Josh Scandlen Podcast

Ohio doesn't tax Social Security benefits. And they provide a tax credit of up to $250 against your taxes if your adjusted gross income is below $100k. Remember a credit is a simple dollar for dollar reduction in taxes. So credits are a good thing. Ohio's sales tax puts them in the top 20 of the country.  While not oppressive the sales cost is over 7%.  The property tax is among the highest in the nation.  But given  the value of homes in Ohio is lower than the national average the actual dollar amount Ohioans pay in property tax is lower than half of the US states.  By and large, Ohio falls smack dab in the middle of overall tax burden for retirees.   --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

Oklahoma is very favorable tax-wise for retirees.  For some reason Kiplinger's has the Sooner state as not very tax friendly. I don't get it.  Oklahoma doesn't tax Social Security first of all. On top of that, Oklahoma allows a $10k exemption of income, per person, from various retirement accounts. And Military retirement recipients can exclude 75% of their benefits from taxes too.  So, if you have large Social Security, military pension and some retirement income, you won't pay much in terms of income tax. Sales tax is quite high in Oklahoma, ranked #6 highest in the nation when you include both state and locality sales tax.  However, property taxes are among the lowest in the nation. In fact, when you factor the actual dollars that the state collects in property tax, Oklahoma is the second lowest property tax in the country.  All in all, lots of income exemptions, incredibly low property tax can offset the high sales tax to make Oklahoma quite favorable for retirees.  ---

North Dakota is not a "tax free" state. It also taxes some Social Security benefits as well as all IRA, 401k etc distributions plus pension income.  Yet, the amount of income tax you'll pay to the state is minimal because the brackets are very low.  If you're married you'll pay all of 1.1% on Gross Income up to $90k. Of that amount, that which is from Social Security will be taxed even more favorably, similar to how the Feds tax it.  So essentially, you're going to pay a couple hundred bucks in income taxes in North Dakota unless you're making huge income.  Sales tax is middling.  When state and local sales tax is accounted for, North Dakota is smack in the middle of the nation for taxable burden.  Property tax is in the middle of all states too, at 1%. Given the median value of homes in North Dakota is $155k, the actual dollar amount you pay in tax will be on the lower end.  All in all, you'll pay some tax in retirement to live in North Dakota, but it won't be oppressi

Oregon has NO sales tax!  Let's state that again, Oregon has NO SALES TAX!  That's huge my friends.  Now, income tax is a whole different story though.  But not having a sales tax is a big deal. Don't minimize that.  While income tax rates are very high, 9% on Taxable Income over $17k for Married Filing Jointly, Oregon does not tax Social Security income.  Thus to reduce your taxable income, you really need to maximize your Social Security benefits.  THere is a retirement pension exclusion but you really need to have little income to qualify. I've attached the link below. Look at page 101. Property taxes are about the norm in the US and while there is a small homestead exemption, most won't qualify.  Now Oregon does have an estate tax which is rather restrictive too. I'll get into that on future videos.  So, all in all, moderate property tax, NO sales tax, and while a high income tax but one that can be addressed with proper planning, Oregon is actually quite

North Carolina has a flat tax of 5.49% and basically everything is subject to taxation, except for Social Security.   If you are retiring to North Carolina you should be doing some proactive tax planning indeed. Roth IRAs and Social Security maximization strategies should be your first order to business. State and local sales tax puts North Carolina smack dab in the middle of the rest of the nation. Not low, but not high either.  Groceries are not taxed by the state but can be by the localities.  Property taxes are pretty low. Only the 30th highest property tax in terms of percentage but because median house value is pretty low the actual dollar amount citizens pay in property tax put the state in the top 10 for lowest burden.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

New Mexico is one of the few states where you can easily pay more in tax to the state than the Feds.  In fact, it's not even close. New Mexico taxes ALL retirement income, to include Social Security.  They do offer a small exemption of $8,000 if you meet certain LOW income thresholds.  So, for simplicity, if you are planning on retiring to New Mexico, just assume ALL of your income will be taxed.  The rates aren't low, either.  Gross income of $50k puts you in the 4.9% bracket.  New Mexico also has the 15th highest sales tax in the nation when factoring in state and localities.  But property taxes are among the lowest in the nation.   So, high income tax, moderately high sales tax, but low property tax.  I like the low property tax.  That's for sure.  Property tax planning can minimize to some degree your income tax too.   --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

