What are your views on taxes?

Income tax. Wealth tax would be fairer, but not simpler. Flat tax is useless because it doesn't tax unrealized gains and we already have that mess.

Sales tax is highly regressive, tax on food is unconscionable, fuel tax - again, highly regressive.

Property tax in lieu of state income tax, again regressive.

School tax - it's the future so pay up! It's obvious we are all worse off if/when stupids are running the show.

Capital gains tax - should be the same as ordinary income, but owners of capital are the funders of politics(for the most part) so they are catered to at every turn and labor pays instead.
 

againstthegrain said:
Capital gains tax - should be the same as ordinary income, but owners of capital are the funders of politics(for the most part) so they are catered to at every turn and labor pays instead. short term capital gains,
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Short term capital gains are taxed as ordinary income.
 
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Who_so_ever said:
You assume a lot, don't you?
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well you may not have children in public schools but I m sure Twostep was right about the other things - for starters, here yo u are using the internet - which needs a connection and you surely have travelled on roads and I'm sure you'do expect ambulances and fire fighters and police to attend emergencies.
 

Twostep said:
To be honest US tax rates including sales taxes are not as bad as in most parts of Europe. I do not remember Australia.
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Australia has GST ( goods, services tax) which is similar to UK's VAT - and is automatically included in price of goods and services.

Basic foods are exempt though and some other things, I cannot recall exactly what.

Our overall income tax rate is probably higher - but that is because it pays for things like universal health care that US does not have.
 
January said:
well you may not have children in public schools but I m sure Twostep was right about the other things - for starters, here yo u are using the internet - which needs a connection and you surely have travelled on roads and I'm sure you'do expect ambulances and fire fighters and police to attend emergencies.
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You sure?
 
Well, the Spousal Equivalent received a letter last week from the IRS saying he owed more money because he "incorrectly" used the over 65 deduction and they wanted the money by May.

Uh, he's 77. And he did check the "over 65" box on his tax return.

So, he called the IRS. After holding for 45 minutes, he was told he had called the wrong department. So they transferred him to another number and, of course, disconnected him.

So, it was another 40 minutes of sitting on hold until he was helped by a harried but very nice lady who verified that, yes, the letter DID come from them but that she has no idea why, as his return was correct and the system showed him as fully paid up.

She hinted that he wasn't the only one who incorrectly got that letter. Wink, wink, nod, nod.
 
againstthegrain said:
Income tax. Wealth tax would be fairer, but not simpler. Flat tax is useless because it doesn't tax unrealized gains and we already have that mess.

Sales tax is highly regressive, tax on food is unconscionable, fuel tax - again, highly regressive.

Property tax in lieu of state income tax, again regressive.

School tax - it's the future so pay up! It's obvious we are all worse off if/when stupids are running the show.

Capital gains tax - should be the same as ordinary income, but owners of capital are the funders of politics(for the most part) so they are catered to at every turn and labor pays instead.
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It is the future? I have seen a lot of 17-30 year olds taking and having no intention of giving. Btw there is a thread on an expat forum where a Aussie is working out how the partner can leave 100k student loans behind with no danger of it ever being collected on.that
 
Who_so_ever said:
You sure?
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Well, yes I am sure you are using the internet and I am sure that needs a connection and therefore infrastructure to enable that.

And are you really telling us you wouldn't call an ambulance or police or fire fighters in an emergency or you have never travelled on a road?
 
It concerns me that we never really own our homes. If the time comes when we can’t afford to pay whatever ‘they’ decide we should pay as taxes on them every year then ‘they’ take them away from us. I don’t like anyone having that much control over my life. I also don’t like that taxes on property can be raised anytime they want to and we really can’t do a darned thing about it except pay it or lose it.

Kind of like legal stealing, isn’t it?
 
Mike said:
Taxes are a necessary fact of life, they are needed to allow the
Government to keep things repaired, this is the idea, but it seems
that they are first used to give themselves, salary increases, these
days.

When I was still working, for many years I was taxed at 40%, this
is a large figure, but I didn't mind because at the time I was well
paid.

Today I live off my pension, now I dislike taxes, after getting many
thousands of ££££££, when I could afford it, they are now taking
20% off the pension, this is a smaller number, but taken from a
smaller gross, it is bigger than desired, plus they don't seem to be
looking after us, the way they are supposed to.

Mike.
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Like you I was paying 40% tax and I resented that. 40% is not taxation - it's confiscation. I was also miffed when we got a bonus or an award because this was taxable, but didn't count towards pension.
Now, I'm in the same boat, living off my pensions and having 20% stolen by the government.
The harder you work, the more you earn, the less you get back.
 
