Author: News Room

There’s a Stealth Tax retirees and near-retirees often don’t know about until they inadvertently trigger it, costing them a lot of taxes that often could have been avoided or reduced. Many taxpayers who pay this Stealth Tax aren’t subject to it every year. Instead, a change in their finances activates the tax. Many people don’t learn about the tax until their income tax returns are prepared. This least-known Stealth Tax, the net investment income tax (NIIT), was created in the Affordable Care Act and labeled as a Medicare surtax, though the proceeds go into general revenues. The NIIT is an…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.The reformist government of Masoud Pezeshkian has lifted Iran’s ban on WhatsApp and Google Play, in a first step towards easing internet restrictions in the nation of 85mn people.A high-level meeting chaired by the president on Tuesday overcame resistance from hardline factions within the Islamic regime, Iranian media reported, as the government seeks to reduce pressures on civil society.“Today, we took the first step towards lifting internet restrictions by demonstrating unity,” Sattar Hashemi, Iran’s minister of telecommunications, wrote on X. “This path…

This article was written byFollowAn individual investor primarily focused on undercovered companies, with more than 50 companies on my watchlist. My areas include technology, software, electronics and the energy transition. I have been investing my personal capital for over 7 years in a broad range of companies globally. Through my years of analyzing countless companies, I have accumulated professional investment experience within my circle of competence. I have a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering and currently work as an automotive battery RnD engineer in Sweden. My write-ups on SA are a good way for me to layout my investment thesis…

The Older Americans Act, the umbrella federal law that includes programs such as Meals on Wheels, senior transportation, information services, adult day, and caregiver support was hours from being expanded and winning congressional approval for another five years. Now, its fate has become far more uncertain. Its all because the OAA, despite broad bipartisan congressional support, got caught up in a squabble over an emergency end-of-year spending bill between President-elect Trump and Elon Musk on one hand, and Capitol Hill Republican leaders on the other. The result: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) dropped the OAA from the big budget measure.…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.France’s new prime minister François Bayrou has selected Eric Lombard, head of state-backed financial group Caisse des Dépôts, as finance minister, handing him the key role of trying to enact a budget for next year.Lombard will be tasked with coming up with a taxation and spending plan for 2025 that can be approved by France’s raucous hung parliament, while also starting to repair the country’s degraded public finances.Bayrou’s predecessor, Michel Barnier, was ousted by the National Assembly in a vote of no…

This article was written byFollowI am obsessed with evaluating stocks to beat the S&P 500 over my lifetime. When I was a kid, I had no formal training about money or the stock market. I watched family real estate taken away from me in foreclosure and I became determined to master money. I was gifted the book, The Intelligent Investor and I was so captivated by the idea of finding have since read, studied, and obsessed over how to evaluate and invest in stocks with an audacious goal of outperforming the S&P 500. Through my exhaustive training, I have learned…

Most workers approaching their retirement years haven’t saved enough money to retire full time at age 65 and continue their current level of spending. Let that disturbing conclusion sink in for a while. Unfortunately, many workers haven’t realized this fact and have unrealistic assumptions about when they can retire and their standard of living in retirement. If they were to “do the math,” they’d find that they may need to work longer than they’d hoped, reduce their spending in retirement, or do some combination in order to afford retirement. Neither of these facts needs to be a bummer. If you’re…

While the holiday spirit will dominate the news agenda, there are notable developments to watch across the world, as the three defining themes of 2024 — elections, war and inflation — continue to hum in the background. On Tuesday, Moldova’s pro-EU president-elect Maia Sandu will attend her inauguration. Her narrow election victory in October, despite alleged Russian meddling in the process, will set the former Soviet country on a path to EU membership. Maia Sandu © Dumitru Doru/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockGeorgia, on the other hand, will on Sunday swear in Mikheil Kavelashvili to the presidency, a pro-Russian firebrand and Croatia will hold a…

This article was written byFollowLeo Nelissen is an analyst focusing on major economic developments related to supply chains, infrastructure, and commodities. He is a contributing author for iREIT®+HOYA Capital.As a member of the iREIT®+HOYA Capital team, Leo aims to provide insightful analysis and actionable investment ideas, with a particular emphasis on dividend growth opportunities. Learn More. Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not…

The ability to switch Medicare plans isn’t as available as many beneficiaries are told or believe, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services wants beneficiaries to be more aware of the practical limits. In a section of new proposed regulations, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services says that agents and brokers must discuss certain topics with customers before enrolling them in Medicare Advantage plans, a proposal CMS labels Informed Enrollment. Most Medicare beneficiaries know that each year during open enrollment (October 15 – December 7) they’re allowed to change their coverage. The new coverage will take effect the…