From the AICPA:
Beginning in January 1, 2011, the Internal Revenue Code provides for portability of the estate tax exemption between spouses. According to issued guidance so far from the IRS (Notice 2011-82 and IR-2011-97), to claim the benefit of portability, a timely filed Form 706, U.S. Estate (and Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return, is required. If the estate tax return is not timely filed, the guidance provides that the surviving spouse will not be able to claim the benefit of portability.
There is a procedure under section Treas. Reg. § 20.6081-1(c) that permits an estate, upon showing good cause, to seek a 6-month extension of time to file the estate tax return. Under this procedure, an estate is to file Form 4768, Application for Extension of Time to File a Return and/or Pay U.S.
Venture capital trusts (VCTs) can be high risk, but last year investors’ bravery “was rewarded with tax-free returns of up to 50%”, says Kathryn Cooper in The Sunday Times.
VCTs are listed companies that invest in businesses worth less than £7m (or £15m as of 6 April). Investors qualify for tax relief of 30% on up to £200,000 of shares, provided they hold them for five years. Dividends and capital gains are also tax free.
Last year, while the average VCT fell 3%, the average generalist VCT (which backs a range of businesses) rose 0.5%, compared with a 7% drop in the FTSE All-Share.
The top performer was Foresight, which returned 51%. In the generalist sector Maven Income & Growth VCT 4 and 2 and the British Smaller Companies VCT rose 46%, 33% and 33% respectively.
The latter is the best performer over ten years, with a return of 276%. Traditionally seen as growth investments, VCTs increasingly pay regular dividends.
Dear Cashing In, I have excellent credit. My largest spending categories are groceries, restaurants, gas and retail stores, and my monthly credit card bills average just over $3,000. Which credit card would you recommend applying for to take advantage of my largest spending categories to earn the best rewards? My current Wells Fargo card only gives me one point per dollar spent. I’m interested in the best reward value, whether it is cash back or travel.
I notice that the airline miles only let you book travel through their site, which doesn’t always offer the best price. In those cases, I’m probably better off redeeming for cash and then booking the lower-cost airfare directly through the airline’s website. I don’t think I spend enough to warrant having a card with an annual fee, considering how long it takes me to earn usable points/miles. Spending $10,000 just to earn $100 back and then paying an annual fee of $95 doesn’t seem to be a reward.
Hasbro’s hit battling-top game Beyblade couldn’t rescue Hasbro’s first quarter from pallid demand for other games and girls toys and spending to launch The Hub TV network.
Net income fell 71 percent and missed Wall Street expectations. Stock in the maker of Scrabble and Nerf dropped 84 cents to $44.95 in morning trading.
The first quarter is typically small for toy makers because it comes just after the crucial holiday season.That was worsened this year by an unexpected dropoff in demand for toys in December. That led retailers to hold back orders in the following quarter as they worked to unload leftover holiday toys.
Hasbro CEO Brian Goldner said he still expects higher profit and revenue during 2011 as Hasbro launches new products like Sesame Street’s Lets Rock Elmo and action figures tied into upcoming movies “Thor,” “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” and “Captain America.”
First-quarter results are “on track with our plan for the full year,” he said.
Hasbro said its net income fell 71 percent to $17.2 million, or 12 cents per share, in the January-March period, down from $58.9 million, or 40 cents per share, in last year’s quarter. Read more…
I’ve been a big proponent of planning to preserve the ability to “stretch” inherited IRAs over the life expectancy of the beneficiary, which allows for tremendous tax-deferred growth. In what came as a big surprise, to me anyway, Senator Max Baucus recently proposed requiring that most inherited IRAs be paid out within five years. Now, however, it appears that Baucus is backing off his revenue raising proposal. This brings a collective sigh of relief from IRA owners, financial advisors, custodians, and tax professionals.
Sen Baucus Eyes Inherited IRAs for $4.6 Billion.
Energy prices are coming down
Things aren’t getting much easier for the British consumer. Low pay rises and high inflation mean that the average worker took home an average of £35 a month less in real terms in November 2011 than in 2010. Public-sector workers felt the pain even more: their take-home pay was down £49 a month in real terms compared with last year.
While the latest inflation numbers have come in slightly lower than has become normal – with the consumer price index (CPI) at 4.2% – prices are still rising at more than double the Bank of England’s target rate. Inflation also remains higher than deposit rates. So not only are most people’s incomes still falling in real terms, but so is the value of their savings (something to bear in mind when you hear the governor of the Bank of England crowing over falling inflation rates).
Avg. APR Last week 6 months ago National average 14.95% 15.14% 14.75% Low interest 10.40% 10.62% 10.73% Balance transfer 12.71% 12.85% 12.78% Business 13.13% 13.13% 13.07% Student 13.77% 13.77% 13.77% Airline 14.54% 14.54% 14.31% Cash back 14.61% 14.74% 14.16% Reward 14.78% 14.82% 14.51% Instant approval 15.49% 15.49% 15.99% Bad credit 23.41% 24.96% 24.96% Methodology: The national average credit card APR is comprised of 100 of the most popular credit cards in the country, including cards from dozens of leading U.S. issuers and representing every card category listed above. (Introductory, or teaser, rates are not included in the calculation.) Source: CreditCards.com Updated: Jan. 11, 2012
Interest rates on new credit card offers fell this week, according to the CreditCards.com Weekly Credit Card Rate Report, due to a sharp APR drop for the priciest card in our survey.