January said:
Well, yes I am sure you are using the internet and I am sure that needs a connection and therefore infrastructure to enable that.

And are you really telling us you wouldn't call an ambulance or police or fire fighters in an emergency or you have never travelled on a road?
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I didn't tell you anything. Just questioned if you were sure. ;)
 
SeniorSally said:
It concerns me that we never really own our homes. If the time comes when we can’t afford to pay whatever ‘they’ decide we should pay as taxes on them every year then ‘they’ take them away from us. I don’t like anyone having that much control over my life. I also don’t like that taxes on property can be raised anytime they want to and we really can’t do a darned thing about it except pay it or lose it.

Kind of like legal stealing, isn’t it?
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You may want to do some research on real estate taxes and tax foreclosures.
 
Capt Lightning said:
Like you I was paying 40% tax and I resented that. 40% is not taxation - it's confiscation. I was also miffed when we got a bonus or an award because this was taxable, but didn't count towards pension.
Now, I'm in the same boat, living off my pensions and having 20% stolen by the government.
The harder you work, the more you earn, the less you get back.
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It is kind of painful to see a hefty portion of your labors go by the wayside and others get handouts. But it beats receiving those handouts at least for me.
 
Just for clarification, in the UK taxation is at different rates.

Personal AllowanceUp to £12,5700%
Basic rate£12,571 to £50,27020%
Higher rate£50,271 to £125,14040%
Additional rateover £125,14045%

If you are in the lower bands, you pay tax monthly. This is called Pay as you earn, or PAYE. it is a reasonable estimate of tax due, and the actual amount is calculated at F.Y.E. For higher rate earners you have to submit an annual tax return even if you have paid monthly. The problem here is that the tax free allowance hasn't risen, but pensions and earnings have. Therefore more people are having to pay more tax.
 
Real estate tax dodge - aka "1031 exchange", another huge benefit to the owners of capital.

There was a pathetic and shallow defense of the status quo/long term capital gains tax rate above, which is probably why it's been edited/deleted by the author.
 
The 1031 exchange is used to defer tax…not eliminate it. In rental properties that have been depreciated the tax includes depreciation recapture…in other words you pay it all back. It can be an eye watering amount.
 
Capt Lightning said:
Just for clarification, in the UK taxation is at different rates.

Personal AllowanceUp to £12,5700%
Basic rate£12,571 to £50,27020%
Higher rate£50,271 to £125,14040%
Additional rateover £125,14045%

If you are in the lower bands, you pay tax monthly. This is called Pay as you earn, or PAYE. it is a reasonable estimate of tax due, and the actual amount is calculated at F.Y.E. For higher rate earners you have to submit an annual tax return even if you have paid monthly. The problem here is that the tax free allowance hasn't risen, but pensions and earnings have. Therefore more people are having to pay more tax.
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That would be substantially more than I’m required to pay but it’s hard to know the value without an understanding of the services and benefits that the government provides in return.
 
Muskrat said:
The 1031 exchange is used to defer tax…not eliminate it. In rental properties that have been depreciated the tax includes depreciation recapture…in other words you pay it all back. It can be an eye watering amount.
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"One of the most significant benefits of 1031 exchanges is their potential for estate planning. When you die, your heirs inherit your property at its stepped-up market value, and they won’t have to pay the capital gains tax you deferred. Essentially, a 1031 exchange can pass the tax liability onto the heirs."

CG taxes on RE are potentially NEVER paid during the owners lifetime and if heirs sell it's at stepped-up value avoiding paying the "full" amount, anyway.
 
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I wish we had a flat tax. I am so tired of having to save receipts, etc. I file quarterly, which is a pain because of always having to save receipts and download bank statements. If we had a flat tax, I think the quarterly payments would end.
 
SS benefit payments that came from our taxes ought never be taxed a second time. And the top threshold for paying in taxes for those not yet receiving SS benefit payments ought be much much HIGHER than the top rate of benefits that is now over $40k annually. Especially since they have not changed that with rising inflation and higher COLA. Instead the simple solution for fixing the increasing deficit in funds ought be raising the top SS tax for those paying in. Wealthy people are killing the rest of us given the top tax level is a mere $176,000, especially for those making millions. They are NOT the people in trouble and are smiling at the rest of us like fools.

Why? Because the wealthy control their puppet politicians and news media, while the average citizens with IQ's of 90 to 100 can't understand what that means even when others explain it to them.

I have not submitted any IRS or state taxes since I retired in 2017 as my way of protesting while if and when the IRS comes after me, it will only be chump change from modest interest like with CDs.
 

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