Keeping a Year End List and Checking it Twice

Tom Wiseman

By Tom Wiseman

With the Middleburg Christmas parade on the horizon, I’m reminded that 2019 is quickly drawing to a close. My son, William, is already seven and my dad is nearing his ninth decade. Where did the time go? How is it that we’re already entering the 2020s? With the end of the year rapidly approaching, I want to remind you of a few items we deem important to wrap up in 2019. • Harvest Losses: Be sure to harvest any losses in your portfolio so you can use those losses to offset any gains. Stacking those losses against realized gains can be critical in reducing taxes and is helpful when it comes time to pay the taxman! • Required Minimum Distribution (RMDs): If you are 70.5, be sure you’re withdrawing the minimum amount from your retirement accounts otherwise a tax of 50 per cent will be imposed upon the amount not withdrawn. YIKES!

• ’Tis The Season for Giving: If you wish to give money to family or friends, remember you may gift up to $15,000 per year without filing tax forms. If you are married, both you and your spouse may give the recipient of your choice $15,000 (a total of $30,000). This is a great way to inspire a family member’s love and minimize your taxable estate. • Feeling Charitable: Consider setting up a Donor

Advised Fund account in which you can donate cash, stock, or non-publicly traded assets like real estate and let them grow tax-free. This is also a great way to utilize low-basis stock that otherwise might be very expensive to sell. For example, the Microsoft stock you have been holding on to for 20 years which would be a tax nightmare to sell would be an ideal stock to gift to a favorite non-profit.

• Family Discussion: We think it’s incredibly important to talk about wealth transfer among family members. If you haven’t already done that, go ahead and have that conversation with your loved ones while they are all together for the holidays. We’ve found that it’s comforting to all parties involved to have some knowledge of family estate plans. Even if it’s as simple as letting your children know where our estate documents are located, it’s a start

• Fund Qualified Accounts: Go ahead and make your annual contributions to your retirement plan. Be sure you’re contributing at least what your employer matches for 401ks, 403bs, Simple IRAs etc. As for traditional or Roth IRAs, you may contribute up to $6,000 and if you’re over 50, you may contribute up to $7,000. We know you have until April 15 th 2020, but it never hurts to be proactive. If you don’t have a retirement plan or account, you may want to explore how setting one up can benefit you personally.

These are just a few of the items we think necessary to check off your list for year-end. If you have any questions, we’re more than happy to help. Have a wonderful holiday season!