Types of Taxes

Taxes are a fact of life. They are necessary to fund various institutions, programs and projects such as Social Security, Medicare, the military, schools, emergency services and highways. There are many different types of taxes; however, the most common are listed below.

Federal and State Income Taxes

Most everyone knows what federal and state income taxes are, and they know that they must file them each year. Federal taxes are handled through the Internal Revenue Service, and the deadline to file is April 15 of every year. While many people will need to pay taxes at that time, some will get refunds.

The requirements for state taxes vary, and some states do not even collect taxes. However, most of them do. As such, it is best for you to inquire with your state as to whether or not you need to file. You should also ask when the deadline is. Additionally, if you own a business, you may need to file federal and state taxes more than once per year.

Property Taxes

If you own any real estate, you will need to pay property taxes, known in some states as real estate taxes. Real estate typically includes such things as a personal home, a rental home, a piece of land or a commercial property. These taxes are based on the assessed value of the property in question. 



Property taxes are often collected by the state or county that you reside in and in some states, you may also need to pay property taxes on such things as recreational vehicles (RVs), watercraft and pets. Requirements, restrictions and due dates may vary by state or county.

Sales Taxes

Just as with income taxes, you probably already know what sales taxes are. Sales taxes are collected on the state level, and you pay them whenever you buy something or pay for a service. The amount of sales tax you will need to pay depends on the item or service you pay for and the state you live in. 

Payroll Taxes

If you own a business and pay people to work for you, then you are responsible for paying payroll taxes. These taxes are taken out of your employees' salaries before you distribute their paychecks. Also known as FUDA or FICA, payroll taxes help fund such programs as Social Security and Medicare. 

Other Taxes

These are the most common types of taxes that you need to pay regularly. However, there are more taxes you may need to pay depending on your unique circumstances. These can include such things as excise taxes, estate taxes, tariffs, corporate taxes and capital gains taxes.

Long Term Care Insurance: A Looming Problem for Baby Boomers

Living in a segment of town where there are a number of retirees renting their own homes make me wonder how fail-proof their retirement plans are. I wonder if they have planned for a rather long retirement phase ahead, as most of us will live longer than our counterparts in generations preceding us. I wonder what they used for their retirement plans, if they worked and put aside money in their 401K or equivalent pension plans, or if they invested their money and are living off of interest or monthly payments from the investment. I wonder how many of them take up odd jobs to keep the rent paid, and what those jobs construe. Retirement is both fascinating and frightening because it can seem like a daunting task to live several decades of your life without an income stream that is an active job you currently hold.

If you are a baby boomer, chances are you've already made your decisions on retirement plans. The Baby Boomer segment in the US has long been touted as the largest group to enter retirement with the most amounts of problems in long term care and Medicaid access. Many of us know that Medicaid is not sustainable in the long run, which makes the case for long term care for boomers even worse. This is because when the largest group requiring long term care retires, the ratio of working age to elderly population will be at its lowest. The tax base that ought to be providing the source for Medicaid funds will be the smallest in 80 years. This is a very bleak picture that has serious implications with very few concrete solutions. Long term care insurance can hedge against these problems, especially because Medicaid only steps in once a senior has spent down almost all their assets and retirement income. 

An interesting notes on the issue however, is that many boomers who can afford long term care insurance have still not bought any. Many boomers might think it unnecessary but LTC insurance covers an important segment of long term care that is the most expensive item on the LTC list: nursing home care. Nursing home care and home health care coverage are now standard on almost all LTC policies. 

As we all wait for the Federal Reserve to announce its decision on its updated economic policy, many are anticipating its call on the reduction in bond purchases if it decides that the economy has been faring well for itself and could do with a reduction in stimulus packages. With so much uncertainty looming in the economy still, it might be best to self-insure against long term care expenses right now while the market is still relatively stable. Last year, some prominent long term care insurance players including Prudential, Unum and MetLife disbanded their LTC offerings, saying that it wasn't a profitable enough business segment to offer any more new policies to new consumers. Before the supply of long term care insurance diminishes further or worse, becomes prohibitively expensive, look up some quotes and consider purchasing a policy if you are a boomer nearing or already in retirement.

