.8% Tax Applies Learn when gain from selling a business interest triggers the 3.8% net investment income tax, including passive-activity and installment-sale treatment.
- Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan An NQDC arrangement lets executives defer large portions of salary and bonus into future years, deferring tax—but creating constructive receipt and FICA-tax traps if not structured carefully.
- Nonqualified Stock Option Tax Treatment How NSO exercise creates ordinary income equal to the spread, reported on W-2 or 1099, with a separate capital gain or loss when shares sell.
- Oil and Gas Limited Partnership Tax How passive investors in oil and gas partnerships deduct intangible drilling costs and claim percentage depletion, creating tax advantages unavailable to public equity holders.
- Opportunity Zone Investment A federal tax incentive allowing investors to defer and potentially reduce capital-gains liability by reinvesting realized gains in businesses or real estate in designated low-income communities.
- Opportunity Zone Real Estate: Capital Gains Deferral Mechanics Opportunity Zone real estate: reinvest capital gains into Qualified Opportunity Funds to defer and potentially exclude tax.
- Ordinary dividend An ordinary dividend is a dividend payment that does not qualify for long-term capital gains tax treatment and is instead taxed at ordinary income rates, up to 37% federally.
- Part-Gift Part-Sale: Basis and Gain Rules Explained How basis and taxable gain are calculated when selling property below fair market value in a part-gift part-sale, including donor and recipient treatment.
- Partial 1031 Exchange Boot Tax Treatment How the taxable 'boot' portion of a partial like-kind exchange is calculated and reported when replacement property is of lesser value than relinquished property.
- Partial Home Sale Exclusion When Use Test Is Not Fully Met When you sell a home early, the IRS allows a reduced exclusion if job change, health, or unforeseen circumstance prevented the two-year ownership and use test.
- Passive Activity Loss Limits Tax rules (PAL) restricting deductions for losses from passive business activities against active income.
- Passive Activity Loss Rules IRC Section 469 restrictions that prevent passive investment losses (real estate, partnerships) from offsetting active wages or portfolio income, except for certain rental-real-estate exceptions.
- Passive Activity Loss Rules for Rental Properties How passive activity loss rules limit rental property deductions: $25,000 active-participation allowance, phase-out for high earners, and suspended-loss carryforward.
- Passive Loss Carryforward for Investors Understand how unused passive losses suspended in prior years are released and recognized upon a taxable sale of the passive activity.
- Passive Loss Limitation Real Estate The $25,000 annual deduction limit for passive real estate losses and the rules that govern its application.
- Penalty for Missing an RMD and How to Correct It The missed RMD penalty is a 25% excise tax on the shortfall amount, reduced to 10% under SECURE 2.0 with self-correction within a grace period.
- Pension Income Exclusion State-level tax benefit allowing certain retirees to exclude qualified pension and retirement income from state income taxation.
- PFIC Tax Rules for Foreign Funds US investors face punitive PFIC tax rules when holding foreign mutual funds and ETFs. Understand the excess-distribution regime, mark-to-market elections, and why diversification is difficult.
- Phantom Gain: Mutual Fund Capital Gain Distributions Why mutual fund capital gain distributions create tax liability even when your shares lose value, and how to manage end-of-year tax impact.
- Pooled Income Fund A charity-managed investment pool that pays donors a variable income share in exchange for a remainder gift and provides an immediate deduction on the actuarial present value of the future charitable remainder.
- Portability (Deceased Spouse) The ability of a surviving spouse to inherit and use the deceased spouse's unused federal estate tax exemption.
- Portability Election Deadline: When and How to File for a Deceased Spouse Estate tax portability election deadline explained: Form 706 filing requirement to preserve deceased spouse's unused exemption within 9 months.
- Primary Residence Capital Gains Exclusion Section 121 exclusion of $250,000–$500,000 on home sale gains, the two-of-five-year ownership and use tests, and partial exclusion rules.
- Primary Residence Capital Gains Exclusion: Limits and Eligibility Primary residence capital gains exclusion limits: the ownership and use tests, $250,000/$500,000 thresholds, partial exclusion rules, and disqualifying events.
- Private Activity Bond Interest as an AMT Preference Item Why interest from certain tax-exempt municipal bonds must be added back under the alternative minimum tax and how to identify affected bonds.
- Private Placement Life Insurance A life insurance policy customized with alternative investments and designed to defer income tax while protecting assets from estate taxation.
- Property Tax Deduction: Rental Property vs Primary Residence How SALT cap limits primary home property tax deductions while rental property taxes remain unlimited on Schedule E.
- Put Option Tax Treatment How the IRS taxes purchased and written put options, from premium payments through exercise, expiration, and wash-sale interactions.
- QBI Safe Harbor for Rental Real Estate QBI safe harbor rental real estate: the 250-hour service log requirement and which properties qualify.
- Qualified Business Income Deduction Section 199A deduction allowing a 20% deduction on pass-through business income, phased out for high earners and limited by W-2 wages paid.
- Qualified Business Income Deduction and Rental Income Eligibility How the 20% QBI deduction applies to rental real estate through safe-harbor elections and facts-and-circumstances tests.
- Qualified Charitable Distribution Direct IRA-to-charity transfers that satisfy required minimum distributions while excluding the amount from taxable income.
- Qualified dividend A qualified dividend is a dividend payment from a US or qualifying foreign corporation that receives preferential long-term capital gains tax treatment. Most dividends from US stocks qualify.
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