Whether you are having a good year, rebounding from recent losses, or still struggling to get off the ground, you may be able to save a bundle on your taxes if you make the right moves before the end of the year.
1. Defer your income
Income is taxed in the year it is received – but why pay tax today if you can pay it tomorrow instead?
It's tough for employees to postpone wage and salary income, but you may be able to defer a year-end bonus into next year – as long as it is standard practice in your company to pay year-end bonuses the following year.
If you are self-employed or do freelance or consulting work, you have more leeway. Delaying billings until late December, for example, can ensure that you won't receive payment until the next year.
Whether you are employed or self-employed, you can also defer income by taking capital gains in 2015 instead of in 2014.
Of course, it only makes sense to defer income if you think you will be in the same or a lower tax bracket next year. You don't want to be hit with a bigger tax bill next year if additional income could push you into a higher tax bracket. If that's likely, you may want to accelerate income into 2014 so you can pay tax on it in a lower bracket sooner, rather than in a higher bracket later.
2. Take some last-minute tax deductions
Just as you may want to defer income into next year, you may want to lower your tax bill by accelerating deductions this year.
For example, contributing to charity is a great way to get a deduction. And you control the timing. You can supercharge the tax benefits of your generosity by donating appreciated stock or property rather than cash. Better yet, as long as you've owned the asset for more than one year, you get a double tax benefit from the donation: You can deduct the property’s market value on the date of the gift and you avoid paying capital gains tax on the built-up appreciation.
You must have a receipt to back up any contribution, regardless of the amount. (The old rule that you only had to have a receipt to back up contributions of $250 or more is long gone.)
Other expenses you can accelerate include an estimated state income tax bill due January 15, a property tax bill due early next year, or a doctor’s or hospital bill. (But speeding up deductions could be a blunder if you're subject to the alternative minimum tax, as discussed below.)
Make sure you'll be itemizing for 2014 rather than claiming the standard tax deduction. Unless the total of your qualifying expenses exceeds $6,200 if you are single, or $12,400 if you're married filing a joint return, itemizing would be a mistake.
If you're on the itemize-or-not borderline, your year-end strategy should focus on bunching. This is the practice of timing expenses to produce lean and fat years. In one year, you cram in as many deductible expenses as possible, using the tactics outlined above. The goal is to surpass the standard-deduction amount and claim a larger write-off.
In alternating years, you skimp on deductible expenses to hold them below the standard deduction amount because you get credit for the full standard deduction regardless of how much you actually spend. In the lean years, year-end planning stresses pushing as many deductible expenses as possible into the following year when they'll have more value.
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