Time Flies!!!

It is hard to believe it is already June!

We are reaching out with a few reminders as you enjoy your summer.

As a reminder for those making quarterly estimated payments, your Q2 payment is due no later than June 15, 2026. And yes, that date is before the actual end of the quarter but nobody every said the IRS was logical...

Links to pay on-line are below.

Now is a good time to schedule a mid year review. These are especially useful for business owners in order to compare your mid-year results to what was assumed in your quarterly estimated payments.

Even for other filers, if you have had significant changes from 2025 (sold a home, changes in investment income, change in marital status, etc.) a mid year review can help plan now for what those changes may do to your 2026 taxes.

If interested, reach out to our office and we will set up mid-year reviews in the coming months.

Big Beautiful Bill

changes to charitable contributions

As a reminder, there are a few changes from the big beautiful bill that impact charitable contributions starting in 2026

If you take the standard deduction

• You are eligible for an additional deduction of up to $2,000 for joint filers ($1,000 for all others) for the value of cash contributions made (non-cash contributions are not eligible for this added deduction).

If you take itemized deductions

• You must exceed a threshold of .5% of AGI before charitable contributions count toward itemized deductions.
• As a result of this change, you might consider a strategy of alternating years for contributions by bundling them in one year (to exceed the .5% threshold) and then skipping the next year.

Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD's)

For those over 70 1/2 years old, a QCD can be a very efficient tax strategy to charitable giving. A QCD is when you donate directly from your eligible retirement account (IRA, SEP or SIMPLE plan) to qualified charities. This has the following benefits

• The QCD reduces your taxable income
• The QCD avoids any limitations on charitable contributions within the standard/itemized deductions
• For those taking RMD's, the QCD also counts toward satisfying your RMD for the year

Donate appreciated stocks

If you have held stocks for over one year that have large unrealized capital gains (the stocks have appreciated in value), if you donate these to a qualified charity you get two tax benefits

• You avoid paying capital gains on the appreciated stocks
• You get a charitable deduction worth the fair market value of the stocks at the time of the donation (not the lower value you originally paid for them)

Donor Advised Funds (DAF)

If you had a one-time event in 2026 that will put you into a higher tax bracket and want to be charitable with those proceeds but are not sure which charities to donate to, a DAF might be an option for you. A DAF allows you to set-aside the funds now in order to take advantage of the charitable contribution deduction in 2026 (when your tax rates are high) and then distribute the funds to your favorite charities in future years when you decide which eligible charity should receive them.