Hurricanes, wildfires, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, winter storms, and other events often cause widespread damage to homes and other types of property. If you’ve suffered property loss as the result of a natural or man-made disaster in 2017, you may be able to claim a casualty loss deduction on your federal income tax return.
What is a casualty loss?
A casualty is the destruction, damage, or loss of property caused by an unusual, sudden, or unexpected event. Casualty losses may result from natural disasters or from other events such as fires, accidents, thefts, or vandalism. You probably don’t have a deductible casualty loss, however, if your property is damaged as the result of gradual deterioration (e.g., a long-term termite infestation).
How do you calculate the amount of your loss?
To calculate a casualty loss on personal-use property, like your home, that’s been damaged or destroyed, you first need two important pieces of data:
- The decrease in the fair market value (FMV) of the property; that’s the difference between the FMV of the property immediately before and after the casualty
- Your adjusted basis in the property before the casualty; your adjusted basis is usually your cost if you bought the property (different rules apply if you inherited the property or received it as a gift), increased for things like permanent improvements and decreased for items such as depreciation
Starting with the lower of the two amounts above, subtract any insurance or other reimbursement that you have received or that you expect to receive. The result is generally the amount of your loss. If you receive insurance payments or other reimbursement that is more than your adjusted basis in the destroyed or damaged property, you may actually have a gain. There are special rules for reporting such gain, postponing the gain, excluding gain on a main home, and purchasing replacement property.
After you determine your casualty loss on personal-use property, you have to reduce the loss by $100. The $100 reduction applies per casualty, not per individual item of property. Two or more events that are closely related may be considered a single casualty. For example, wind and flood damage from the same storm would typically be considered a single casualty event, subject to only one $100 reduction. If both your home and automobile were damaged by the storm, the damage is also considered part of a single casualty event — you do not have to subtract $100 for each piece of property.
You must also reduce the total of all your casualty and theft losses on personal property by 10% of your adjusted gross income (AGI) after each loss is reduced by the $100 rule, above.
Keep in mind that special rules apply for those affected by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria. The Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2017 increased the threshold for claiming a casualty loss deduction to $500, waived the requirement that the loss is deductible only to the extent it exceeds 10% of AGI, and allowed a deduction even for those who do not itemize.
Also note that the rules for calculating loss can be different for business property or property that’s used to produce income, such as rental property.
When can you deduct a casualty loss?
Generally, you report and deduct the loss in the year in which the casualty occurred. Special rules, however, apply for casualty losses resulting from an event that’s declared a federal disaster area by the president.
If you have a casualty loss from a federally declared disaster area, you can choose to report and deduct the loss in the tax year in which the loss occurred, or in the tax year immediately preceding the tax year in which the disaster happened. If you elect to report in the preceding year, the loss is treated as if it occurred in the preceding tax year. Reporting the loss in the preceding year may reduce the tax for that year, producing a refund. You generally have to make a decision to report the loss in the preceding year by the federal income tax return due date (without any extension) for the year in which the disaster actually occurred.
Casualty losses are reported on IRS Form 4684, Casualties and Thefts. Any losses relating to personal-use property are carried over to Form 1040, Schedule A, Itemized Deductions.
Where can you get more information?
The rules relating to casualty losses can be complicated. Additional information can be found in the instructions to Form 4684 and in IRS Publication 547, Casualties, Disasters, and Thefts. If you have suffered a casualty loss, though, you should consider discussing your individual circumstances with a tax professional.
Prepared by Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2018
Money is power. A fool and his money are soon parted. A penny saved is a penny earned. Money is the root of all evil.
Do any of these expressions ring true for you?
As it turns out, the money beliefs our families espoused while we were growing up may have a profound effect on how we behave financially today — and may even influence our financial success.
Beliefs drive behaviors
In 2011, The Journal of Financial Therapy published a study by financial psychologist Brad Klontz et al., that gauged the reactions of 422 individuals to 72 money-related statements.1 Examples of such statements include:
- There is virtue in living with less money
- Things will get better if I have more money
- Poor people are lazy
- It is not polite to talk about money
Based on the findings, Klontz was able to identify four “money belief patterns,” also known as “money scripts,” that influence how people view money. Klontz has described these scripts as “typically unconscious, trans-generational beliefs about money” that are “developed in childhood and drive adult financial behaviors.”2 The four categories are:
1. Money avoidance: People who fall into this category believe that money is bad and is often a source of anxiety or disgust. This may result in a hostile attitude toward the wealthy. Paradoxically, these people might also feel that all their problems would be solved if they only had more money. For this reason, they may unconsciously sabotage their own financial efforts while working extra hours just to make ends meet.
2. Money worship: Money worshippers believe that money is the route to true happiness, and one can never have enough. They feel that they will never be able to afford everything they want. These people may shop compulsively, hoard their belongings, and put work ahead of relationships in the ongoing quest for wealth.
