Here’s the situation. Whatever your view of Trump and the government, one thing is certain: With the stroke of a pen, overnight your world can be turned upside down. The new tax code will result in MAJOR changes to the bottom line of every American. And guess what? It’s here to stay for the foreseeable future. So take note of the many ways it might affect you. Here are just 3 areas where the new tax code might affect the average American in the near term:
Health Insurance. The new tax code does away with the individual mandate portion of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). That means no more penalties for Americans not carrying health insurance. According to a report dated November 8, 2017 by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), a non-partisan group, this will have the affect of 13 million more people becoming uninsured over the next decade. That’s because healthier people will not get insurance leaving a smaller pool of decidedly unhealthier people left to be insured and pay the premiums. Unhealthy people are more expensive to insurance companies so they will have to charge more to the people left insured to cover the cost. As the cost goes up, more and more will be able to afford the premiums. The end result, in other words, is it’s going to get way more expensive for you and I to have health insurance!
Tax Deductions. The new tax code caps the combined deduction for both property taxes AND state & local taxes at $10,000. That’s combined, not each. That’s going to hurt folks like me in higher tax states like New York and California. According to Newsday, the average property tax bill for Nassau County residents (where I live) was $11,232 in 2016. That’s average. I sold real estate here and I can tell you taxes top $12,000 regularly for a modest home. And in an article in USA Today, Westchester County taxes were cited as being $15,000 on average! So add those now-gone deductions to state & local income tax deductions and you blow past the new $10k cap like a Dodge Hemi at full throttle.
The Housing Market. If you live in a low tax state, good for you. But if you live again in a high tax state, the new tax code is not good news for the housing market. It’s not cataclysmic, but here’s the situation. When folks decide to buy a home, a large part of the affordability calculation is being able to deduct the property taxes. If that family can no longer deduct that, they may conclude that renting is more affordable than buying. And if less people are buying, property values decline. It’s simple supply and demand. Moody’s Analytics predicts that nationally housing prices will be 4% lower than they would have otherwise been by mid 2019. Again, not cataclysmic, but still real money.
So, all that having been said, what does it really mean for you and I? This: You can’t rely on the government to look out for your best interests. That’s YOUR job. You can no longer afford to be complacent about your life choices and your finances. You have to choose. Will you be a spectator or participant in your future? Will you be a victim or a victor? See, you can sit here and rail against Trump and the Republicans. You can vilify the rich and demand equal distribution of wealth. You can complain and wring your hands and generally make yourself miserable. Good luck with that. You can choose to do all that and where do you think it will get you and your family? Nowhere.
Conversely, you can choose a different course. One where you become an active participant in your current and future situation. You can take what some consider to be lemons and turn them into lemonade. What do I mean? I’ll tell you. The new tax laws favor the financially savvy. So rather than envy the financially savvy, jump on board. You can’t beat them so you might as well join them! Learn how to benefit from the new reality, because it’s here to stay. Make a conscious decision to join the ranks of the financially literate. Decide to live your life with intentionality and focus. There are two ways you can do that.
First, get control of your finances. Educate yourself. Learn how to handle your money. You can be like the average American and carry debt, live paycheck to paycheck and complain about your job and your lot in life. Or you can say enough! You can decide to own your financial present and future. So, buy books on financial literacy. Learn about investing, budgeting and paying down debt. Get a good CPA and learn how to play the game to your advantage. Resolve to be first financially stable with a view to eventually becoming financially independent. If you don’t get aboard this financial train you will get run over by it. Your choice.
Second, live with intense focus and intentionality. The time for going with the flow is over. You need to put your oars in the water and paddle for all you’re worth! Make an Action Plan. Map out where you want to be. Do you want to start that business? Do you want to leave your job for a better one? Do you want to eat healthier and get in shape? Do you want better relationships in your life? Then figure out what needs to change in your life in order to make it happen. Discover your why and let it drive you. Write it all down. Commit to it. Own it. Carry that with you every day. Then work every day, grind, push and shout at the world until you realize your goals!
The mission of this blog at Org4Life Solutions is to help folks find that focus and that why. Discover what it is they really want. Figure out what’s standing in the way and overcome it. Create a plan and work it. If I can help just one person make that seismic shift, it will have all been worth it. So, I encourage you to join my mailing list so you don’t miss out on all the incredible information I will be posting up here every week. I promise you will not be disappointed. And if you don’t choose to find your answers here, go somewhere else. The internet is awash with free sites to help you make your life successful. Just do something, pick one and follow through.
This is your life. It’s not Trump’s. It’s not the Republicans’ or Democrats’. It’s not your boss’. It’s not your mom’s. It’s all about YOU and YOU ALONE. Make 2018 your year of action. Don’t miss this opportunity to become the person you have never been, so you can have the things you have never had. Onward and upward and never look back. Own it. Be it. Achieve it!