document.write('<p><b><font class="heading">5 Commonly Overlooked Deductions</font></b></p><p><font class="text"><b>1. If you are cari');
document.write('ng for a friend, you can deduct their personal exemption.</b></p><p>This tax break is for anyone supporting a friend f');
document.write('inancially. You may be able to deduct your friend\'s personal exemption of $3,300 on your own income tax return as long a');
document.write('s these requirements are met;</p><blockquote><p>(1) You provide more than one half of your friend\'s support during t');
document.write('he year,<br>(2) your friend is a member of your household for the entire year,<br>(3) your friend\'s income is less than ');
document.write('the exemption (less than $3,300) and<br>(4) your friend is a U.S. citizen or resident.</p></blockquote><p>Why should');
document.write(' your friend let you use his or her personal exemption on your income tax return? Because when people have little or no ');
document.write('income, their standard deduction, by itself, is large enough to squash any income tax they might owe. They eliminate the');
document.write(' possibility of their exemption going to waste by giving it to someone else. Contact us to find out if this trick applie');
document.write('s to you.</p><p>&nbsp;<br><b>2. You can use your credit cards for year-end tax planning.</b></p><p>Since effective t');
document.write('ax planning takes into account not only what you spend your money on but on when you spend it, you should always think a');
document.write('bout timing your tax-deductible expenses. Look ahead to the end of the year and consider deductible contributions to ret');
document.write('irement plans and estimate your state income tax payments along with your tax-deductible purchases. The idea is to pay f');
document.write('or them in the order that minimizes your income tax and maximizes your positive cash flow.</p><p>Again, timing is ever');
document.write('ything. A credit card can give you the tax deduction that you need at year-end. If you charge a tax-deductible purchase t');
document.write('o a bank credit card--not a store card--you can easily take the write-off (even though the credit card charges will be p');
document.write('aid after the end of the year).</p><p>Note: Try and use your card after you have already planned your current cash flo');
document.write('w around other deductions.</p><p>There are many different options for using this strategy and they differ between empl');
document.write('oyers and employees. We recommend you call today to find out exactly what your options are.</p><p>&nbsp;<br><b>3. Ther');
document.write('e is a way around your current home equity deduction limits.</b></p><p>A deduction for the home equity interest you al');
document.write('ready pay can mean big tax savings! Ordinarily, this interest deduction is limited to home equity debt of $100,000 or le');
document.write('ss. Don\'t shortchange yourself! Hidden in the IRS regulations is a way for you to increase your home equity interest exp');
document.write('ense and deduct more than is ordinarily allowed. You qualify for these savings if you use a portion of your household fo');
document.write('r business purposes, rent out a portion of your home, or if you use a part of your house for any other business reasons.');
document.write('</p><p>The end result is that most taxpayers are stuck with deducting home equity interest only up to the $100,000 deb');
document.write('t limit. Don\'t feel &quot;stuck&quot; if you use a portion of your home for business. All you have to do is make a speci');
document.write('al IRS election to treat your home equity debt as something other than home equity debt. Doing this lets you take a bigg');
document.write('er home equity interest deduction.</p><p>&nbsp;<br><b>4. Did you know you can use your previously funded IRA to fund t');
document.write('he current year\'s deductible contribution?</b></p><p>Well, you can. If you don\'t have enough cash to make a deducible ');
document.write('contribution to your IRA by April 15th, here is how you can still take the tax deduction and have until June 12th to mak');
document.write('e the full $4,000 contribution! To get started, all you need is an IRA funded in previous years.</p><p>Start by having');
document.write(' $4,800 distributed to you from your IRA on April 15th. Your bank is required to hold 20% (income tax withholding), so y');
document.write('ou\'ll actually receive $4,000. Once you have the $4,000, immediately deposit it back into your IRA. If you do this befor');
document.write('e April 15th, this counts as your deductible contribution for the year.</p><p>The best part of this is that you have 5');
document.write('9 days to &quot;make up&quot; the withdrawal-or to be taxed. Simply redeposit $4,800 into the same IRA account by June 1');
document.write('2th. This &quot;rollback&quot; deposit lets you avoid the tax on the original distribution made to you. This is a type o');
document.write('f short-term loan from your IRA to make this year\'s deductible contribution before the April 15th due date.</p><p>Note');
document.write(': Not all banks realize it is required to withhold the 20% from the original $4,800 withdrawn from your IRA. Call to fin');
document.write('d out which way we can help you work with this &quot;extra&quot; amount. There are many options, so get informed before ');
document.write('you miss out on the full benefits of your retirement plan.</p><p>&nbsp;<br><b>5. You can take distributions from your ');
document.write('IRA without paying the 10% early withdrawal penalty.</b></p> <p>We all know that our best bet is to try and keep our r');
document.write('etirement savings until we retire. There might be situations that arise where you\'ll need to make early withdrawals from');
document.write(' your IRA (like helping to pay for your child\'s education or caring for an elderly parent). Making these early withdrawa');
document.write('ls puts you at risk of the early withdrawal penalty. This penalty can seriously add up over time and can shrivel your ha');
document.write('rd-earned retirement plan.</p><p>No matter how old you are, there is an income tax on any distributions from your IRA.');
document.write(' But fortunately, there\'s a way around the 10% early withdrawal penalty. You can use an IRA annuity that sets you up to ');
document.write('make withdrawals (the size is based on life expectancy tables provided by the IRS) until you are 59 1/2. You have to mak');
document.write('e withdrawals for a period of five years. You can continue to make withdrawals, or wait, to when you are 70 1/2. At that');
document.write(' point you have to start making withdrawals anyway. So it is a flexible plan we can help tailor to your needs.</p><p>T');
document.write('his strategy works very well for people in their 50\'s who have unusual expenses to meet, but do not want to be forced in');
document.write('to withdrawing everything from their IRA before retirement.</p>');