Q. What are some key points every- one should know? A. This is the most massive tax


launching since 1986. Rate changes have changed for everyone. It’s mas- sive. Of course I want people to come to me, but if they don’t, they really need to get with a tax professional because there are major changes. The standard deductions are raised


to $12,000 for single and $24,000 for married, beginning in 2018. Personal exemptions are repealed beginning in 2018. State income tax, real estate taxes,


sales tax and property taxes are lim- ited to $10,000 total for 2018. Any amount paid in excess of this is not deductible. Employee business expenses for


W2 employees, such as construction workers, ministers, outside salesmen or any employee that has been using Form 2106 on their return, are gone. The bill repealed all employee busi- ness expenses such as unreimbursed mileage, meals, hotel and other ex- penses such as cell phones, home of-


This is the most massive tax launching since 1986. Rate changes have changed for everyone. It’s massive.


PATRICK BALLARD CPA, AND CEO OF BALLARD & COMPANY, LTD., CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS


fices, etc, beginning in 2018. Moving expense deductions, along


with casualty/theft loss have been eliminated. Q. Are medical deductions going away? A. Medical is still there. They low-


ered the limit. Medical deductions have to exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income before they are deduct- ible for 2017 and 2018. Q. How is mortgage interest going to be affected? A. Mortgage interest on your first


and second home is deductible, but is limited to $1 million total mortgage if before Dec. 15, 2017. After that date, the limit of what you can finance and be able to deduct in interest is $750,000. If you have borrowed money from home equity before Dec. 31, 2017, you could borrow up to $100,000 and still deduct the interest as mortgage interest no matter what you used the money for. After Dec. 31, 2017, you can no longer deduct interest borrowed on home equity loans or refinancing where you pulled equity out of your home and used it to pay off other debt. You must be able to trace what you did with the money to determine whether the interest on the money you pulled out is deductible or not. This applies to all refinancing or equity loans you did in the past, which means that some or part of that interest may be nonde- ductible. Mortgage Insurance Premi- ums (MIP) on your personal residence are nondeductible beginning in 2018. This is a good time to meet with your tax professional and look into trying to get rid of the MIP.


BB-0000132535 Living Well i March/April 2018 5


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34