March, 2021 | Live a Life By Design

Extra Time to Fund IRA For 2020

Posted on March 26, 2021March 26, 2021 by Jimmy J. Williams, CPA/PFS, CFP®

Whenever someone tells you something that seems too good to be true, often your presumption is correct. However, since 1974, individuals have enjoyed the opportunity to “keep their money and report a tax deduction” which seems too good to be true. Sure, there are some rules and caveats that must be observed to take the deduction but overall, the Individual Retirement Account (IRA) is a powerful planning tool for your future.

Many changes have been enacted that impact IRA investors. The basic premise of “having your cake and eating it, too” continues for these types of accounts. Due to the recent IRS announcement of postponing the original due date of individual returns, you have another month to contribute to your IRA and take a tax deduction for 2020. Further, if you live in a declared disaster area, such as the State of Oklahoma, the President’s declaration postpones the filing due date for individuals to June 15, 2021. Ultimately, you can fund your IRA on or before June 15, 2021, and take a tax deduction for 2020.

Too many individuals fail to take advantage of IRA benefits. Some misconceptions are often the cause of this misunderstanding. Many people think they are too old to contribute to an IRA. The SECURE Act of 2019 eliminated the age limit for traditional IRA contributions. No longer are you limited to contributing to your IRA at age 70½. Many of our citizens continue to work during their retirement years. By earning income, the taxpayer may be eligible to contribute to their IRA until such time they no longer work. This is a game-changer for second career individuals!

Another misunderstanding is that single-earner family inability to contribute for the non-working spouse. Assume one spouse, age 30, is working outside the home while the other is caring for the children. If the working spouse earns income, and meets other criteria, she can contribute $6,000 to her own IRA and her spouse can make a spousal IRA contribution of $6,000 to a traditional or Roth IRA based on his spouse’s income.

One of the most common excuses or misconceptions I hear from individuals when talking about saving for their future by contributing to their IRA is that they simply can’t afford it. You are not required to contribute the maximum each year to your IRA to achieve tax benefits. Every dollar you contribute to your IRA is a possible reduction to your taxable income. A little unknown is of the tax law known as the Saver’s Credit may be helpful to you in reducing your tax burden. Lower income workers who make IRA contributions may claim the credit.

If you are single and earned $32,500 or less for 2020, you may qualify for this credit against your income tax burden. The maximum amount of credit is limited to the first $2,000 of your IRA contribution and you may claim a 50% credit for a maximum of $1,000 against your income tax liability. One of the best methods of teaching your children the power of investing and allowing compound interest to help them accumulate is the gifting of funds to their traditional IRA, or better yet, a Roth IRA.

Assume your granddaughter has landed her first job as a teenager and it pays her $10,000 for 2020. Being a wonderful grandfather, and noting this is an excellent teaching moment, you gift to your granddaughter $2,000 to her Roth IRA. She will receive a Saver’s Credit of $1,000 on her 2020 income tax return.

Individual Retirement Accounts are powerful tools that can yield tremendous tax-deferred savings over time. Start early and teach your children the power of compound interest. Albert Einstein, the famous theoretical physicist, is reputed to have said, “Compound interest is the 8^th wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it… he who doesn’t, pays it.”

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Stimulus Funds Are Not Free Money

Posted on March 19, 2021March 19, 2021 by Jimmy J. Williams, CPA/PFS, CFP®

You can always count on change occurring in life. First, a pandemic that intrudes in all aspects of our world and, second, the federal government creating responses to the environmental changes. Many Americans will receive, or may have already received, additional economic stimulus payments in the amount of $1,400. Congress has an interesting approach to naming legislation and this most recent law is no different – The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.

To receive the full amount of stimulus payment, individuals in the U.S. must have a Social Security Number and report adjusted gross income on their 2021 income tax return of $75,000 or less. If the adjusted gross income is higher than $75,000 but less than $80,000, the recipient will retain a portion of the $1,400. In other words, if you report $80,000 or more on your income tax return for 2021, you will be required to repay, through a lower refund amount, the advanced stimulus payment.

One of the changes for this round of stimulus payment is those who qualify for the funds. Unlike previous stimulus payments in 2020, the current stimulus funds are available to individuals, children and non-child dependents. For example, a family of four would receive a total stimulus payment of $5,600. This is helpful for families that are suffering from the effects of COVID-19 but, as my dad would always warn, “nothing in life is free”. The total cost of The American Rescue Plan Act is $1.9 trillion. As of the date of this writing, the United States of America owed more than $28 trillion to its bondholders and other creditors. This debt equates to $85,000 per citizen and $224,000 per taxpayer!

How do we repay such a debt burden? Well, I have good news and bad news. Let’s start with the good news. Individuals who are age 50 or older may not see a significant change in their share of the indebtedness or reduction in their lifestyle due to draconian income tax rates imposed on their earnings. The bad news is that our children and grandchildren will be carrying a heavy burden during their lifetimes to pay for our current overspending.

But, wait, there are other means of resolving our colossal debt balance. One of the most painful would be to cut government spending. Have you ever been given something and had it taken away once you were getting comfortable with its benefits? Not much fun. Cost cutting is one of the most effective yet politically costly methods of resolving our national debt.

Another painful method to resolving the debt crisis (and that is what we have) is to increase tax rates on taxpayers’ income. At one point in the history of our country, to fund World War II, the top marginal rate for income tax was 94%. I am not advocating we return to such a drastic increase in taxes but paying taxes is a price for living in a civilized society.

Perhaps the most convenient, and difficult, method of paying off the national debt is empowering our economy to grow at a faster rate. There were decades in the United States that our country’s growth rate would average 3% annually. What would happen to our country if we could double our growth rate to 6% for a 5-year period? Full employment and taxes rolling in to the U.S. Treasury at a much higher volume would provide the resources for liquidating the national debt.

To fairly apply these potential pain points, to all citizens, equitably is the most difficult task of any elected official. If we consider the opportunities that we could offer our future citizens by paying off our debt and investing that portion of our annual budget in the areas of technology, infrastructure and job creation that improve quality of life, we could truly increase the lifestyle of all citizens.

Now that you understand “free” stimulus isn’t actually free, how do you feel? My goal was not to bring about negative feelings but rather for all of us to fully acknowledge that my wise, old dad was correct – “there are no free lunches in life, someone is paying for it”.

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Important Retirement Considerations for Educators

Posted on March 12, 2021 by Jimmy J. Williams, CPA/PFS, CFP®

Educators are challenged every day. Why would you want to make your retirement transition challenging? You have worked for 30 years educating individuals that have changed the world through your guidance. Mrs. Smith, my first-grade teacher, was the first motivational speaker I heard in my life. At six years of age, Mrs. Smith instilled in me, or perhaps I should say endowed in my mind, the mantra and belief that “I could be anything I wanted to be if I worked hard enough”. This wonderful lady may have known, but I certainly did not, that she was bestowing to me a lifetime adventure of learning and dreaming that would reward me in tremendous ways throughout my life.

Teachers are the influencers, supporters, and cheerleaders for their students. What does this information have to do with retirement planning? Everything! At a time in the professional life of a teacher when he or she is making lifetime decisions, inadequacy rears its ugly head. As specialists in retirement planning, we focus on a variety of pension platforms and one of the most comprehensive is the Oklahoma Teachers Retirement System (OTRS). This system is the pension plan that provides support for teachers, administrators and support staff in the field of education in Oklahoma.

Many people become confused and simply disregard provisions of the pension plan that would help them live a better life. The OTRS requires certain decisions for the participants to retire that are lifetime elections. Once the decision is made, even when life may go strangely awry, you cannot change your initial plan for retirement. How can you mitigate this risk? First, ask questions of the plan administrators, read the plan manual and familiarize yourself with the information and terms of the plan.

Second, seek out an expert to help you coordinate retirement, estate and income tax planning to equip you with the capability to enjoy your retirement years with potentially less worry. The OTRS provides a monthly benefit to qualified participants once the election to retire is filed. However, you may not wish to give total control of your future cashflow to the plan. What will you do if your health were to suddenly worsen immediately after retiring? The plan contains a provision that allows participants with 30 or more years of service to elect a Partial Lump Sum Option (PLSO) which allows the participant to rollover, or transfer tax-free, a sum representing 12-, 24- or 36-months of benefits to an Individual Retirement Account. Why would you wish to do this? You are in control of the distribution of the funds should an unexpected event occur!

Third, the timing of your notification filed with the plan of your planned retirement date is critical for the receipt of your first retirement benefit payment. For example, if you wish to receive continuity in your family’s income, and you plan to retire on July 1, 2021, you must file your Pre-Retirement Information Verification (Form 3) on or before April 1, 2021. This date is non-negotiable. To help you understand the strict interpretation of this required date, if April 1, 2021, was a weekend or holiday, you would not be extended any grace period to meet this deadline. Additional subsequent dates must be met to experience a smooth transition to retirement.

Each person’s retirement is unique. Do not rely on others’ comments or experiences to make important decisions for your future. A horror story from the past comes to mind. One of the educators I know came to me after filing his initial documents with OTRS. After we discussed it for a few minutes, he realized he had made a horrible mistake on his paperwork. Certain elections were not heeded, and life was not going to be as he had planned. However, we were able to resolve the issues for him in time to meet his statutory deadlines. His first retirement trip was exciting, and his cash flow was on time.

To enjoy your future years, and experience uninterrupted cashflow, the OTRS filing process requires attention and proper timing. Seek out a Certified Financial Planner™ or other retirement planning expert to help you through this tedious process. You should be planning your next trip to celebrate retirement, not worrying about your lifetime income source. Go ahead, book your trip and do not forget the sunscreen!

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The Millennial Perspective: Climbing Everest

Posted on March 5, 2021May 13, 2021 by Ashley Stieb

Do you ever feel like the weight of the world is on your shoulders? Do you wonder how much of that weight may be lifted without the stress of growing debt? Me too! I’ve always said, “We live in America so we will always carry debt. That’s just the way it is.” But should it be? It doesn’t feel like the mindset I or anyone should have when looking at our lives. A vast majority of our country has some sort of debt. With all of the factors of life that affect Millennials differently than other generations, this can feel especially defeating.

If you combine the average student loan debt, credit card debt, mortgage debt, and car loan debt among millennials you’re looking at about $285,000 total. That’s a big, and kind of scary number. This isn’t to say that every millennial has debt in each of these categories. So, let’s break that number down. On average, millennials have about $30,000 in student loan debt, $5,000 of credit card debt, $232,000 in mortgage debt, and $18,000 of car loan debt.

Let’s imagine you have debt in each of these categories. If you had a car loan with a balance of $2,000 with a low interest rate, the average amount of student loans, a credit card balance of $7,000 with a high interest rate, and you just bought a new home. Which of these debts would you want to pay down the fastest? Your first thought may be to pay the credit card off first because it has the highest interest. However, let’s imagine you have enough in your bank account to pay off your car immediately. Even though it has a lower interest rate, you are most likely paying more each month on your car payment versus your credit card payment. One of the best ways to handle this situation is to pay off the car and rather than adding the additional money you now have each month to your cash flow, stick to your budget and stack the extra funds on top of what you are already paying on your credit cards. Now you have eliminated one debt and you will be paying more on your principal balance of your credit cards and will be able to eliminate that debt much faster than you would have originally.

If you can continue to stack your debt, AKA snowball your debt, then you may find that a mountain that once felt like an endless Mount Everest now feels more manageable. Setting a plan to help you start that exhibition and properly manage your money is the key to success. There’s no need to change your entire budget and live off Ramen until your debts are paid. This is just one of the philosophies when it comes to paying off debt. Several others exist, but the important thing is to pick a plan and go.

Living slightly below your means is a good way to pay off debts, but living very far below your means just because of debt may tarnish your quality of life and your relationship with money. Money is a means to an end, not the end all, be all. It is always wise to seek the advice of professionals, such as a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ to help you create a plan that works for you and ensures you maintain your quality of life. You don’t have to be uncomfortable to be comfortable.