With individual income tax season under way, I am seeing a number of clients with a high-deductible health insurance plan and a Health Savings Account (HSA).  Here are some ways to make the most of your money this year.
In 2016, those with individual high-deductible plans can deposit $3,350 into an HSA, while those with a family plan can contribute a maximum of $6,750. In either case, an extra $1,000 catch-up contribution is allowed for those age 55 or older.

• Open and fund your HSA today.  High-deductible health plans can require policyholders to pay thousands out of pocket before insurance coverage kicks in. To soften the blow, the federal government allows those with qualified plans to open HSAs and pay their out-of-pocket expenses with tax-free money.  However, the tax savings only applies to expenses paid after the HSA was opened. You don’t need to fully fund it immediately -- or ever.  Pay into it what you can.
• Your HSA can be an investment tool.  Some HSA accounts work as simple savings accounts and offer a minimal interest. Others let you invest money in mutual funds, just as you would in a 401(k) or IRA. 

The Internal Revenue Service reported it suffered a "hardware failure" on Wednesday afternoon, which left many of its tax processing systems unavailable Wednesday night, the agency announced in a statement.

The agency stopped accepting electronically filed tax returns because of the problem. The outage could affect refunds, but the agency said it doesn't anticipate "major disruptions."

The IRS is still assessing the scope of the outage and indicates nine out of 10 taxpayers will receive their refunds within 21 days.  The IRS.gov website remains available, but "Where's My Refund" and other services are not working.

Trusts can be quite useful for protecting children. However, for some children, the trust serves an additional function: It protects the principal from being rapidly spent by a child. These trusts have a specific name—they are called "spendthrift" trusts.

A spendthrift trust allows a parent to protect a certain amount of inheritance. If you have a circumstance like this, it may be appropriate to transfer inheritance outright to some of your children and the same amount of property into a spendthrift trust for the "creative spender" child.

If you take money out of a retirement account (IRA, 401(k), 403(b), etc.) before reaching the age of 59½, you typically must pay income taxes on the withdrawal plus an additional 10% early withdrawal tax unless an exception applies.

If they apply, these exceptions may save you the 10% penalty if you have to tap into your retirement accounts early.

1. Death or Disability- If someone in your family becomes permanently disabled, your retirement may be the last place that you want to draw funds.  There are options to get money out of your IRA penalty free should disability or death happen in your family.

Here are some of the important ways retirement benefits will change in 2016.

IRA and 401(k) Limits – The 2016 contribution limits for 2016 for IRAs (Traditional pre-tax of after-tax Roth IRAs) increases to $18,000 with a $6,000 catch-up contribution for individuals aged 50 and over.

Saver’s credit.  The adjusted gross income (AGI) limit increases to $30,750 for individuals and to $61,500 for married couples. This tax credit is available to low and moderate income families that save for retirement.  It can be worth 10%-50% of your retirement contribution up to $2,000 for individuals and $4,000 for couples. 

Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 14, 2015 to attend FINANCIAL FEST –presented by Money Radio (KFNN 1510AM & 99.3FM) – a day of free seminars specialized to grow your wealth and help you retire comfortably.

Boudreau Consulting’s Kevin Boudreau will be presenting TAX BACKETOLOGY -- a review different ways of minimizing your personal & business income taxes --regardless of your tax bracket.

Boudreau Consulting is the only CPA firm presenting at this event. You will have a chance to meet the Boudreau Consulting tax professionals that can help you save money. TAX BRACKETOLOGY is scheduled to start at 11 am.

On the surface, this may seem like another scam, but your health insurance company may request that you provide them with the social security numbers for you, your spouse and your children covered by your policy.

This is because the Affordable Care Act requires every provider of minimal essential coverage to report that coverage by filing an information return with the IRS and furnishing a statement to covered individuals. The information is used by the IRS to administer – and individuals to show compliance with – the health care law.

Health coverage providers will file an information return, Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, with the IRS and will furnish statements to you in 2016, to report coverage information from calendar year 2015.

Opening the mail and seeing a notice from the Internal Revenue Service generally raises our blood pressure.  Here are some tips of how to address and resolve any issues when you receive a notice.

1. Watch out for Scams - The IRS only will initially notify you by mail – not phone or email.  The IRS does not contact people via email, text or social media. 
2. Don’t Ignore It. You can respond to most IRS notices quickly and easily. It is important that you reply right away.
3. Focus on the Issue. IRS notices usually deal with a specific issue about your tax return or tax account.  Understand the reason for the notice.

Yesterday, the Federal Reserve's 2014 Survey of Household Economics and Decision Making found many Americans are not financially prepared for retirement.

• 38% percent have either no intention to retire or plan to keep working for as long as possible.
• 31% of non-retirees have no retirement savings or pension, including nearly a quarter of those older than 45
• 55% of those making less than $40,000 per year plan to keep working as long as possible or never plan to retire
• 53% could cover a hypothetical emergency expense costing $400 without selling something or borrowing money.
• 31% went without some form of medical care in the past year because they could not afford it

A generic rule of thumb financial advisors have used for retirees is to withdraw 4% of their account balance each year in order to not out live your money.

However, interest rates have been at historic lows the last nine years, so conservative investors may need to accumulate more funds if they wish to use the 4% withdrawal rate.

As a Steven Covey advocate, Tom Anderson’s personal finance article on the CNBC website Monday caught my interest — 7 habits of highly effective retirement savers. You can read the entire article at www.cnbc.com/id/102545493 but here are your keys to success:

As the economy appears to be a bit stronger, now is a great time to try and position yourself for a financially stress-free retirement. One of the best ways is to eliminate as many fixed costs – your home mortgage is the primary great target.

President Barack Obama announced that he will propose tax increases for higher-income individuals and provide tax relief for middle-class taxpayers in last night’s State of the Union address. He wants to simplify the Internal Revenue Code, eliminating loopholes, and help “middle class families get ahead and grow the economy.”

While it remains to be seen when and how anything may be implemented, the president’s wish list includes: