Tax Guru – Ker$tetter Letter

TV Commentator Arrested Over $130 Mln Stock Fraud – Another reason to be cautious about following the lead of so-called stock picking wizards. Conflicts of interest are much more common than the public knows.

The Top 10 Personal and Business Insurance Tax Do’s and Don’ts

Rapid Refund Loans – Scams that actually make up a huge profit for the assembly line tax prep firms that prey on the lower income, lower intelligence clientele.

A Successful Subdivision Can Boost Your Profits – It’s long been one of the most effective ways to profit rather quickly in real estate.  Buy a huge parcel and then sell it off in smaller units.  Contrary to popular perception, including among many tax pros, doing this doesn’t automatically make someone a real estate dealer, who is subject to regular tax rates plus self employment taxes, and is unable to use 1031 exchanges.  I have worked with this issue for decades and have seen that the deciding factor over whether someone is a dealer or not involves the time spent doing the subdividing.  If it becomes a full time occupation, the person is most likely a dealer.  However, if it is a part time side activity, it is an investment, with all the tax benefits of that (lower long term capital gains tax rates, no SE tax, 1031 exchanges, and installment method). 

Calculating the Real Rate of Return on Investments