Every episode answers one question, in plain language, with the tax rule that actually applies. Filter by the situation you are in.
An even split on paper can be uneven after tax. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA explains why retirement accounts, the house and a business are worth different amounts once tax is counted, and why the date on the decree matters.
US citizens keep filing US tax returns wherever they live. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA explains why the best-known tax break for Americans abroad rarely helps retirees, and what to settle before a move rather than after it.
When there is a business in the marriage, its valuation is often the largest number on the settlement, and a set of judgment calls rather than a fact. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA, CVA explains where those calls move the number and what the valuation leaves out.
Every dollar in a pre-tax 401(k) is taxed when it comes out, and at 73 or 75 the tax code starts compelling those withdrawals. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA explains why the bill lands harder on women, and how to use the low-income years before withdrawals begin.
Keeping the marital home defers the tax on it rather than avoiding it. The $500,000 capital gains exclusion a married couple can claim becomes $250,000 the year the divorce is final, and the house arrives with its original cost basis. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA works through what that costs on a long-held home, and why a house and a retirement account are never the same dollar.
Claiming Social Security at 62 reduces the monthly benefit by roughly 30 percent for the rest of your life. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA works through what that actually costs on a single income, the survivor and divorced-spouse benefits most guides leave out, and why up to 85 percent of the benefit can end up taxable.
Most of what a widow inherits is not taxable income, but the decisions made in the first ninety days determine what she owes for years afterward. Tiffani Lindstrom, CPA walks through which assets are taxed, why date-of-death values have to be documented now, and the retirement account decision only a surviving spouse can make.