The statistics predict a glut of boomers spending on nursing homes about 30 years out from now. This group includes forty year olds as well, so if you think you're too young to even consider LTC, think again! The need for long term care will come upon you closer than you think.

Author bio: Frank Mitchell has worked as a life insurance agent for 10 years. After an accident in 2011 that kept him at home for more than a year, Frank started offering advice on forums and other social media networks. He now works as financial advisor and in his spare time writes articles on subjects he is passionate about. On the weekends, you’ll find Frank dirt biking.

Reference:

http://www.acli.com/SiteCollectionDocuments/ACLI/PDFs/Public%20Affairs/LTCBabyBoomers05.pdf

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505146_162-57393433/prudential-quits-individual-long-term-care-biz/

Travel Insurance – Your Best Companion Abroad

A large number of people forget to take a very important item when formulating plans for the holidays and that is travel insurance. It is a holiday essential that safeguards the individuals and their families from the unexpected events that they might face in their trip. Without the proper travel insurance, there is every possibility that the individuals might expose themselves to some kind of financial risk and lose out considerable amount of money. This could really lead to the disaster vacations devoid of any fun and enjoyment. Here are a few prominent reasons why an individual planning a tour with their invaluable family members must consider taking travel insurance:

Illness and Injury

Anything may happen to you or the members of the family while on the holidays. Especially when you are travelling in a foreign country, there are chances that your immune system might not be very strong and you may catch cold or flu immediately. If you or a prominent family member happen to meet with an accident, then in such a situation, best medical attention is required. In some of the cases, hospitals do not provide care to the patients unless they have a travel insurance or significant amount of cash up front. It is imperative that you must stay protected by taking travel insurance for families and have a stress-free trip. 

Lost and Delayed Luggage

It cannot be denied that travelling is very stressful as it takes long hours to reach a particular destination. The problem becomes all the more worse when the luggage gets lost or delayed due to the negligence of the airlines. It is certainly a worrying situation as you are not able to start your tour because the precious personal belongings have been lost and there is nothing to wear. However, having an international travel insurance means you can claim a reimbursement for the invaluable items that have been mishandled.

Weather Delay and Natural Disasters

After boarding a airline plane, you find out that the flight has been cancelled in between because of the bad weather and you will be required to stay overnight at the airport hotel. What is worse that you figure out that the airline does not provide a cover for your accommodation and your luggage is in transit. In some of the extreme cases, the airlines do not reimburse the expenses arising due to the weather delay or natural disaster as it is not within their control. It is true that the bad weather conditions occur frequently all over the world and due to this many vacations are affected because of flight cancellation. Having an excellent travel insurance means you get an optimum coverage for the delayed or the cancelled flights due to the bad weather.

A very important point that should be noted here is that you should always focus on getting best travel insurance for a renowned company. There is no point of all getting this particular kind of insurance without undertaking a proper research work and suffering inconvenience during the trip. For making sure that you get a right insurance you can either devote some time towards researching online or take the help of an experienced agent to make sure you grab the right insurance according to your needs and requirements. If you are too pre-occupied with your work and do not get leisure time to do the research work, then you also have the option of taking the services of the travel concierge company. A travel concierge besides getting you a perfect insurance can also help you a lot in variety of things such as the arranging flight tickets, booking accommodation and completing other important formalities.

Having travel insurance provides a great peace of mind and lets you and your family members enjoy the worry-free holidays.

Things to Keep in Mind About Life Settlements

Senior life settlements are one way for those who are older to meet their financial obligations, and to use the resources at their disposal to help make themselves that much more comfortable later in life. However, in order to get a life settlement, it's important for a senior to know what category he or she fits into, and how likely it is they'll be able to get what they need.

