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Owning a rental property as investment may sound attractive to a lot of people who are sick and tired of the volatile stock market. However, owning a rental property is like owning a business. Do you know what it takes to be a landlord? Listen to Paula Pant talks about it.

Podcast: Becoming a landlord

[00:00] Introduction from Tom Dziubek
[00:36] Interview with Paula Pant
– [00:54] Owning rental properties
– [01:51] Analyzing a property’s profitability
– [03:04] Expenses involved
– [04:08] Things to look for in a property
– [05:19] Renting to professionals
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IRS Settlement Offer for Misclassification of Employees as Contractors

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: October 3, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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[Guest post by Jeremy Bendler] IRS has launched a new voluntary compliance program that allows employers to prospectively reclassify-as employees-those workers they have erroneously treated as independent contractors. The program carries generous settlement terms and provides audit relief for previous years.

Background. Whether a worker is an independent contractor or employee generally is determined by whether the enterprise he works for has the right to control and direct him regarding the job he is to do and how he is to do it. Under the common law rules (so-called because they originate from court cases rather than from the Code), multiple factors are used to determine if an individual is a common law employee.

Section 530 of the ’78 Revenue Act (as amended) provides retroactive and prospective relief from employment tax liability for employers who misclassified workers as independent contractors using the common law facts and circumstances standards. Section 530 applies only if:

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How I helped a doctor set up a 401k plan

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: September 29, 2011

Setting Up a 401k Plan

Dr. Smith is a client of mine. He is a facial plastic surgeon with a booming solo practice supported by five non-essential staff members. His staff turnover is very high; no one stays more than three years. This has allowed him to contribute the maximum amount to his SEP IRA without contributing anything to his employees (Note that by law working three years out of the last five years is the eligibility requirement for SEP IRA participation.)

In our recent regular progress meeting, he told me that he was pondering setting up a 401k plan for his employees. There are three reasons why it’s time for him to have a 401k plan:

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Physicians: Are You Ready for More Budget Cuts?

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: September 9, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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This year, total federal spending in theU.S.is projected to be $3.6 trillion. The top three budgetary categories are:

Medicare/Medicaid — $826 billion
Social Security — $717 billion
Defense/Wars — $703 billion

Medicare and Medicaid costs alone account for 23% of total federal spending.

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Tax Planning for College

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: August 23, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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[Guest post by Jeremy Bendler] It’s back to school time! Many of our clients are wondering how to properly plan for higher education expenses. If your children are younger you may be wondering how to efficiently save for college. If your children are already college age, your goal is to pay for current or imminent college bills. I’d like to address both of these concerns by suggesting several approaches that seek to take maximum advantage of tax benefits to minimize your expenses. (Please note that the following suggestions are strictly related to tax benefits. You may have non-tax-related concerns that make the suggestions inappropriate.)

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Trustee Powers

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: August 13, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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[Guest Post by Christopher Guest] Last month, I discussed the questions a settlor, or creator of a trust, needs to ask before selecting a trustee. Once a trustee is selected, a settlor needs to determine the trustee’s powers with respect to the trust.

The trustee is charged with caring for and managing the trust property. To do this, the trustee must have the ability to control the property, and, depending on the property, the trustee can be given a vast array of powers. A few of those powers could include the power to: Read the rest of this entry »

Assets without Physical Form

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: August 2, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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[Guest Post by Anthony Carducci] Do you own a domain name . . . you know, a web address? How about a Facebook account? What about an easily recognizable email address or a Twitter handle? Are any of those things valuable and worth passing on to your loved ones? If so, have you made arrangements to have ownership of those assets transferred upon your death?

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How to Pick a Trustee

Posted by: The Investment Scientist on: June 30, 2011

In: Wealth Management
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[Guest Post by Christopher Guest] I have stated numerous times in my newsletters, I am not an automatic proponent of creating trusts for people. I will tailor an estate plan for a client depending on the needs of the client. However, many times creating some form of trust is necessary. The basics of trusts can be found by clicking here. One of the most important roles in the success of a trust is the trustee. Thus, making sure that the correct person is named trustee and that the trustee understands their role, responsibilities and whether a corporate trustee should also play a role in your trust is vital to ensure the settlor’s intent.

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