Tax Deductible Expenses Q: Are my vestments tax deductible?  A: Since the passage of the 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act, unreimbursed business expenses are no longer tax-deductible. That would include your vestments. The only way to avoid paying taxes on those expenses would be for your church to set up an accountable reimbursement plan according to IRS rules. Correcting Tax Errors Q: I have been a pastor since 2010. I use TaxAct to file my taxes and only became aware this year that I am supposed to be paying self-employment tax. For the first time this year, TaxAct asked if I was clergy (I don't think we'd been asked that in the past) and then asked if I had ever filed Form 4361. For my pastoral role, I don't believe I've ever paid self-employment tax though I have never filled out form 4361. Am I in error? Do you know what steps I ...

When the Federal Reserve slashed interest rates to near zero in response to the coronavirus crisis, everyone decided that it was a perfect time to refinance their mortgage. There were so many refinance requests that lenders had to artificially raise rates in order to lessen demand and give them a chance to keep up. Rates bounced around quite a bit but have spent the rest of the year near historic lows. Because of this, a lot of people have refinanced their mortgages this year. If this is news to you, you should really look into refinancing because with a lower interest rate you could save thousands of dollars over the life of your loan.  What Is A Cash-Out Mortgage Refinance? A choice you have to make when refinancing is how much you want your new mortgage to be for. One option is to borrow the same amount as you currently owe and just ...

Are you invested in mutual funds? If so, you’re in good company. Over 46% of American households own mutual funds. But do you know how much your mutual fund costs? That’s a much harder question. I’m sure 46% of Americans don’t know that one! One of the key components of good stewardship is knowing where your money is going. That’s why having a budget is so important. Most things we spend our money on have a price tag, but mutual funds are a little bit more complex. Here is a breakdown of mutual fund fees, so that you have a better idea of what you’re spending on your investments and why. Loads Front-end loads are commissions or sales charges that you pay when you purchase shares of the mutual fund. If you buy an “A Share” mutual fund, that means you will be paying a commission, or front-end load.  A “B Share” mutual fund has ...

While pastors have the unique opportunity to opt out of the Social Security system, that doesn’t mean that they cannot participate at all. If your spouse has earned enough Social Security credits to be eligible for benefits, then you are eligible for some benefits as well. These are the spousal benefits that you can receive: Medicare Benefits Many people wrongly believe that opting out of Social Security means that you can no longer participate in Medicare. Everyone age 65 or older who is a US citizen or permanent resident and has lived in the US for at least 5 years is eligible for Medicare (and some other people, too). The difference that opting out makes is whether or not you have to pay for Part A, which is hospital insurance. If you opt out with Form 4361, then you have to pay premiums for Part A while everyone else gets it for free. ...

If you’ve been paying any attention to the news (and I don’t blame you if you haven’t), you’re probably aware that the stock market has been very active lately. Active like a volcano. You see headlines like “Stocks Lose 34% in One Month” and “Stocks Jump 2%.” What does it all mean, though? Do you really understand what they’re talking about? What Do We Mean By The Stock Market? First of all, what is the stock market? Stocks are portions of ownership in publicly traded companies. They can be bought and sold on exchanges, or markets. When people talk about the stock market, they are usually referring to the valuation of stocks. When they talk about the market going up or down, they mean that overall stock prices are going up and down.  If that’s as clear as mud, read my more in-depth explanation of the stock market here. For the sake of ...

Q: I'm having an accountant do my taxes who I believe hasn't done taxes for pastors before. This is my first year in full-time ministry. My accountant is under the impression from Form 4361 that I have to be in ministry for 2 years before I can file for tax exemption. My understanding is that I just need to file this form within 2 years of claiming exemption. Can you help clarify? A: You are correct. You can file Form 4361 the day you become a licensed minister if you want to. After 2 years, you have missed your opportunity and will be a part of the Social Security system permanently. Until you have an approved Form 4361 from the IRS you will have to pay Social Security taxes, but they can be refunded once you have an approved exemption. Q: My husband is on staff at a local church as a ...

Thanks to COVID-19 and the containment efforts, our country and most of the world are in a financial crisis. In times like these, you need to be even more alert to guard your financial life. You don’t only have to guard your income and spending, but your records and good standing. Financial crises elicit scammers and fraudulent activity just as the scent of blood draws sharks. One of your best preventive tools in this fight is your credit report.  What Is A Credit Report? Your credit report is a historical record of how you have borrowed and repaid debts. It contains personal identifying information such as your Social Security number, birth date, current and former addresses, and employers. The information regarding debt that it reports include: Address and telephone number for the creditorBasic account information (the date it was opened and the type of account it is)If the account is open or closedThe ...

When is the last time you saw anything positive on the news? Even social media seems to have devolved into a giant whining match between the “stay home and live” and “live free or die” camps. We’re not going to get into that today. We’re going to take the Pollyanna approach. What good has come of this coronavirus crisis? For me personally, I enjoy having my husband home an extra day each week. I’m really enjoying that my son’s karate has gone virtual so I no longer have to pack up the kids and sit on a wooden bench through every practice. Not having to rush the kids in the morning to make the bus has been really nice. I’m glad that I was already working and doing school virtually so I didn’t have any disruptions with that. And I’m also thankful that people will no longer think it strange that ...

Someone wrote to me recently with some questions about Form 4361 that is used by clergy to opt out of Social Security. One of the questions was, how hard is it to get Form 2031 approved to revoke Form 4361 and opt back into Social Security? That is a very important question, so today we are going to address it.  What Is IRS Form 2031? Let me start by explaining these forms. Form 4361 is what pastors use to opt out of participating in the Social Security system. Click on that sentence to learn more about it.  IRS Form 2031 is used to revoke Form 4361 and opt back into Social Security. It is an irrevocable election that makes you liable for self-employment tax and includes your ministerial earnings in Social Security and Medicare coverage.  Can You Use IRS Form 2031 Right Now? I have heard from a number of pastors that opted out of ...

With businesses shutting down and church services closed, you may find yourself reassessing your financial situation. Which expenses are mandatory and which can you do without? What resources do you have available to you that you don’t usually access? As you’re taking stock of your situation, I’d like to let you know about a few changes that the CARES Act stimulus bill makes to the rules about your retirement savings. 2020 Required Minimum Distributions Waived This is one that really only helps those who already have more than enough to live on. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) from traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs, and 401(k), 403(b), and governmental 457(b) plans are waived for the year 2020. The waiver applies to beneficiary account owners in addition to original account owners. Basically, no one has to take RMDs for 2020.  If you’ve already taken an RMD that you really don’t need, the law allows you ...