Tag Archives: economy

Alternatives To Paying Income Tax

 
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flat tax, consumption tax, national sales tax, simple tax code

73,608 73,608…what is the significance of that number? If you answered “the number of pages in the 2012 US federal tax code” congratulations, you win! The federal tax code is bloated and over complicated. Every election it seems a new set of politicians from each party pledge to make simplifying the tax code a top priority, yet it never happens. Judging from the feedback on my post about preparing your own taxes it seems more and more people are opting to have a professional do their taxes for them. Really, who can blame them? Its gotten to the point where even those of us that do prepare our own tax returns can’t do it without the aid of complex tax software. Instead of tinkering with our current system and making it even more complex as we strive for fairness, why not throw the entire thing out the window and explore … Continue reading →

The Case For A Higher Minimum Wage

 
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raise-minimum-wage

Last week during the annual State of the Union address, President Obama laid out his case for raising the national minimum wage. He said: “…Today, a full-time worker making the minimum wage earns $14,500 a year. Even with the tax relief we’ve put in place, a family with two kids that earns the minimum wage still lives below the poverty line. That’s wrong. That’s why, since the last time this Congress raised the minimum wage, nineteen states have chosen to bump theirs even higher. Tonight, let’s declare that in the wealthiest nation on Earth, no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty, and raise the federal minimum wage to $9.00 an hour. This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families…” Raising the minimum wage always sparks an intense debate. In the days since the State of the Union address I’ve seen numerous blog … Continue reading →

Investing Experts and the Herd Mentality

 
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sheep

Buy low, sell high.  Any idiot off the street could repeat this phrase to you as if they had the secret recipe for investing success. Honestly, it’s good advice. One of my favorite investing quotes, and one I try to base my investing strategy around comes from the great Warren Buffet. He famously said “Be greedy when others are fearful, and fearful when others are greedy.” On the surface it seems like Buffett is saying the same thing a different way. But what I love about his quote is that it’s actually much deeper than simply buying low and selling high. His quote also illustrates why “buy low, sell high” is much easier said than done. In the investing world, almost like no place else there is an amazing herd mentality. When things are going good, such as over the past month, all the talking heads will tell you how great of … Continue reading →

Everything You Need To Know About The Fiscal Cliff

 
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fiscal-cliff

The Fiscal Cliff is coming, and only our elected officials can stop it. You can argue among yourselves which part of that sentence is the scariest, but on December 31st of this year the United States is set to head over the “Fiscal Cliff”. Here is what you need to know about it: What is the “Fiscal Cliff”? The term “Fiscal Cliff” – coined by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke – is basically an economic version of Hurricane Sandy, where all the right stars align to make an already powerful and damaging force all that much more destructive. The forces combining to create the fiscal cliff are numerous: 1. The Bush-era tax cuts are set to expire on December 31st of this year. If they are not extended income tax rates will rise by ~3% across the board. The 10% tax bracket will also disappear.  In addition the child tax credit will be … Continue reading →

Do 47% of Americans Really Pay No Taxes?

 
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burning-money

Taxes. As the saying goes, “the only things you can count on in life are death, and taxes.” They’re just one of life’s necessary evils and we all have to pay them….or do we? A common  argument, and one that’s getting a lot of attention right now is the argument that 47% of Americans don’t pay any taxes and are just living life completely dependent on government support. It’s convenient that this is making headlines right now, because it touches on one of my biggest pet peeves when it comes to talking taxes: people only focus on income taxes. I’m going to try to stay away from all the political stuff and focus on the core of the argument: Do 47% of Americans really pay no tax? If so, who are they? “The 47%”: True or False? Do 47% of American’s pay no federal taxes? Sort of. It is true that about 47% … Continue reading →

Are We Better Off Today Than We Were Four Years Ago?

 
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light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel

Election season is in full swing, so naturally a question you’re hearing a lot is: “Are you better off now than you were four years ago?” I’ve had numerous discussions and debates on this point already, and I’ve read a few good posts on the topic as well. The more I read about, and talk about this topic the more I’ve started to realize I may have a unique perspective on things. Four years ago I was at the epicenter of it all. I was in my first job out of college, an entry-level accounting position at Citigroup. The day I started at Citi the company stock price closed just above $53 per share ($492/share to accurately compare it to today’s price due to a reverse split).  By now you know the story, the financial industry exploded, the stock market crashed and all hell broke loose… From the outside the … Continue reading →