Take Full Advantage of the Saver’s Tax Credit

If you elected to save for your retirement in our 401(k) plan, you may be eligible to claim a special tax credit of up to $1,000.  In order to qualify for the Saver’s Credit you must be:

 

§  18 year of age or older

§  Not a full-time student

§  Not claimed as a dependent on someone else’s return

 

In addition, you must meet one of the following financial criteria:

§  File your taxes singly with an income of $27,750 or less.

§  File your taxes as head of household and have an income of $41,625 or less.

§  File your taxes jointly with an income of $55,500 or less.

 

The tax credit ranges from 10 to 50 percent of each $1.00 you contribute, up to the first $2,000 you put in your 401(k).  That’s between $200 and $1,000 directly off the income taxes you pay.  If you and your spouse both contribute to a 401(k) plan, you may combine your contributions as joint filers, or report separately as single filers.  The amount of your tax credit depends on the amount of your adjusted gross income.  The income limits and applicable credit rate allowance are given in the table below.

 

The tax credit is in addition to other favorable tax treatments for your 401(k) participation, such as the deferral of income tax on your contributions.  Please note that this credit applies only as a reduction to your income tax liability, not as cash in hand via a refund.

 

To take advantage of the Saver’s Credit, you or your tax preparer will need to include Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions, when you file your tax return.  The government has established this program because it wants to reward low- and moderate-income workers who save for retirement. 

 

Tax Credit for Different Income Levels

	Adjusted Gross Income
Credit	Single Filers	Head of Household	Joint Filers
50% of Contribution	0 - $16,750	0 - $25,125	0 - $33,500
20% of Contribution	$16,751 - $18,000	$25,126 - $27,000	$33,501 - $36,000
10% of Contribution	$18,001 - $27,750	$27,001 - $41,625	$36,001 - $55,550
Credit not available	More than $27,750	More than $41,625	More than $55,500

This is for general information only.  Please consult your tax advisor for more information.

 

Save Flexible Spending Plans Now!!!!

http://www.savemyflexplan.org/
Eliminating FSA plans would put a TERRIBLE strain on many hardworking Americans!

Gen Xers Unprepared for Retirement - STLtoday.com

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/stlouiscitycounty/story/E41E648462A055C286257584005414BA?OpenDocument
Pretty much...*sigh*

FREE Web-Based Paycheck Calculators

http://www.paycheckcity.com/

What's Your Car Worth?

http://autos.msn.com/kbb/default.aspx?zip=63110&type=tradein&ymmYear=2003&ymmMake=11&ymmModel=5404

Ways to Work : The Program

http://www.waystowork.org/pages/p_home.html
You or someone you know might be able to take advantage of this.

Car broke down? Can't afford to get it fixed? Willing to do what it takes to stay off public assistance? Check out this program.

Free File Home - Your Link to Free Federal Online Filing

http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html?portlet=4

Credit Security Freeze Laws by State

http://www.consumersunion.org/campaigns/learn_more/003484indiv.html
You will find some helpful information regarding freezing your credit, voluntarily.

$5,000+ just damn gone.....

Rating:	★
Category:	Other

401k quarter end statements came out today. It's probably safe to say, I'll die at this desk. *sigh*

Quick Question - Lotto Winners

Rating:	★★★
Category:	Other

Ripped from the Headlines (insert the L&O doink-doink sound)

Do you think $1,000,000 + Lottery Winners should be required to quit their jobs in order to make room for someone who really needs the gig?

The floor is open.

Missouri State's Sales Tax Holiday Set for August 1-3

http://dor.mo.gov/news/2008/EkEZuuyV.htm
Time to get those back to school items!

Recent Stock Market Weakness

I got this from my financial advisors & think it's worth sharing with you .

 

Date:                July 11, 2008

 

 

We have just experienced the worst June for the stock market since the 1930s and this means your June 30^th statements are not going to be pretty.   

 

Both the Dow Jones and S&P 500 Index have now officially entered bear market territory, as measured by a 20 percent decline from their peak levels.  Many international markets are performing even worse than domestic markets.   It is hard to avoid being reminded of these things especially for those of us masochistic enough to “enjoy” watching financial news reports. 

