Personal Financial News
The Florida Institute of CPAs strives to promote the value of the accounting profession and our members, CPAs in Florida. In doing so, we have provided you, the public, with a good source of articles about accounting, budgeting, personal finance, loans, saving, banking, and more to help you stay updated on news in our industry.
May 22, 2012 Should You Raid a Retirement Account to Pay for Education Expenses?- With all the news about rising student loan debt and disappointing investment returns, this may be a question on your mind if you have tuition bills coming up, whether for you or one of your children. I know it’s a question I’ve...
May 22, 2012 Women, Children And The Challenges Debt Presents- Women and men alike are dealing with financial stress, threats of home foreclosure, medical debt and loss of income from layoffs or divorce. Contributing to the collective financial stress on Americans is the need for extra help dealing with...
May 21, 2012 Final Regs. Issued On Health Insurance Premium Tax Credits- The IRS issued final regulations governing the Sec. 36B health insurance premium tax credit enacted by 2010’s health care legislation (T.D. 9590). They are scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on May 23. The final regulations...
May 21, 2012 Kids And Money: A Primer On Tax Deductions- You didn't tell me how MUCH they would take out in taxes.
Expect to hear those words from your exasperated teenager or college student over the next few weeks as they set aside their calculators and toss their textbooks to start summer...
May 21, 2012 Eileen Ambrose: Identity Thieves Filing Fake Returns Using Data On Real Taxpayers- Here's another reason to file your tax returns as early as possible: an identity thief might beat you to the money.
Identity thieves are filing fake federal returns using taxpayers' Social Security numbers and claiming tax refunds worth billions...
May 21, 2012 Five Common Credit Report Mistakes College Students Should Avoid- Making a mistake while taking a mid-term or a typo in a research paper is easy enough to erase and fix, but mistakes on a credit history can have long-term consequences for college students if they go unresolved.
The CARD Act made it more...
May 20, 2012 Personal Finance Expert Farnoosh Torabi Explains How She Budgets for a Wedding - Farnoosh Torabi was fulfilling her bridesmaid duties, planning a memorable bachelorette party, when she received a very welcome note.
"One of the other bridesmaids emailed me and said, 'Look, we all love Kate and we want to have an awesome time,...
May 18, 2012 Prepare Your Kids for Summer Job Expenses- High school and college students hoping to find temporary jobs may be in for a tough time this summer – once again – as they compete with older, more experienced workers in a still-struggling economy. But if your kid is fortunate...
May 14, 2012 College Loans Follow Some to Old Age- At age 61, most people are thinking of retiring. Phyllis Young, of Wilton Manors, is focused on paying off her student loans that she took out more than two decades ago.
"I'm $39,000 still in the hole," Young said.
She's not alone.
May 14, 2012 Manatee Baby Boomers Face Retirement Challenges- The economy has thrown a wrench into retirement plans for thousands of Baby Boomers across Southwest Florida.
The days of turning 65, joining the fraternal lodge and living comfortably off pension benefits are long gone.
The culmination of a...
May 10, 2012 Fed Chairman Bernanke Says Many Businesses And Consumers Are Finding It Easier to Borrow- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that many businesses and consumers are finding it easier to borrow as banks shore up their balance sheets.
"Notwithstanding the various headwinds, credit conditions in the United States have...
May 09, 2012 12 Financial Tips For Debt-Burdened New Grads- Do you know anyone walking across the commencement stage this month? Unfortunately, a diploma isn’t the only thing they’ll be walking away with. As student loan debt has recently surpassed credit card debt, the average student is now...
May 08, 2012 IRS Customer Service Problematic for Identity Theft Victims- Taxpayers whose identities are stolen receive confusing and conflicting
instructions from the Internal Revenue Service and delays of up to a
year before their tax problems are resolved, according to a new report.
May 08, 2012 529 Plans: One Of The Best Ways to Save for College- It's no surprise that another consequence of the difficult economy is that parents continue to struggle to pay for their children's college costs. According to the most recent study by Sallie Mae, "How America Pays for College 2011," the amount...
May 01, 2012 Have a Plan - Any Plan- Many people judge a troubled economy by what they see about the stock
market on the 10 o'clock news. Yet the stings from poor market
performance and the overall sluggish economy over the past four years
are still dampening the confidence of...
May 01, 2012 The 10 Most Powerful Postmortem Planning Pointers for Trusts And Estates- After a client passes away, there is much more to do than just prepare a final Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return .
Taking control of the postmortem planning process can be a powerful way
to save tax dollars for the decedent’s...
May 01, 2012 Tax-advantaged Investing for an Uncertain Economy- Investors
and their advisers have weathered several years of turmoil, with market
conditions often upending conventional investing approaches and related
tax strategies. As recently as summer 2010, Federal Reserve Board
Chairman Ben Bernanke...
April 30, 2012 Good Health Keeps Wealth In Old Age- Ruth H. Clark of Pompano Beach is a 95-year-old aerobic wonder, working out seven days a week.
April 25, 2012 Student Loan Interest Rates Set to Double- With the interest rates for federally subsidized student loans scheduled
to double from 3.4 to 6.8 percent in July, the topic has suddenly
become a hot political issue.
