Blog

As we make our way out of this deep recession, the most important thing we can do for the middle class is strengthen the economy and help the private sector create jobs as quickly as possible. We also must begin to reverse the declines middle-class families saw not just these past few years, but have seen for over a decade: working harder for less; college becoming more unaffordable, health care costs skyrocketing; home values plummeting; and retirement savings dwindling and becoming less secure. There are immediate steps we can take to reduce the strain on family budgets by helping middle class families manage their child and elder care responsibilities, save for retirement, and pay for college. A year ago, President Obama appointed a Task Force on the Middle Class, naming Vice President Joe Biden as its chair. After a year of meetings held all over the country, today we are previewing elements of the recommendations of the Middle Class Task Force (the full report will be released in February).

2011 is poised to be a very interesting year. Keeping track of the many numbers that may apply to our clients’ finances is difficult at best.

Kestler Financial Group is pleased to again provide the Key Numbers Report for 2011. This valuable, 20-page tool contains just about every tax rate, income limit, and deduction you can imagine.

Now that the ink is starting to dry on the extension of the Bush Era tax cuts it is up to the rest of us to figure out what just happened, and what does it mean to our clients? The dust is still settling, but one thing is perfectly clear: our clients are still facing a great deal of uncertainty, and this extension is essentially meaningless to anyone trying to plan for the long term.

On December 17, 2010, the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 was signed into law. In addition to providing a 13-month extension of benefits for the long-term unemployed, the legislation includes a long-anticipated extension of the "Bush tax cuts" that were scheduled to expire on January 1, 2011. Other significant provisions include a new alternative minimum tax (AMT) "patch," a major modification of the estate tax, and a new 1-year 2% employee Social Security payroll tax reduction.