No Spouse/Heirs to Consider for Financial Planning

[mathjak107]

Originally Posted by borninsac

I have a saying that goes like this: "Never let the tax tail wag the economic dog." You'll never go wrong being guided by economics but yes you do want to make comparisons on an after-tax basis. Once you've identified what you want to do guided by economics, then and only then do you explore if one option is more tax friendly than the other.

And quality of life trumps economics in my opinion. We all make "business decisions" to do something because we want to. That's the way it should be.

but some times that tail can weigh more then the dog . especially because of all the perks and consequences tied to that taxable income in retirement .

as an example , the two moving targets of getting ss taxed and your regular taxes can have the effect of a 46.50% marginal tax rate at times .

[Robyn55]

Originally Posted by borninsac

I have a saying that goes like this: "Never let the tax tail wag the economic dog." You'll never go wrong being guided by economics but yes you do want to make comparisons on an after-tax basis. Once you've identified what you want to do guided by economics, then and only then do you explore if one option is more tax friendly than the other.

And quality of life trumps economics in my opinion. We all make "business decisions" to do something because we want to. That's the way it should be.

Agreed about the "tail and dog". That's one reason we avoided (often disastrous) "tax shelters" in the 70's and 80's. OTOH - it always makes sense to know what the tax implications of various things are. Whether you're talking about investments - moving from one state to another - etc. Especially if you're single (because single people usually get into higher tax brackets with less income than married people). Robyn