Capital Gains and Dividend Tax Rates for 2022-2023

Investors who have taxable accounts—as opposed to tax-favored retirement accounts such as individual retirement accounts (IRAs) or 401(k)s—are often eligible for lower tax rates on investment income a...

Moving in Retirement to Cut Tax Costs? Consider These 4 Factors First.

When an affluent suburban Chicago couple came to John Campbell, senior wealth strategist at U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management, planning to retire in New Mexico because of its weather and lower incom...

Opinion: Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren’s bold tax hike to shore up Social Security

Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders want to shore up Social Security by raising the top rate of income tax by a third, and the top rate of capital-gains tax by more than a half. The Democratic senator...

‘I am trying to feverishly save for retirement’: My fiancé pays $1,700 a month to the IRS and owes student debt. We’re both 57. Should I marry him for his Social Security and pension?

Dear Quentin, My fiancé and I met at age 42 after being recently divorced. We have (now-grown) children from our previous marriages, but none together. We keep our finances separate. Neither one of us...

IRS says people in most states who got inflation-relief payments don’t have to report it on their taxes. Here’s where.

The IRS is not going to tax payments from most of the states that cut checks to residents last year in order to help them defray rising living costs. This week, the IRS has been trying to determine if...

Property Taxes Are Going Up; Here’s How to Lower Your Bill

Listen to article (1 minute) The cost of homeownership will rise for millions of Americans in coming weeks as new property-tax assessments arrive in the mail.  Property taxes have risen across much of...

Dear Tax Guy: I just started renting my house out on Airbnb. What income-tax deductions can I claim on this property?

I just started renting my house out on Airbnb. I started a limited liability company to keep the expenses separate from personal ones. I am trying to figure out what would be considered tax deductions...

IRS says ‘Tax Day’ will be different this year — put these important tax dates on your calendar

It’s not too early to start thinking about your 2022 income-tax return, if you can bear the thought. That’s because the tax-filing season is scheduled to start on Monday, Jan. 23, the Internal Revenue...

‘Our kids say our small house is embarrassing’: My husband and I earn $160K, have $1 million in retirement savings, cook at home and drive an old Honda. Are we missing out? 

I’m a pretty fortunate person who lives a pretty fortunate life, and our annual household income at $160,000 is high compared to the rest of the world. However, we are still pretty frugal — we cook at...

IRS wraps up paying people this lucrative pandemic-era tax break. Here’s how much money they can expect — and why they’re getting it.

Nearly two years after lawmakers temporarily changed tax rules in the middle of the filing season in order to exclude a major chunk of jobless benefits from federal income tax, the Internal Revenue Se...

Berkshire Hathaway Could Face Big Tax Hit if Bull Market Resumes

Berkshire Hathaway could face a sizable tax bill if the bull market resumes this year. Ever since a 15% corporate minimum tax was included in the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, there has been uncert...

Opinion: Opinion: Trump’s low tax payments are what happens with a too-complex tax code

People tend to have one of two reactions to the revelation that former President Donald Trump paid little to no taxes in recent years: He’s either an amoral tax cheat or he’s smart. To me, it reveals ...

Democrats release six years of Trump’s tax returns, and CPAs have questions: ‘The personal tax return is just the tip of the iceberg.’

The nonpartisan committee’s findings also raised several red flags related to the filings, namely Trump’s carryover losses, loans to his children that may or may not also be considered taxable gifts, ...

Donald Trump paid $0 in taxes in 2020. He’s not alone: 60% of households paid no federal income tax that year, but for very different reasons.

It’s not that unusual. Former President Donald Trump and his wife, Melania, paid $0 in income taxes for 2020, according to a report released late Tuesday by the congressional Joint Committee on Taxati...

IRS pauses rule requiring people to report PayPal, Venmo transactions over $600. Here’s what went wrong.

To avert taxpayer confusion in the upcoming tax season, the IRS is delaying a rule that would have required e-commerce sites and payment platforms like eBay EBAY, +0.12%, Etsy ETSY, -0.32% and PayPal ...

New electric car buying incentives kick in Jan. 1, and a lot has changed. Here’s an explainer.

Congress changed the rules governing electric car tax credits over the summer, but the changes didn’t immediately take effect. Some will kick in soon, while others will taper in over time. The evolvin...

