quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
^^^^^^^^^^^^
I think the intent is to move idle cash to I Bonds as a hedge against inflation. If your time horizon precludes longer term growth it makes good sense.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
These days gains and losses seem like they are much more substantial than $1000s. Why is capital loss limited to $3000 - that seems woefully undersized. Especially if capital gains are unlimited.

This mutual fund thing - just trying to understand this issue in simple terms for my mind. It's basically buying and selling stock w/in the mutual fund. So, in this case, there is a tax burden even though you didn't take money out of the fund.

It's basically similar to you managing your own portfolio of stocks. You sell one thing and buy another. You have a gain / loss for the thing you sold. Is that basically what's going on, just on a large scale? So the gain burden is based on a percentage of the mutual fund you own?

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
Does bendable's post look like country song lyrics to anyone else, or is it just me?

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
An ex employer and his wife did it as wrong as wrong could be
(Most would say)

One son got the business and building,
The daughter got
The home and two vehicles,

In a will ,
Together,
In state,fed and cap gains
They paid $1.5 mill


I thought
The son was going to faint.

No trust was involved.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
An ex employer and his wife did it as wrong as wrong could be
(Most would say)

One son got the business and building,
The daughter got
The home and two vehicles,

In a will ,
Together,
In state,fed and cap gains
They paid $1.5 mill


I thought
The son was going to faint.

No trust was involved.

Not a lot of details here, but cost basis for inherited property is normally the value upon date of death of the deceased.

quote:

Originally posted by wishfull thinker:

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:

quote:

Originally posted by bendable:
An ex employer and his wife did it as wrong as wrong could be
(Most would say)

One son got the business and building,
The daughter got
The home and two vehicles,

In a will ,
Together,
In state,fed and cap gains
They paid $1.5 mill


I thought
The son was going to faint.

No trust was involved.

Not a lot of details here, but cost basis for inherited property is normally the value upon date of death of the deceased.

SWAG here: there was an estate tax in there.

quote:

Originally posted by trapper189:
Since rOgue asked "Capital gains tax -- What just happened to me!?" and that question has to be answered, here goes:

Maybe nothing happened. It depends on your ordinary income and capital gains levels, but for many people a portion of their capital gains each year are taxed at 0%. Look at your Schedule D Tax Worksheet. There will be three lines; 0%, 15%, and 20%. If the 15% and 20% lines are blank or zero, then all of your capital gains were taxed at 0%.

There is a possibility if your MAGI, modified adjusted gross income, is over $250,000 married filing jointly or $200,000 single, that you'll pay an additional 3.8% NIIT, net investment income tax, on some portion of your investment income including capital gains. Look at your Form 8960, if you have one, to see if that's the case.

A piece of advise for anyone in that 0% capital gains bracket: Sell enough of your appreciated stock at the end of the year to maximize the amount taxed at 0%. Buy that stock back the same day. You'll pay less tax overall when you sell in the future than if you did nothing.

quote:

Originally posted by sadlerbw:
I’m going to go ahead and suggest you consider hiring a professional to help with your financial planning. I know it sucks spending even more money to have someone do things you could be doing yourself, but keeping up with the changes to rules and regulations, and understanding the changing tax consequences really can be a full-time job. Especially if you are looking at plans for what happens to your estate once you pass, it is real easy to let the government eat up a significant chunk of your estate when you pass just because of how things are held and structured.

I’m studying to take the tests for some of this type of work right now, and there is a ton to know about investing that has nothing to do with figuring out how to actually make money! From my unlicensed perspective, I would want to look at all your assets before suggesting anything. There may be nothing wrong with this fund other than having a shitty year, or it may be less than ideal for your goals. It is difficult to look at a single investment in a vacuum and give good advice. If you really want to make a good choice about this one fund, it should be in the context of your overall situation. You probably shouldn’t broadcast all that info on a public forum though, so I’d suggest talking to a professional who does this every day.

I look at like plumbing: there is plenty I can do on my own, but if I get in over my head, I want a professional available to come sort it out for me!

- Bret