Displaying items by tag: capital gains tax

(Washington)

This whole year it is has been assumed—almost as an unquestioned default—that taxes would rise under the Biden administration. For example, munis have surged in value on this expectation. However, that assumption seems to have gotten well ahead of itself as new developments suggest tax changes may be a way off yet. The big change is that the infrastructure package is coming up for a vote—potentially this week—and the deal which has materialized between the parties has no tax rises whatsoever in it. That means Biden’s plan to hitch tax rises to increased infrastructure expenditure have fallen through, at least for the time being.

FINSUM: So if this plan gets approved without any tax changes—which looks quite likely—it seems clear that clients will escape 2021 without any major changes to federal taxes (including long-term capital gains taxes). Therefore, any planning should take account of the fact that 2021 may be much more advantageous than 2022.

(Washington)

Joe Biden jut rocked markets in a big way. Yesterday afternoon, Bloomberg reported that Biden was planning to increase the capital gains tax rate on the wealthiest Americans by double, or up to just under 40%. The same rate as income taxes. Market reversed very sharply, but have been strong today. The tax would only affect Americans earning over $1m per year, which is 0.3% of the population, but taken in conjunction with other proposals to change the basis for capital gains taxes as it concerns inheritance, this is another big step.

FINSUM: The full scale tax overhaul on the wealthy has begun in earnest. Inheritance taxes and now capital gains taxes look likely to soar, with the latter not only on the wealthy. Advisors need to be very mindful of these changes as they disproportionately affect those who employ financial advisors.