What a Life Settlement Company Looks For

There are certain things that make a senior more likely to get a life settlement than they otherwise might be. For instance, many companies look for seniors that are over the age of 70, and who have roughly a 12 year life expectancy or less. The reason for that is because the company wants to see a return on their investment, and they don't get paid until the individual in question dies and the benefits will be transferred to the company that gave them the life settlement in the first place.

In addition to this though, a settlement company tends to look for seniors that have had their life insurance policies for two years or longer. If someone falls into these important categories, then it's likely that a settlement company will consider that person a "good" investment, if talking about someone's death can ever be considered good.

Checking The Terms

People turn to settlement companies for a variety of different reasons. Whether they have outlived their beneficiaries, they can't keep up on the payments for the policy, or another reason entirely, the idea of a lump sum that's more than what they're paying but less than the death benefit appeals to them. However, it's important that these persons look very carefully at what a settlement company is offering before they sign on the dotted line. Once the signature's there, there is no going back afterward.

Those getting the settlement need to see precisely what the company is offering, and what strings are attached to it. Different companies have different policies, and it's the duty of the person getting the settlement to read the fine print and make sure they're all right with it. This includes the amount of the settlement, as well as whether it's in a lump sum or paid out over time. It also includes the terms of the agreement, including dates, times and amounts. All of that is important, and once someone signs the contract, they are binding. It's better to carefully consider something and decide it's not right then to rush right in and realize that at a later date.

Check out your options. Talk to a reputable life settlement company and find out everything you need to know about your options. You are under no obligation to go with them, but their friendly customer consultant can help.

Strategies To Make Money From Binary Option Trading

Binary options trading, also known as digital options, forex options, all or nothing options, is becoming more by the day. Since this form of option trading is available to everybody, many people are taking advantage of this investment vehicle to make some good money. As the name implies, binary options trading is a form of options trading that has only two outcomes: win or lose. 

The trading of digital options involves the prediction of the price movement of a financial asset during a specific time frame. The trader is aware of the profit or loss that he is likely to incur from a trade at the beginning of the trade. Financial assets like currency pairs (USD/GBP, USD/JPYen, USD/Euro, GBP/Euro, etc), stocks (Facebook, Apple, Google, BP, etc), indices (FTSE, NASDAQ, Down Jones, etc), and commodities (Gold, silver, crude oil, etc). 

If the trader correctly predicts the price movement of the financial asset, he will be in the money. On the other hand, wrong prediction of the direction of price movement of the asset class by the trader will cost him his money. Thus, the trader will profit from a trade when he anticipates the direction of the price movement correctly and will lose his money when he is wrong, which means that the trading of binary options is pretty straightforward.

Since binary options trading is risky, many strategies have been designed to help traders profit regularly from the market. Many people are professional traders who earn a living from digital options trading. It is expected that these professional traders should always come with strategies to make money from the market. As a result, different strategies have evolved to help both professional traders and part-time traders to profit from the market. Below are some of the common binary options trading strategies used by traders:

1. Buying a Call or Put Option: The digital option trading strategy is the simplest among all the different strategies available to traders. A call option is bought when the trader anticipates the asset price to finish above the strike price at the expiration of the trade. On the other, another trader expecting the value of asset to finish below the strike price will buy a put option for that trade.

By buying a call or put option, the trader is predicting the value of the asset above or below the strike price respectively at the expiration of the trade. If his forecast is accurate, the trader will be in the money. However, a wrong prediction will make the trader to be out of the money for that trade.

2. Buying Both Call and Put Option: Traders’ most used strategy when they sense that their trade will be out of the money. If a trader buys a put option and notices the direction of price movement is going against his forecast in the middle of a trade, he can purchase a call option to minimize his loss.

