Pre-tax dollars and After-tax dollars. Which is better?

Ultimately, there are two kinds of dollars in this world.
Pre-tax dollars, and after-tax dollars.
Pre-tax dollars are great. And after-tax dollars aren’t bad. But they’re not as good as pre-tax  dollars.
In fact, you lose every time you spend after-tax dollars . . . that could have been pre-tax dollars. (Huh? What?…)
Let’s take a step back to explain what we’re talking about here.
Pre-tax dollars are the ones you earn after adjustments and deductions and tax credits (and blah, blah, blah) …but before they get cut by whatever your individual income tax rate is.
After-tax dollars are what’s left after the IRS takes their share.
So let me repeat the bottom line part… the part where you win or lose:
You lose . . . every time you spend after-tax dollars . . . That could have been pre-tax dollars.
In my tax coaching service, I spend a lot of our time coaching clients on how to turn after-tax dollars into pre-tax dollars. And we use three primary strategies.
  • First, earn as much nontaxable income as possible.
  • Second, make the most of adjustments to income, deductions, and credits. There’s really no magic to it, other than knowing what’s available.
  • Finally, shift income to later tax years and lower-bracket taxpayers. This includes making the most of tax-deferred retirement plans and shifting income to lower-bracket children, grandchildren and other family members.
Tax coaching is about giving you a plan for minimizing your taxes. What should you do?  When should you do it? How should you do it?
We start with an initial interview where we analyze your current situation. We “diagnose” your tax problems the way your doctor would diagnose a medical problem.
Then we prepare a written tax plan that addresses you family, home, and job, your business, and your investments.
We’ll even review your previous years’ returns to see if we can find savings you overlooked.
If you’re looking for pro-active tax advice, or you’re open to information or options regarding taxes you shouldn’t have to be paying, click here to schedule a complimentary phone consult or in-person meeting to learn more.