Taxes

Median Property Tax By County

A major cost of living in New York State is taxes. We have very high property taxes, but then again does much of New England. The median property tax bill in Albany County, NY is $4,200, while the median property tax bill in the mountain country of Webster County, WV is $268. In much of the south, especially away from the oceans and metropolitan areas, property taxes are much lower then in our area. You can understand why many people, especially seniors to choose to move to lower tax states.

Data Source: MORTGAGE STATUS BY AGGREGATE REAL ESTATE TAXES PAID (DOLLARS). Universe: Owner-occupied housing units, 2011-2015 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=ACS_15_5YR_B25090&prodType=table

The ugly numbers are finally in on the 2017 Trump tax rewrite | Salon.com

The ugly numbers are finally in on the 2017 Trump tax rewrite | Salon.com

Those making $50,000 to $100,000 for example, paid just three-fourths of 1 percentage point less of their incomes to our federal government. People making $2 million to $2.5 million saw their effective tax rate fall by about three times that much.

Now let's compare two groups, those making $50,000 to $100,000 and those declaring $500,000 to $1 million. The second group averaged nine times as much income as the first group in 2018.

Under the Trump tax law, the first group's annual income taxes declined on average by $143, while the second group's tax reduction averaged $17,800. Advertisement:

Put another way, a group that made nine times as much money enjoyed about 125 times as much in income tax savings.

This disparity helps explain Trump's support among money-conscious high-income Americans. But given the tiny tax benefits for most Americans, along with cuts in government services, it is surprising Trump enjoys significant support among people making less than $200,000.

Don’t Deduct That Haircut Yet; Tax Court Has Rejected Such Claims : NPR

Trump Taxes: Don’t Deduct That Haircut Yet; Tax Court Has Rejected Such Claims : NPR

Now, you may be wondering, can I deduct my next visit to a salon or a barbershop?

The U.S. Tax Court has repeatedly ruled that the costs of maintaining an appealing appearance are not deductible, even for public personalities. In a 2011 case, the court ruled against a television news anchor who wanted to claim deductions for the costs of maintaining her personal appearance.

 

President Trump and his Company Investigated for Possible Fraud, Filing Suggests – The New York Times

President Trump and his Company Investigated for Possible Fraud, Filing Suggests – The New York Times

The Manhattan district attorney’s office suggested on Monday that it had been investigating President Trump and his company for possible bank and insurance fraud, a significantly broader inquiry than the prosecutors have acknowledged in the past.

The suggestion by the office of the district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., came in a new federal court filing arguing that Mr. Trump’s accountants should have to comply with a grand jury subpoena seeking eight years of his personal and corporate tax returns. Mr. Trump has asked a judge to declare the subpoena invalid.