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The SECURE Act of 2019 (the “Act”) has been signed into law and went into effect on January 1, 2020. It has several income tax provisions that affect individual taxpayers, including two important areas, retirement accounts and 529 college savings plans. The Act provides a good incentive to review the naming of your beneficiaries and ensure you take advantage of the tax incentives.

A discussion on BKD's “Simply Tax” podcast on the importance of year-end planning. Guests Holly Pantzer and Susan Jones join host Damien Martin for a closer look at key considerations for individuals following the recent tax law changes as they share their firsthand experiences from recent year-end planning discussions. Here's a look at what's inside this episode:

As taxpayers head into the homestretch of 2019, some might be surprised that most of the year-end tax highlights for businesses refer to provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted in late 2017. It makes sense, though, when considering that the IRS has released a host of regulations and other guidance interpreting many of the new rules. Moving forward, there are five year-end tax items to consider for your business: revenue recognition; business interest deduction; qualified business income deduction; bonus depreciation; and transition and exit planning.

With the new year around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about what you can do now to manage your tax bill for 2019. To help you get started and avoid last-minute scrambling for tax deductions, there are five topics you should discuss with your tax advisor: capital gain opportunities; capital loss opportunities; making your K-1 a number one priority; deduction management; and giving while you’re alive.

Is there a better way for investors to donate to charity? Learn how to maximize a portfolio’s tax benefits—and increase the size of the gift—through charitable giving.

Many states are imposing a millionaire’s tax with huge implications for top earners. Explore how aggressive tax-loss harvesting can soften the blow.

What are the tax benefits of investing in Qualified Opportunity Funds? A closer look assesses the opportunities —and the risks.

Under the current Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), a wide range of income tax planning techniques can be used as part of the estate planning process. One primary technique includes a focus on managing low-basis assets to achieve a step-up basis. Other techniques center around the beneficiary deemed owned trust. While more than one technique can be used in estate planning, caution should be taken when considering which technique is appropriate for you.

When taxes don’t matter, and that is rarely the case for most investors, pre-tax returns are sufficient in determining whether the investment did well or poorly relative to a benchmark. But for taxable accounts, pre-tax returns provide an incomplete picture, and relying on them can lead to poor investment decisions. In such cases, using after-tax returns, after-tax benchmark returns, and Tax Alpha in your decision process is more relevant, and could help you to increase your wealth on an after-tax basis.