April 25, 2012 AICPA Survey: Just 17% Of Young Adults Check Bank Accounts Daily- NEW YORK, Apr 25, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) --
Three times as many young adults check their social media accounts daily
as check their bank accounts, according to the results of a national
telephone survey conducted for the American Institute of...
April 24, 2012 Most People Mistaken About Their Financial Stability- Three-quarters of Americans consider themselves to be financially
stable, but more than 48 percent lack the savings they say they would
need to achieve actual stability, according to a new survey.
April 24, 2012 IRS Proposes Regs On Deducting Local Lodging Expenses- The Internal Revenue Service has proposed regulations relating to the deductibility of lodging expenses when not traveling away from home.
In REG-137589-07, the IRS noted that Section 1.262-1 of the Income Tax Regulations generally disallows a...
April 24, 2012 The Cost Of Financial Illiteracy- Test your financial knowledge with sample questions from the National
Financial Capability Challenge, a 40-question exam given to high school
students each year since it was implemented in 2010 by the Department of
Treasury and Department of...
April 18, 2012 Technology Extracts a Big Price from Americans, Survey Shows- Americans’ infatuation with technology such as cellphones, cable TV, and satellite radio isn’t helping them fatten their bank accounts, according to a survey conducted for the AICPA by Harris Interactive for National Financial...
April 16, 2012 Survey: Students Fail The Credit Card Test- American college students are laden with credit cards, use them
frequently, and have no idea what they are doing. Consequently, they are
swamped with debt -- and the problem is growing worse by the year.
April 16, 2012 Knowing Which Financial Records to Save, Toss- If the memory of hours spent hunting for and organizing paperwork to
file your taxes is still fresh, think about doing some financial spring
cleaning so next year's tax preparation won't be such an ordeal.
April 16, 2012 Money Management Tips for Step Parents- As American families become more blended due to the country’s 50%
divorce rate, the lines can become fuzzy when it comes to money and
finances.
April 10, 2012 Family Finds Old Stock Certificate, Says Coke Owes Them $130 Million- If the first way Americans believe they will get rich is through sweat, perseverance and hard work, the second is probably finding a winning lottery ticket in an old coat, or something similarly lucky.
The family of Tony Marohn is seemingly in...
April 08, 2012 Living to 100: Downsize to Keep The Nest Egg from Cracking- Fifty years ago, only about 3,300 Americans had made it to 100 years
old. Now, Florida alone has more centenarians than that collecting
Social Security checks.
April 04, 2012 April is Financial Literacy Month, a Perfect Time to Teach Your Kids About Money- The financial crisis was a wake-up call for many - but for parents, the lessons didn’t go far enough.
March 12, 2012 Parents to The Rescue. Or Maybe Not. - Many parents will always feel an urge to take care of their sons and
daughters, even when those children are fully grown, sometimes with kids
of their own.
March 12, 2012 How to Help Family Members Without Hurting Your Own Finances: Family Financial Demands Can Pose a Challenge In Saving for Retirement- It wasn't the dread of long flights that kept the retired Kluevers, who
live in Illinois and part-time in Florida, from vacationing on a distant
continent.
March 10, 2012 Student Loans Seen As Potential 'Next Debt Bomb' for U.S. Economy- Bankruptcy lawyers have a frightening message for America: They’re
seeing the telltale signs of a student loan debt bubble that is placing
increased financial pressure on families struggling with their
children’s mounting debt....
March 08, 2012 Four Tax Credits that Can Boost Your Refund- A tax credit is a dollar-for-dollar reduction of taxes owed. Some tax
credits are refundable meaning if you are eligible and claim one, you
can get the rest of it in the form of a tax refund even after your tax
liability has been reduced to zero.
March 06, 2012 Easing Your Way Into Retirement (On Your Own Terms)- (MONEY Magazine) -- At age 60, Kathy Frederick routinely put in 50 hours
a week as a hospital administrator for Scripps Health Systems in San
Diego. She managed a 15-person staff, and regularly took work home on
week-ends -- until one day five...
March 01, 2012 IRAs Carry Tax Benefits- Many people have a hard time understanding the tax advantages or rules when it comes to individual retirement arrangements or IRAs.
There are different taxable situations based on the type of IRA you have established, whether it's a traditional,...
March 01, 2012 Tax Planning for Parents Of College Students- As
parents plan for their children’s higher education, they may choose
from an array of tax-favored savings vehicles and deductions and
credits. Options include education savings plans, education credits,
deduction of educational...
February 27, 2012 CPA Advises Planning Now for 2013 Tax Hikes- A Silicon Valley-based CPA is warning taxpayers and their accountants to
begin planning for the tax increases that are set to take effect next
year unless the current tax rates are extended by Congress and President
Obama.
September 14, 2011 5 Questions to Ask Before Taking On More Debt- From the outside, he appeared to have it all: a successful business, a
beautiful new luxury home, expensive vacations and a wonderful, loving
family. But, like with so many people we’re impressed by, no one knew
about the dangerous...
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