How Does a Wall Street Bail-Out Bill Affect Main Street?
Large and small companies across the globe rely on access to money markets to finance their daily operations, including inventories, and payrolls. Lenders routinely make loans to these companies, and to each other, to make it all happen. When lenders have confidence in these markets, and investors have confidence in this system, we have a functional marketplace that, for the most part, is sustained by competition. When confidence in this system is shattered, however, like it has been recently, credit becomes expensive and scarce to all parties, and small and large companies alike can choke to death waiting for the short-term capital it needs to fund its long-term success. This directly affects you and your family. It means a slower economy. It means more lay-offs and less new job creation, which often means lower home values. It also fuels volatility in the financial markets that, as we've seen, can wreak havoc on your savings, retirement, and other investment accounts.
It is estimated that some $70 trillion in total global investment capital is available, which would be great news if our financial systems were functioning with confidence - and that's what the Rescue Bill is basically about. Like it or not, the US Government has been given unprecedented power to invest $700 billion in our financial systems in two main ways. First, as much as $250 billion to purchase stock in US banks, providing the banks with badly needed money. Second, through the purchase of certain assets to help stimulate more liquidity in the credit market. Another initiative will provide government guarantees for the short-term loans banks make to each other to run their daily operations. More importantly, these actions are in concert with similar practices by other governments and central banks.
None of these actions will solve our problems completely or save us from recession, but here's the good news. It is a positive step in the direction of stabilizing the markets. The other good news is that several other measures were tacked on the bill to help build your confidence in the markets. Unfortunately, there just isn't enough space in this short newsletter to cover them all. We will briefly highlight a couple of them, but our best, most practical financial advice is to create your own plan for the future with your financial professionals. Don't make any rash decisions without speaking to the experts you trust to handle your investments. If you need help finding a financial professional you can trust, we'll gladly provide a referral. Just give us a call. We'll review your mortgage and create a plan that fits your individual financial goals and needs.
Changes in FDIC Limits
As part of the Rescue Bill, Congress also increased FDIC deposit insurance from $100,000 to $250,000 for all of an individual's accounts at a single institution. For one year, joint accounts, retirement accounts, and trust accounts are insured separately. This means a married couple can insure up to $1 million at a single bank, by making a few simple adjustments. Changes also affect revocable trusts, allowing the same amount of insurance for beneficiaries, such as your children. That means, a married couple with three kids could create enough qualifying individual and joint accounts to protect up to $1.5 million. It's important to note that the FDIC has never failed to pay a single dime of insured money when banks have failed, so you won't have to make a run on the bank or hide your money in your mattress anymore. Small businesses will also benefit from new increases, as well as the confidence that comes with this kind of insurance...
New and Extended Tax Incentives
Within the 451 page Rescue Bill are nearly 100 tax code changes that directly affect individuals and business owners, including education deductions, sales tax, energy credits, and even new disaster aid. Other tax breaks, which were due to expire, were extended, including property tax deductions, the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act, and the shield for the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The property tax provision, set to expire in 2008, has been extended to 2009, and allows up to $500 ($1000 for joint filers) in deductions in addition to the standard property tax deduction - even if you don't itemize! The Mortgage Debt Forgiveness Act, extended to 2012, was designed to protect those who already lost their homes due to foreclosures from facing an additional tax penalty for qualifying cancelled or "forgiven" debt of up to $2 million. And, finally, the Rescue Bill also saves about 23 million Americans from the dreaded AMT, a kind of extra tax that some people have to pay on top of their regular income tax created by the Tax Reform Act of 1969.
These are just a few of the potential tax benefits created or extended by the Rescue Bill. As always, there are specific qualifying standards, and so it is essential to speak with a qualified tax professional about these and other tax benefits that could help you lower your tax bill and increase your confidence in today's tumultuous financial markets.
Kevin Tinsley, Tacoma's #1 Mortgage Expert - Your Home Loan Choice