In New York, if the bulk of your income comes from Social Security, pensions and IRA(401k etc.) distributions, your income tax will not be huge.  New York does not tax Social Security or public pensions, to include military pensions.  And they have a $20k exemption on qualified plan distributions as well. You only have to be 59.5 to qualify for these exemptions too, which is nice.   So, it's not hard to see a couple with gross income of say $80k not paying much in income tax to the state of New York.   However, it's the sales and property tax that get you.  Sales tax looks small when you just look at the state sales tax.  It's only 4%, which puts NY in the bottom ten of all states for sales tax.  That's not the full picture though.  Add in localities and you're more than double the state rate, up to almost 9%.  That nearly 9% rate puts New York in the top 10 highest sales tax states in the country. Property taxes are a major hurdle too.  The 1.40% puts t

Nevada has no state income tax.  You probably knew that already.  But did you know the state's property tax is quite low too? Clocking in at .75%, among the bottom third lowest in the US.  No income tax and low property tax makes Nevada already a winner in my eyes.  Secondly, the median property value in Nevada is less than $200k, so we're talking a low tax rate on a lower-valued home.  That's a double winner. So, they must kill you on sales tax, right? Well, Nevada isn't cheap on sales tax.  But if you look beyond just the state tax number and actually add the county and local tax burden Nevada is not even in the top 10 highest sales tax states.  It is in the top 20, mind you, but given it's low property tax and no income tax, that's a trade-off one could easily make.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

This is from not 1, not 2, but 3 count 'em THREE, PhDs!  You aren't going to argue with science are you??? https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterubel/2018/10/03/medical-bankruptcy-its-much-less-common-than-elizabeth-warren-tells-you/#2b84d69c1fb2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5865642/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

For the last 15 years we've been lead to believe that Medical Bankruptcies were so common you were only ONE SNEEZE away from declaring it yourself!  Sadly, like a lot of "studies" today, it was all a fraud.  (See the Eisenhower farewell address as to the reasons why this is.)  Yet, here we are, in the beginning of the political season discussing what to do with all these people going bankrupt because of medical expenses. Look folks, I get it.  you don't want to be involved in politics.  Politics is hollywood for ugly people, they used to say.  But guess what, politics is involved in EVERYTHING you do.  So, probably best to recognize that and then try to minimize the damage to your psyche by investigating the various proclamations the politicians and media scream at you.  Once you realize a lot of this is simply fraudulent, you can actually relax.   https://bit.ly/2xcm0yO --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

Bankruptcies have little to do with medical expenses but EVERYTHING to do with this one issue.... wanna guess what it is??? https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2018/03/26/the-truth-about-medical-bankruptcies/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.882a908dcf3a --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

If you're from Northern New England, you are very aware that New Hampshire has no sales tax. In fact, I bet if you live in that part of the US, you've actually made a trek or ten to shop in NH just to avoid paying sales tax. (When I was growing up in Maine, we'd always stop at the Portsmouth state liquor store before returning to Maine, so my folks could get their booze and other items tax free.  Funny the things that stick in your mind when you're a young kid.) On top of having no sales tax, New Hampshire also has no income tax either.   It goes without saying then that there are no taxes on Social Security, IRA distributions, pensions etc.   However, New Hampshire does saddle its residents with high property tax. The third highest in the nation as a matter of fact, at 1.99%.  That property tax is a sticking point for many residents, indeed.   There is not much of an exemption to speak of either.  So if you're on a fixed income and own a home, New Hampshire may not seem

New Jersey property taxes are the highest in the nation.  On the median house value of $313k you pay a whopping $7500 in taxes.  That's just hard to comprehend for an average retiree.  Seniors, at a certain lower income, can qualify for some reimbursement, but how one does that is so convoluted it's not possible to put describe it here. But, property taxes aside, New Jersey is not anywhere near as bad on taxes for a retiree as one might have thought.  Not only are Social Security and military pensions not taxable but folks over 65 can exclude huge amounts of retirement income from taxes too.  As long as your income doesn't exceed $100k, married can exclude up to $100k in the tax year 2020. IF that law which only passed in 2016 stays on the books with the new Governor in office.   So, in New Jersey if your income is $50k in retirement distributions and $25k in Social Security, you will pay NO tax in 2020. Even today, you only pay a couple hundred dollars.   Sales tax in

