Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
For families with significant assets, 2026 is shaping up as a rare window to move wealth to the next generation with relatively little friction from the tax code. The federal estate and gift framework now combines a high lifetime exemption with stable annual limits, and that mix creates planning opportunities that can sharply reduce what…
The new federal tax break for older Americans was billed as a simple way to help retirees keep more of their income. Instead, the $6,000 senior deduction has landed in the middle of a fierce debate over fairness, fiscal risk, and who really benefits. As the 2026 filing season approaches, many retirees are discovering that…
Millions of households are being told to brace for a tax season jolt, but for once it is the kind that could pad their bank accounts instead of draining them. The Treasury secretary is signaling that typical workers may see unusually large refunds, in some cases up to $2,000 per household, as new tax rules…
The new 1% U.S. remittance tax is already nibbling at the cash many families send abroad, turning routine transfers into a little more of a luxury. The good news is that the law is full of carve-outs, and with a few changes in how you pay, you can often avoid the charge entirely. I will…
Homeowners in New York, California and New Jersey are finally seeing meaningful relief from a federal tax rule that has squeezed high property tax areas for years. A temporary expansion of the state and local tax deduction, paired with fresh IRS inflation adjustments, is poised to cut federal tax bills for many households that have…
The Internal Revenue Service is warning that the way Americans pay and receive their taxes is shifting faster than many realize. New rules tied to the One Big Beautiful Bill and Executive Order 14247 are changing everything from how side hustles are reported to how refunds are delivered, and the agency is urging taxpayers to…
Filing your federal return in January instead of waiting until April does not change how much you owe or how big your refund is, but it can dramatically change the experience. The timing affects how quickly your money arrives, how exposed you are to identity thieves, and how much stress you carry into spring. It…
The new $6,000 senior tax deduction was pitched as a simple way to help older Americans keep more of their income. Instead, it has opened a fresh front in the country’s generational and partisan tax wars, with critics online blasting it as unfair and poorly targeted. I see a policy that offers real relief to…
Millions of Americans are heading into tax season with something unusual on the horizon: the prospect of meaningfully larger refunds driven by a sweeping set of new IRS rules and federal tax law changes. The combination of fresh deductions, higher standard write offs and updated brackets is poised to shrink taxable income for a wide…
Tax pros are bracing for something unusual in 2026: a filing season where many households discover that the government owes them far more than they expected. After years of modest or shrinking refunds, a mix of new law, IRS rule changes, and paycheck withholding quirks is setting the stage for a noticeable jump in money…