3. Trade Doubling: This strategy is one of the favorite strategies of professional traders. By using trade doubling strategy, traders can double the amount of profit they can make from a single trade. For example, a trader who purchases a call option for a trade and observes that he will end up in the money can purchase another call option to double his profit. However, since binary options trading is quite unpredictable, only professionals who fully understand the market should employ this strategy.

About the Author

D. Brezinski has been making money online for over 10 years now. His expertise in Forex and binary options trading allows him to allocate time for the writing of articles that he believes will help binary options traders to become more successful in their dealings. Mr. Brezinski currently contributes to ActionBinary.com where he writes professional reviews about binary options brokers.

How To Hire The Right Financial Advisor

While both financial planners and broker-dealer agents are technically considered financial advisors, their expertise and services vary significantly. Before selecting an advisor it is important to understand that this decision should not be one that is rushed. When selecting a financial advisor it is important to consider all option and not just settle for the advisor that is the most convenient. Many consumer banks offer the option to use their financial advisors and there are some positives to this alternative. It is also common for those with higher funds to seek advisory from a financial institution. Whether choosing to hire an advisor from your local bank or seeking out advisory from financial institutions, it is important to consider all options and conduct detailed research to narrow down the options.

Financial Advisors

What To Consider: 

1. Credentials 

Before selecting a financial advisor, it is important to look into the registration and certifications of all the agents being considered. Failing to select an advisor with the right professional credentials and licenses can hurt you in the long-run. For financial advisors, you should be looking for the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) tag. Similarly, if you are interested in working with a broker, you should be looking for the Broker Dealer Agents (BDA) title. To get a better feel for certifications and areas of expertise one must always consider and reference the professional designations of an advisor. 

2. Consultation 

First impressions are half the ball game. If your first meeting with a prospective advisor leaves you feeling uncomfortable and unsure, it is likely that this relationship should not continue in terms of your financial goes. Before making a final selection, it is important to find an advisor who aligns with your goals and can ultimately meet your needs. Depending on how the initial meetings goes, it will be easy to tell whether your prospect is on the same page. 

3. Financial Strategy 

If you live a conservative lifestyle and refrain from taking risks often, it would be wise to align yourself with an advisor who has a similar asset allocation model. If you are aggressive, however, your best fit would be an advisor who will seek high risk and high reward. These two models are on opposite sides of the advisory spectrum and the models in between could seek to benefit those who like a little bit of both. If you are not conservative or aggressive, you should seek to work with an advisor who is moderate, moderately conservative, or moderately aggressive. The type of asset allocation model selected is an important aspect of selecting an advisor, however it is more important that your styles are aligned. 

4. The Alternatives 

         a. Banks

Banks

Banks can be a great alternative for those seeking a financial advisor. When choosing a bank advisor, they may offer incentives such as lower fee transactions or free checking if you have an investment account at the bank. People may choose to work with an advisor from a bank because it simplifies the process of searching for a qualified advisor. An advisor working for a bank will also likely be able to offer a wide variety of investments as well as life insurance options. 

          b. Online Broker

Online Brokers

An online broker may also be an alternative to consider as they provide trading services over the internet, unlike traditional physical brokerage firms. Similar to financial institutions, the services offered will differ by each broker, ranging from trading and research strategies. When considering an online broker, keep your trading and investment habits in mind. If you trade frequently using your own research, concentrate on a firm with a low trade fee. Likewise, if you like to rely on broker assisted trades, confirm the service is offered at a reasonable price before depositing your funds. 

Things To Keep In Mind: 

Selecting a financial advisor is a big decision. It is important that when your retirement day hits you are prepared for a life of leisure. A financial advisor will help you stabilize your finance and help grow your assets. There is no secret sauce to selecting an advisor, but these tips outlined will help you find an advisor that is the best fit for you. Whether over the internet, through a bank, or through a financial institution, always consider your options and understand that an advisor is someone you will have relations with for years. Make sure that your advisor is working in your best interest and that your goals and personalities align. With this in mind, finding the best financial advisor is a feasible task.