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Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Tax Deferral As An Investment Strategy

By Don Burnham

Deferring taxes is the kind of investment strategy that can be carried out on your income, by which your income tax is paid later in exchange for money invested currently. The advantage of tax deferral is that you get to make more money which you can in turn invest immediately.

For example, say you manage deducting $1000 from your taxable income in the current year and then you invest that amount into an account that gives you interest. As a result of this, you get to pay around $200 less in income tax for the current year. Therefore you are gaining $200 more as compared to if you hadn't invested the $1000. So if you add the deferred $200 to the already invested $1000, your investment adds up to $1200. The other kind of tax deferral that investors often opt for is deferring the amount of tax to be paid for interest earned. The invested amount is taxed, but the interest earned becomes free of tax.

Another type of tax deferral used by investors is the deferment of taxes paid on interest earned. The dollars invested have already been taxed, but any interest earned is tax free.

The tax deferred accounts that you may create will protect your money from being taxed until you start withdrawing money at a time when you are entitled to pay less tax. The Investment vehicle that suits you therefore depends on your current situation.

One available plan is the 401 (k). This vehicle is available only through employers who offer the plan. It allows you to make tax-deductible contributions that grow tax deferred until you withdraw them. Depending on your particular plan, your 401(k) plan may come with a bonus. Some employers match your contributions. You could make 25%-100% on your money instantly if your employer offers matching funds.

By using the 401(k) planning, you could add more to your retirement plan, than most other plans. You can add around $9,500 to your retirement plan, and your employer can add another $30,000 every year. You can also add the yearly bonuses that you receive to this plan to help your retirement money grow even faster. If you leave your job or wish for more freedom with your money, you can always roll your assets over into an IRA account.

A 401 (K) may work for a beginner at investing, someone who does not know how to invest in stocks or which are the best stocks to invest in.

Another type of plan offered by an employer is the 403 (b). This plan is for public school and non-profit organization employees and it is tax deductible and tax deferred. You can contribute up to $9,500 of your annual gross income each year to this plan.

The other plan is the 403(b) which again has to be offered by your employer. This plan is meant for employees who work in public educational centers or other non profit organizations. Similarly in this plan the money is tax deductible and the investment is tax deferred and you can contribute up to $9,500 yearly. With this plan however you need to be aware of certain risks. You have to invest the money in a tax sheltered annuity which will result in high sale charges and the rates they give will not always be guaranteed.

Any person who has an earned income or the spouse of somebody who has an earned income can open their own IRA and add up to $2000 to it yearly. The earnings are not subjected to tax unless you start withdrawing from the account, but you will be charged penalty if you start withdrawing before the age of 59 and a half. However, even if your money is not tax deductible, they will be tax deferred.

The type of investments you can make with your IRA dollars depends on the custodian, but you generally have many more investment options with an IRA than you do with any of the employer sponsored investment plans.

The Keough Plan is open to people who are self employed or who work for unincorporated businesses. By this plan you can contribute up to 25% of your income every year with a maximum of $30,000. All the contributions become tax deductible and your earnings tax deferred. You can contribute more with this plan than with an IRA plan. There are three types of Keough plans, whereby you can contribute a fixed percent every year, or a variable percent or a fixed amount according to you every year. A lawyer can best assist you in setting this up.

A SEP, or a Simplified Employee Plan is easier to set up than a Keough allows you to deduct 15% of your self-employment income, to a maximum of $30,000. As an employee, you can contribute up to $7000 per year to your SEP, and your employer can contribute the rest. SEP plans are only available to companies with 25 or fewer employees, and at least half of those employees must participate in the plan.

All the above described investment vehicles fall under one of these two categories: Qualified or Non - Qualified plans.

The 401 (k) and 403 (b) plans are qualified plans. Qualified plans are employer-sponsored plans that provide good benefits but that are restricted to the types of investment options offered by the employer. As we already mentioned, 403 (b) plans often require you to invest your money in tax sheltered annuities. 401 (k) plans generally offer a broader range of conventional investment options, but still seem very limited when compared to non-qualified plans. You usually get to select from a preset choice of investment options such as fixed interest annuities, money market funds, stock in your company, and other traditional investments.

The non - qualified plans allow more freedom regarding when or if you want to make a contribution. All IRA's are a part of this category. Usually investors find it easier to work with non - qualified plans than with qualified ones, they require less reporting and regulating and investors have more control over their investments this way. Often contributions made to these plans can be deducted from tax as a business expense.

Most investments made with the vehicles we have been discussing fall into one of two asset categories: The first is debt and the second is equity. As an investor, you are either an owner or a creditor. Equity owners are entitled to all free cash flows that exceed the debt payment obligations of the underlying economic entity. Creditors receive priority in agreed-upon future interest and principal payments.

When choosing a retirement plan, you want to be certain of the types of investments permitted with your plan. Do not open an account that does not give you the freedom to choose your own investment options, whether they are debt or equity investments. - 23167

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