A surge in early decision applications

Last year, a number of elite schools like Harvard, Princeton, and the University of Virginia eliminated their early decision programs (where students apply early and agree to enroll if accepted) with the rationale that the process favored wealthy students who didn’t need to compare financial aid awards. This year, with an economic downturn, the expectation [...]

The future of mortgage resets

Just in case you think we’ve seen the worst of mortgages being reset at higher rates, check out this chart, cited by the International Monetary Fund in its October 2007 Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR). After a trough in the pace of resets next year, resets shoot up again in 2010 and 2011. And the volume of [...]

Unfair RMDs

The S & P 500 closed at 1440.70 on November 19, 2007. On November 11, 2008, it was down to 873.29–a drop of almost 40%. People who have to take their required minimum distributions must base the amount on their account balances as of December 31 of last year for this years withdrawals. Obviously, the [...]

College executive pay and the allure of college endowments

The Chronicle of Higher Education released its annual survey today detailing college presidential pay. Among the findings: 15 presidents of public universities earned at least $700,000 last year, and nearly one-third earned over $500,000. According to one Washington D.C. lawyer familiar with college presidential compensation, the governing boards who set compensation often view the investment [...]

Proposed regs. on alternate valuation date

Also in the “did you know” category — IRC Section 2032 (Alternate Valuation Date) allows an estate to value assets 6 months after the date of death if using the later date decreases both the value of the estate and the estate taxes owed. In Kohler v. Commisioner, T.C. Memo. 2006-152, the U.S. Tax Court [...]

Did you know…?

Did you know that if you receive a gift from a foreign source, you may have to report it to the IRS? It’s true. Generally, gifts or bequests (in the form of money or property) received from a foreign person or estate that are valued (in the aggregate per year) at more than $100,000 are reportable, as are gifts [...]

What should we call TARP now?

In the “Oops! Sorry…” department…
Now that Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has formally announced that he’s not going to use the $700 billion Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) to actually purchase troubled mortgage-backed assets, maybe we should come up with some alternative ideas for what TARP stands for now.
Here are a few ideas:
Terrific Alibi for Rotten [...]

Sorting out mortgage modification possibilities

Keeping up with all the programs designed to help homeowners modify mortgages and/or stave off foreclosure can be a challenge. Here’s a quick summary:
Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac
• Designed to help modify loans so that mortgage payments (including homeowner association dues) represent no more than 38 percent of the household’s monthly gross income. Options for modification include (among [...]

A second chance for a stimulus

Remember the Economic Stimulus Bill of 2008? Passed last February, the bill provided rebate checks worth up to $600 to individuals and $1,200 to married couples filing joint returns, plus $300 per child. The amounts phased out at higher incomes –$75,000 for individuals, $150,000 for joint filers.
Based on your 2007 tax return, you might have [...]

IRS discusses final 403(b) regs on YouTube!

The effective date of the IRS’s final 403(b) regs is rapidly approaching (generally, 1/1/09). Thanks to the National Association of Government Defined Contribution Administrators, Inc. (NAGDCA) for posting (and thanks to Benefitslink.com for reporting) this very informative video discussion with one of the architects of the 403(b) regs, the IRS’s Bob Architect. Here’s the first [...]