 

 

As we discussed in our correspondence in January of this year entitled “Some Thoughts on Market Volatility,” periods of negative returns are to be expected.   However, predicting a negative market ahead of time is a loser’s game.

 

 

There is an English Proverb from the 1600s that says “He that cannot abide a bad market, deserves not a good one”.  The same holds true today more than 300 years later.    

Bad markets happen from time to time, approximately every four to five years as measured by some indexes.  If history teaches us anything, it is that markets don’t go down forever. In fact, unless this time it really is different, we believe markets are likely to be higher in the future than they are today. 

 

 

Once again, 401(k) investors currently have a wonderful opportunity of buying equities at a 20% discount to where they were previously trading.  It is at precisely times like these that shrewd investors are excited to be in the market.  Things can certainly get worse before they get better.  However, we believe over the long term equity prices will be higher in the future than they are currently, and investors that can be buyers when others are sellers will benefit over the long term.   

 

 

The sentiments in the English proverb from the 1600s are true today.  Don’t panic in a down market.  View times like these as buying opportunities.  Stay true to your investment approach and you are likely to be rewarded in the long term. 

Black Folks & EIC Tax Returns

UPDATE:  I drove past a Salama Market (y'all already know) today & they have a big ass WE CASH INCOME TAX CHECKS sign hanging at the front entrance.  I had to find my 360 post from last year.

I went to my local grocery store the other day & saw this big ass sign on the customer service counter:

WE DO NOT CASH INCOME TAX REFUNDS!

Will someone please tell my why in the year of our Lord, 2007, grown ass men & women are still walking around without bank accounts?  Why are we trying to cash tax refunds at the grocery store?  Why are we still cashing payroll & tax refund checks at Western Union & the corner liquor store, while paying ri-damn-diculous fees?

Even if your credit is jacked up, you can open a savings account with several financial institutions. My ex got into CheckSystems (bad check writers know what this is) when he was with his ex. We couldn't get him a checking account anywhere but Bank of America did allow him to open a savings account & gave him an ATM card. This allowed him to have direct deposit of his payroll which gave him the means to save the dough to clear the bad checks up.

My mother taught me to bank when I was a teen. She taught me the importance of having & maintaining a bank account even if there was little to nothing in it. She also helped me realize that if I didn't "cash" my check, I was less likely to spend it all in one place....since it wasn't "in my pocket" to burn that dreadful hole.

I made some terrible mistakes in my late teens/early twenties with my credit. Shopping like there was no tomorrow. Me & my baby in the latest gear, etc., etc. It took me damn near a decade, but I finally got it all cleared up. I knew I wouldn't be able to get a decent interest rate on a home & car, once I was ready, if I had bad debt.

Now people, instead of buying a car you can't afford to pay taxes on or maintain after the fact, furniture that the kids will only destroy, that expensive throwback jersey, $200 sneakers, that Coach bag that you will never have any money in, use the Earned Income Credit (EIC) refund to get your credit straight....damn black people...we have got to do better!

My sister & BFF are perfect examples:  They've gotten returns of at least $3,500 for the last 5+ years and don't have jack shit to show for it!  Nothing, nada, zilch, zero!

I can honestly say I miss EIC.  The largest check I had received was just shy of 3 grand.  I did do some frivolous things with that money (designer clothes & kicks) but for the most part it was big ticket items: clearing bad debt (3-4 creditors got paid every year - I refused to pay all of them at once), buying my 1st & 2nd cars, washer/dryer, and bedroom furniture & living room furniture....shit I couldn't afford on the regular.  I also started an account for the boy.

I say if you must spend your EIC, spend it wisely! Buy a washer/dryer, stove, refrigerator, get Kee-Kee some braces, buy Man-Man some new eyeglasses, etc. Leave the 50 inch plasma screens & all that unnecessary shit in the store!

Folks get those EIC checks & you would think they hit Lotto......*smh*

This has been another Precious Mo' ment.