For Landlords, Rising Housing Costs Make It Harder to Earn Passive Income

Listen to article (1 minute) Many Americans dream the path to building wealth is like a trip around the Monopoly board, buying up properties that generate rental income. That can be true, but financia...

Dear Tax Guy: ‘I’ve accumulated a lot of junk.’ I plan to make $6,000 selling stuff on eBay. Can I put it into an IRA instead of paying income tax?

I am retired with Social Security and a state pension. Over the last 30 years I’ve accumulated a lot of “junk” from eBay EBAY, +0.17%. Now, I’m also trying to clean out my house, and sell it at cost o...

Dear Tax Guy: ‘What happens if I sell my existing house to pay off the loan on my new home? How much tax will I owe?’

Greeting, readers. I’m Andrew Keshner and I’m the tax reporter for MarketWatch. I write about the controversies, open questions and best strategies about taxes. For the purposes of this new column, th...

Market Losses Can Reduce Your Tax Bill for Years. Here’s How.

This year’s market mayhem could shave your tax bill for years to come. With just weeks to go, 2022 is poised for steep negative annual returns in both stocks and bonds, a correlated collapse that has ...

‘It’s a touchy subject’: My in-laws live in our basement. They gave us our 20% down payment. Should we charge them for renovations?

Last year, my husband and I approached my in-laws to see if they wanted to live with us. We had learned that my father-in-law had terminal cancer but could still live five to seven years in remission,...

‘Am I being ripped off?’ I moved into my husband’s home. I pay for groceries. The rental income from my apartment goes into our joint savings.

I read one of your previous columns regarding the boyfriend who wants the letter writer to move in. My case is similar, but we have already made a decision on how to structure our finances as they rel...

40% of households will pay no federal income tax this year. Why that’s good news.

Millions of workers are bouncing back — and making enough money to pay Uncle Sam. Some 72.5 million households or 40% of households will pay no federal income tax this year, down from the pre-pandemic...

IRS releases new federal tax brackets and standard deductions. Here’s how they affect your family’s tax bill.

America’s high inflation rate will produce a 7% increase in the size of the standard deduction when workers file their taxes on their 2023 income, according to new inflation adjustments from the Inter...

New IRS tax brackets and standard deduction could save families hundreds or even thousands of dollars. Now, for the bad news.

In a time of rising costs, the Internal Revenue Service just raised income-tax brackets through new inflation adjustments for next year. It might feel tough sometimes to link the IRS with the concept ...

Opinion: Don’t have $13 million? The lifetime estate- and gift-tax exemptions for 2023 still matter to you.

The wealthiest families in the U.S. will get a bit of inflation-adjusted relief from the IRS in 2023, with the lifetime estate-tax exemption increasing to $12.9 million for individuals, up from $12.06...

How to save a bundle on your tax return

This is Part Two of our list of suggested year-end strategies. Part 1 discusses gaming the federal standard deduction, and managing capital gains and losses. The tax environment is getting friendlier ...

Tax-Loss Selling Is Wall Street’s Refuge in a Down Market

Taxes aren’t due for more than six months—but it’s time to start thinking about tax-loss selling. That’s the term for selling a stock at a loss and using that to offset gains elsewhere in one’s portfo...

Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway Could Be Among Top Payers of New Minimum Tax

Listen to article (2 minutes) WASHINGTON—A handful of large companies, such as Berkshire Hathaway and Amazon.com could bear most of the burden from a 15% corporate minimum tax President Biden signed i...

With inflation, many retirees will pay more federal income taxes

The federal income tax is generally indexed for inflation. Most particularly, the income brackets to which the marginal tax rates apply are increased in line with the “Chained CPI-U.” While the chaine...

MicroStrategy’s Michael Saylor Sued for Alleged Tax Fraud in Washington, D.C.

By Vicky Ge Huang and Richard Rubin Aug. 31, 2022 6:17 pm ET Listen to article (2 minutes) The District of Columbia attorney general sued Michael Saylor, the founder and chairman of software intellige...

‘Should I wait until the market calms down or pull the trigger now?’ I’m tired of my brokerage charging 1%, and I want to move my money now, but don’t want to lock in losses. What’s my move?

Is 1% too much to pay? Getty Images/iStockphoto Question: My current brokerage account charges 1% and also has high-priced funds so I’m thinking of moving my money.  My question is should I wait until...