3. Money status: Similar to money worshippers, these people equate net worth with self-worth, believing that money is the key to both happiness and power. They may live lavishly in an attempt to keep up with or even beat the Joneses, incurring heavy debt in the process. They are also more likely than those in other categories to be compulsive gamblers or to lie to their spouses about money.
4. Money vigilance: Money vigilants are cautious and sometimes overly anxious about money, but they also live within their means, pay off their credit cards every month, and save for the future. However, they risk carrying a level of anxiety so high that they cannot enjoy the fruits of their labor or ever feel a sense of financial security.
Awareness is the first step
According to Klontz’s research, the first three money scripts typically lead to destructive financial behaviors, while the fourth is the one to which most people would want to aspire. If you believe you may fit in one of the self-limiting money script categories, consider how experiences in your childhood or the beliefs of your parents or grandparents may have influenced this thinking. Then do some reality-checking about the positive ways to build and manage wealth. As in other areas of behavioral finance and psychology in general, awareness is often the first step toward addressing the problem.
For long-term investment goals such as retirement, time can be one of your biggest advantages. That’s because time allows your investment dollars to do some of the hard work for you through a mathematical principle known as compounding.
The snowball effect
The premise behind compounding is fairly simple. You invest to earn money, and if those returns are then reinvested, that money can also earn returns.
For example, say you invest $1,000 and earn an annual return of 7% — which, of course, cannot be guaranteed. In year one, you’d earn $70 and your account would be worth $1,070. In year two, that $1,070 would earn $74.90, which would bring the total value of your account to $1,144.90. In year three, your account would earn $80.14, bringing the total to $1,225.04 — and so on. Over time, if your account continues to grow in this manner, the process can begin to snowball and potentially add up.
Time and money
Now consider how compounding works over long time periods using dollar-cost averaging (investing equal amounts at regular intervals), a strategy many people use to save for retirement.1 Let’s say you contribute $120 every two weeks. Assuming you earn a 7% rate of return each year, your results would look like this:
| Time period | Amount invested | Total accumulated |
|---|---|---|
| 10 years | $31,200 | $45,100 |
| 20 years | $62,400 | $135,835 |
| 30 years | $93,600 | $318,381 |
After 10 years, your investment would have earned almost $14,000; after 20 years, your money would have more than doubled; and after 30 years, your account would be worth more than three times what you invested.2 That’s the power of compounding at work. The longer you invest and allow the money to grow, the more powerful compounding can become.
The cost of waiting
Now consider how much it might cost you to delay your investing plan. Let’s say you set a goal of accumulating $500,000 before you retire. The following scenarios examine how much you would have to invest on a monthly basis, assuming you start with no money and earn a 7% annual rate of return (compounded monthly).
| Time frame to retirement | 40 years | 35 years | 30 years | 25 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Retirement accumulation goal | $500,000 | $500,000 | $500,000 | $500,000 |
| Annual rate of return | 7% | 7% | 7% | 7% |
| Monthly contribution needed | $190 | $278 | $410 | $617 |
So the less time you have to pursue your goal, the more you will likely have to invest out of pocket. The moral of the story? Don’t put off saving for the future. Give your investment dollars as much time as possible to do the hard work for you.
Every year, the Internal Revenue Service announces cost-of-living adjustments that affect contribution limits for retirement plans, thresholds for deductions and credits, and standard deduction and personal exemption amounts. Here are a few of the key adjustments for 2018.*
Employer retirement plans
- Employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), and most 457 plans can defer up to $18,500 in compensation in 2018 (up from $18,000 in 2017); employees age 50 and older can defer up to an additional $6,000 in 2018 (the same as in 2017).
- Employees participating in a SIMPLE retirement plan can defer up to $12,500 in 2018 (the same as in 2017), and employees age 50 and older can defer up to an additional $3,000 in 2018 (the same as in 2017).
IRAs
The limit on annual contributions to an IRA remains unchanged at $5,500 in 2018, with individuals age 50 and older able to contribute an additional $1,000. For individuals who are covered by a workplace retirement plan, the deduction for contributions to a traditional IRA is phased out for the following modified adjusted gross income (AGI) ranges:
| 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|
| Single/head of household (HOH) | $62,000 – $72,000 | $63,000 – $73,000 |
| Married filing jointly (MFJ) | $99,000 – $119,000 | $101,000 – $121,000 |
| Married filing separately (MFS) | $0 – $10,000 | $0 – $10,000 |
The 2018 phase out range is $189,000 – $199,000 (up from $186,000 – $196,000 in 2017) when the individual making the IRA contribution is not covered by a workplace retirement plan but is filing jointly with a spouse who is covered.
