The Fiscal Cliff May Be Just Starting For Some Of Us

If you thought the “Fiscal Cliff” drama ended on Jan. 1, you could be in for a rude awakening. In fact, you could be in for a “Perfect Storm” – a combination of the 2010 Affordable Care Act and new tax changes coming this year.

As part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), several changes in the income-tax structure are now taking effect.

The new “fiscal cliff” tax structure extended the previous tax cuts to most married couples who bring in less than $450,000 taxable income. However, there’s a cloud to this particular silver lining - a new Medicare surtax that will affect couples making more than $250,000. This new tax is 3.8% on whichever is less…net investment income or adjusted gross income.

Net investment income generally means income-streams such as rent, dividends, interest and income from passive business activities (after expenses). If you’re a married couple and your earned income (salary or self-employment) is over $250,000, you’ll be hit by another tax - a new .9% Medicare tax. If you’re an employee, your company’s now required to withhold this .9% once you’ve passed the $200,000 mark.

Pretty much every American has questions about the new tax structure, and the Affordable Care Act. But if you’re a Boomer or senior, you probably have even more questions….because the ACA may come into play for you before it does for the rest of the population. I get phone calls – and visits – virtually every day from clients confused about the financial impact of the ACA and the new tax changes, as well as what the ACA provides and what it doesn’t.

You need an Elder Law attorney to sort things out. And that’s exactly who we are.

At The Law Offices of Alice Reiter Feld & Associates, we’ve been answering questions like these for the past 33 years. We’ve helped thousands of South Florida families find answers. And we’ve helped them prepare for these changes – and future ones, as well – with comprehensive estate planning, wills, trusts, powers of attorney, long-term care planning, asset-protection plans, and assistance with Medicaid and the VA.

If you’ve got questions, we’ve got answers. And we’re just a phone call away.