Wow! Nebraska is NOT at all favorable to retirees from a tax perspective.  In fact, of all the states I've covered so far, Nebraska may be the worst. I need to revisit Connecticut before I state that unequivocally. But man, oh man, I had higher hopes for Nebraska than being in the running for worst states for retirees, that's for sure.  How bad is it? You ask? Let's count the ways! 1. Income taxes.  First, Nebraska has a HUGE income tax rate of 6.84% for folks with taxable income over $60k, if you're married. Single? it's $30k,   Now, this is TAXABLE INCOME, so you'd need to add your Standard Deductions or any other deductions you have to the taxable income amount to get your GROSS INCOME.  For instance, a married couple needs to have more than $86,600 in Gross Income before they are in the 6.84% tax bracket.   But still, $86,600 of income doesn't make you Warren Buffet by any stretch of the imagination.  2.  Taxes on Social Security and retirement income - in N

Amar Shah, is a friend of mine from back in our USAA days.  He just started his own firm Client First Capital and you can find him at www.clientfirstcap.com.  What I love about Amar's approach is that he is truly focused on the entirety of Wealth Management for his clients.  And even better you see how much he actually charges on the front page of his website!!!  YAY! None of this where you need to go the SEC IAPD's website and look up the ADV part 2.  It pains me to even type that sentence.  You know what you're getting with Amar.  Is it worth the fee? Only YOU can decide that.  But Amar is the wave of the future, at least I hope, for financial planning.  Where he is saying I'm only going to take a select few clients, charge them a reasonable fee, and work with them essentially forever.  I LOVE this approach to financial planning.   It is this new wave of planning that will save our industry because the way it's going now isn't solvent.  Too

https://www.zerohedge.com/news/2019-06-24/austrian-economics-no-longer-unheard-music --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

Huge opportunity for a smart politician (who could I be referring to?) to exploit this and then OWN the issue for generations. Gotta think outside the box, folks! https://www.dailysignal.com/2019/06/18/why-a-bigger-social-security-program-would-make-us-worse-off/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

Answering a question about Roth 401ks.  --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/josh-scandlen-podcast/support

Kiplinger's rates Montana as not tax friendly for retirees.  I don't agree with this.  Yes the state does tax Social Security.  But it has NO sales tax.  And it also has very low property tax rate.  I'd much rather have low to no sales and property tax with a high income tax than the other way around.  If you do smart planning and maximize your Social Security benefits you can minimize your income taxes significantly.  In fact, I ran two scenarios in Montana one with $50k Social Security income and $25k  retirement income. The second scenario was the opposite.   The tax difference is amazing.  You pay $1000s more in tax, per year, to not only the Feds but to state of Montana when you have lower Social Security and higher retirement income.  So, if you plan right, you can have little income tax, NO sales tax in Montana and very low property tax too.  If your income is low enough you can even get a $1000 credit against your property taxes as wel

Missouri is one of the few states that taxes some of your Social Security benefits.  You do need to have gross income of $85k for single taxpayers and $100k for Married Filing Jointly before your benefits are taxed.   However, ALL of your retirement income is taxed, IRAs, 401ks,, 403bs, TSPs and 457s.   Now some pension income has some exemptions but you really need to have low income to qualify.  Military pensions are tax-free, be advised.  So, in Missouri, just assume all of your retirement income is taxed. And once you break $9k of TAXABLE INCOME your tax rate is 6%.  State sales tax of 4.225% seems low.  But when you factor in local taxes, the sales in Missouri almost double what the state tax rate is. In fact, the total sales tax in Missouri puts them in the top 15 for highest in the nation. Lastly, property taxes are 1.02% of assessed value. Unless your income is very low there is no homestead exemption either.  So, by and large,  Missouri isn't a t