The modified AGI phase out ranges for individuals to make contributions to a Roth IRA are:
| 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|
| Single/HOH | $118,000 – $133,000 | $120,000 – $135,000 |
| MFJ | $186,000 – $196,000 | $189,000 – $199,000 |
| MFS | $0 – $10,000 | $0 – $10,000 |
Estate and gift tax
- The annual gift tax exclusion for 2018 is $15,000, up from $14,000 in 2017.
- The gift and estate tax basic exclusion amount for 2018 is $11,200,000, up from $5,490,000 in 2017.
Personal exemption
There is no personal exemption amount for 2018; it was $4,050 in 2017. For 2018, there is no phase out of personal exemptions or overall limit on itemized deductions once AGI exceeds certain thresholds.
For 2017, personal exemptions were phased out and itemized deductions were limited once AGI exceeded $261,500 (single), $287,650 (HOH), $313,800 (MFJ), or $156,900 (MFS).
Standard deduction
| 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|
| Single | $6,350 | $12,000 |
| HOH | $9,350 | $18,000 |
| MFJ | $12,700 | $24,000 |
| MFS | $6,350 | $12,000 |
The additional standard deduction amount for the blind or aged (age 65 or older) in 2018 is $1,600 (up from $1,550 in 2017) for single/HOH or $1,300 (up from $1,250 in 2017) for all other filing statuses. Special rules apply if you can be claimed as a dependent by another taxpayer.
Alternative minimum tax (AMT)
| 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum AMT exemption amount | ||
| Single/HOH | $54,300 | $70,300 |
| MFJ | $84,500 | $109,400 |
| MFS | $42,250 | $54,700 |
| Exemption phase out threshold | ||
| Single/HOH | $120,700 | $500,000 |
| MFJ | $160,900 | $1,000,000 |
| MFS | $80,450 | $500,000 |
| 26% rate on AMTI* up to this amount, 28% rate on AMTI above this amount | ||
| MFS | $93,900 | $95,750 |
| All others | $187,800 | $191,500 |
| *Alternative minimum taxable income | ||
Prepared by Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2018
Many market shocks are short-lived once investors conclude the event is unlikely to cause lasting economic damage. Still, major market downturns such as the 2000 dot-com bust and the 2008-09 credit crisis are powerful reminders that we cannot control or predict exactly how, where, or when precarious situations will arise.
Market risk refers to the possibility that an investment will lose value because of a broad decline in the financial markets, which can be the result of economic or sociopolitical factors. Investors who are willing to accept more investment risk may benefit from higher returns in the good times, but they also get hit harder during the bad times. A more conservative portfolio generally means there are fewer highs, but also fewer lows.
Your portfolio’s risk profile should reflect your ability to endure periods of market volatility, both financially and emotionally. Here are some questions that may help you evaluate your personal relationship with risk.
How much risk can you afford?
Your capacity for risk generally depends on your current financial position (income, assets, and expenses) as well as your age, health, future earning potential, and time horizon. Your time horizon is the length of time before you expect to tap your investment assets for specific financial goals. The more time you have to keep the money invested, the more likely it is that you can ride out the volatility associated with riskier investments. An aggressive risk profile may be appropriate if you’re investing for a retirement that is many years away. However, investing for a teenager’s upcoming college education may call for a conservative approach.
How much risk may be needed to meet your goals?
lf you know how much money you have to invest and can estimate how much you will need in the future, then it’s possible to calculate a “required return” (and a corresponding level of risk) for your investments. Older retirees who have sufficient income and assets to cover expenses for the rest of their lives may not need to expose their savings to risk. On the other hand, some risk-averse individuals may need to invest more aggressively to accumulate enough money for retirement and offset another risk: that inflation could erode the purchasing power of their assets over the long term.
How much risk are you comfortable taking?
Some people seem to be born risk-takers, whereas others are cautious by nature, but an investor’s true psychological risk tolerance can be difficult to assess. Some people who describe their personality a certain way on a questionnaire may act differently when they are tested by real events.
Moreover, an investor’s attitude toward risk can change over time, with experience and age. New investors may be more fearful of potential losses. Investors who have experienced the cyclical and ever-changing nature of the economy and investment performance may be more comfortable with short-term market swings.
Brace yourself
Market declines are an inevitable part of investing, but abandoning a sound investment strategy in the heat of the moment could be detrimental to your portfolio’s long-term performance. One thing you can do to strengthen your mindset is to anticipate scenarios in which the value of your investments were to fall by 20% to 40%. If you become overly anxious about the possibility of such a loss, it might be helpful to reduce the level of risk in your portfolio. Otherwise, having a plan in place could help you manage your emotions when turbulent times arrive.
All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal, and there is no guarantee that any investment strategy will be successful.
Prepared by Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc. Copyright 2018