18 Dec 2017

The Tax Overhaul Details (In English)

Late Friday evening, Congressional Republicans released the final version of their tax reduction and simplification plan.  Although many elements match the House and Senate versions, there are some differences worth noting. I should point out, though, that the following is a broad summary – I haven’t read all 1,100 pages of the proposed law.  Furthermore, this summary only covers the changes for individual filers, not corporations or partnerships. Lastly, you… Read More

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2 Oct 2017

Trump’s Tax Principles

Following the election last November, I outlined what we could reasonably expect from the Trump administration (you can find the article here).  The article may have been a little tough to follow because I was trying to meld what Trump had said on the campaign trail and two proposals floating around the House. At this point, the picture is a little more clear as President Trump and GOP leaders outlined their… Read More

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6 Feb 2017

What is a Border Adjustment Tax?

Most of the time, the topics that I choose for Daily Insights are things that I think I know a lot about.  Sometimes, I write about a topic in an effort to learn more about it. That’s the case today: I had never heard of a border adjustment tax until a few weeks ago, wanted to know more and thought I would share what I’ve learned. Some of you undoubtedly… Read More

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28 Nov 2016

Taxes: A Hint of What’s to Come

One of the immediately obvious results of the election is that the tax code is going to change. Republicans have had several plans in the works for years that differ from what Trump has proposed on the trail, so the final result won’t be known for a little bit even though changes are a priority for the President-elect and both houses of Congress. Income Taxes For the sake of simplicity,… Read More

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18 Apr 2016

Tax Trivia to Ease the Pain

Although we all know that ‘tax day’ is April 15th, a holiday in Washington DC pushed back the due date until today.  Here are some fun facts from efile.com to help ease the pain: In 1705, Russian emperor Peter the Great taxed beards in the hopes that more men would adopt a clean shaven look. Playing cards and dice were taxed in England going back to 1710 and rose to… Read More

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26 Mar 2015

It’s Tax Time (for Suckers)

Tax time is fully underway at Acropolis as we help clients and their accountants get the information they need to prepare their taxes.  It’s a cumbersome process for everyone (although the accountants have it the worst by a long-shot) that concludes with writing a check to the government. People might not be so bothered by the whole process if they felt that their money was going to good use, but there… Read More

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21 Jan 2015

Are New Taxes Coming?

It seems like only yesterday that the tax issues were finally settled after years of uncertainty, although it was actually 2012. Judging from the President’s State of the Union address last night, it appears that taxes may be in flux again. First, a quick and dirty background on the estate tax law as it stands today. For those that pass away in 2015, there is no federal estate tax unless… Read More

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14 Nov 2014

Warren Buffett Continues to Be Clever

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway (ticker: BRK.A) announced yesterday that it will buy the battery maker, Duracell, in a deal worth approximately $4.7 billion from Procter & Gamble (ticker: PG). In many ways, the purchase isn’t surprising since Duracell has many of the characteristics that Buffett likes: a strong global brand in an old, boring industry. What’s interesting about this deal, though, is that Buffett isn’t using cash from his $68.3… Read More

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7 Oct 2014

Taxes Sure Take a Bite

I visit Morningstar’s home page almost every day. I love their data and like about one-third of their qualitative written commentaries. Despite being a daily visitor, I noticed for the first time yesterday a ‘Chart of the Week’ and decided to check it out. Since I was unable to get a copy of the image, I strongly urge you to click here to check out the chart yourself. Essentially, the… Read More

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15 Sep 2014

Where Your Taxes Go

If you pay quarterly taxes, they’re due today! The next payment isn’t until January 15th of next year, but it probably makes sense to start salting away money now so that you’ll have plenty on hand in a few months. If you aren’t sure whether or not you need to pay quarterly taxes, you probably don’t. The quarterly taxes are actually estimated tax payments on income that is not subject… Read More

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