Focal Point Financial Planning, LLC

08/17/2022

Do you have a capital gains problem?

Find a solution to that problem and keep more of your hard-earned dollars!

08/10/2022

Hate taxes?

Hate paying unnecessary fees?

Love finding ways to save on both?

Read the free, educational newsletter to find new strategies to not overpay in taxes and slash hidden investment costs

www.focalpointplanning.com/newsletter

Learn how to not get killed in taxes or excessive fees

07/08/2022

“Before I do anything I ask myself, 'Would an idiot do that?' And if the answer is yes, I do not do that thing.” - Dwight Schrute

Words to live by

Could you imagine Dwight being your financial advisor?

That would be pretty extreme, but everyone has doubts about what their next financial move should be at some point in their lives

That feeling of financial uncertainty is why I became an advisor

I remember my first encounter with investment and money decisions - I had no idea where to start!

I didn't even know enough to determine what an "idiot" (in Dwight's terms) would or would not do

That experience is what got me interested in finances, investments, & taxes - so I wouldn't feel that way again

Nobody wants to feel like they’re GUESSING when it comes to making big decisions with their money!

What spurred you to start making better-informed decisions with your money, or seek out help?

06/18/2022

A timely reminder for any crypto folks out there:

Wash sale rules do not apply to crypto!

This means you can sell your crypto that is held outside of retirement accounts to lock in any recent losses and offset any other gains you may have (or even some ordinary income!) for tax purposes.

Then repurchase your crypto shortly after the sale so you can stay invested (assuming that’s what you want to do).

Even if you aren’t planning on selling a business, real estate, or some other large investment that would generate a lot of capital gains this year, this is still something to consider.

The cool thing about capital losses is that if you don’t use all your losses this year, you get to carry the loss forward indefinitely until the loss is offset by gains.

So if you have substantial crypto losses and think you could be selling any of the following in the next few years:

- Business

- Investment Property

- Personal Residence

Having some capital losses in your back pocket could help out down the road.

05/16/2022

Are you worried about the capital gains consequences on an investment or business you currently own?

Or have you already sold and are worried about the taxes you will soon have to pay?

I've created a free, quick Capital Gains Tax Assessment that helps outline your situation to spot what opportunities you might have.

Once complete, I'll send over a short video response highlighting some possible solutions you could explore.

What planning are you doing around your capital gains?

Please click the link to complete this form.

05/14/2022

Real estate investors / agents:

When do you start to get nervous about a 1031 exchange not closing in time?

When do you start looking for alternatives for yourself or the client to plan around a potentially huge capital gains tax bill if the exchange fails?

Reason I ask is I had someone reach out to me this week who was less than **10 days** away from one of their 1031 exchanges blowing up.

For anyone unfamiliar, you have up to 180 days after the sale of your property to complete a 1031 exchange into the new property.

If you fall outside this window, the capital gains cannot be deferred any longer, and you will potentially be required to pay taxes on all the gains in a single year.

Not great...

So my ask to real estate investors and agents out there is if an open 1031 exchange has 2 months or less remaining before the 180-day limit is hit, please start to explore some backup options just in case.

Hopefully, your 1031 exchange closes within the normal timeframe and you had nothing to worry about.

But at least you had done some homework and examined some alternatives to avoid the last-minute panic and stress.

And if you are currently in this situation, please reach out to find a viable backup plan.

05/11/2022

I've heard this question a lot lately:

"Will I owe capital gains taxes from selling my home if I haven't lived there for more than 2 years?"

It's a great question and for those unfamiliar with the rule, if you live in your primary home for at least 2 out of the last 5 years (doesn't need to be consecutive either) before you sell, you can exclude up to $500k of your capital gains from the home if married, or up to $250k of gains if you are unmarried.

But what happens if you were to sell your home after living in it for only 1 year and 1 month?

And for the example, let's say you would have $200k in capital gains from the sale.

Luckily, in most cases, the seller would get a partial exemption to help offset some of their gains.

To figure the correct prorate amount, you would divide how many months you lived in the property by 24 (or two years).

In this case, it breaks down to 13/24 = 0.5417

So married couples in this example would be able to exclude up to around $270k ($500k exclusion x 0.5417 prorated amount).

In our example of having $200k in gains, they would be able to wipe out the capital gains with their reduced exclusion.

However, for an unmarried person, they would only be able to exclude about $135k ($250k x 0.5417) in capital gains.

For the unmarried person, they would still need to pay taxes on the remaining appx $65k of gains from their home.

Don't let taxes be a surprise! Work with your professionals and help keep them in the loop so you can take advantage of their planning for you.

05/09/2022

If you could ask a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) anything, without any obligations or being "sold" anything, what would you ask?

I'm opening up a couple of free 20-minute time slots on Fridays for anyone who has questions they've always wanted to ask a financial advisor.

In conversations with people I've heard many comments such as:

"I didn't think I had enough assets, or made enough to talk to a financial planner yet"

"I feel like I'm being sold something and don't know if it's right for me"

"I didn't know I had any other options"

Everyone deserves answers to their financial questions and a little help.

So to help increase financial awareness and help others make better-informed financial decisions moving forward, send me your questions!

I've included a scheduling link below. Please share with anyone you think could benefit and have their questions answered!

Schedule a free 20-minute session with a Certified Financial Planner and get answers to the questions you've always wanted to ask.

04/04/2022

Did you sell something (business, stocks, real estate) and are regretting the capital gains tax?

Luckily, there are still a few strategies to reduce or even defer that tax bill!

Are your dollars better used by Uncle Sam, or by you?

I'll wait...

01/05/2022

I was recently quoted in a CNN Business article discussing different ways to invest in real estate - Check it out!

For many people, buying a home just wasn't in the cards this year. There were too few homes for sale that were too expensive to buy.