Tuesday Tax Tidbit: “Bunch” Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions to Reduce Your Tax Bill

Many expenses that may qualify as miscellaneous itemized deductions are deductible for regular tax purposes only to the extent they exceed, in aggregate, 2% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). Bunching these expenses into a single year may allow you to exceed this “floor.”

So now is a good time to add up your potential deductions to date. If they’re getting close to — or they already exceed — the 2% floor, consider incurring and paying additional expenses by December 31, such as:

• Deductible investment expenses, including advisory fees, custodial fees and publications
• Professional fees, such as tax planning and preparation, accounting and certain legal fees
• Unreimbursed employee business expenses, including travel, meals, entertainment and vehicle costs 

But keep in mind that these expenses aren’t deductible for alternative minimum tax (AMT) purposes. So don’t bunch them into 2014 if you might be subject to the AMT. Also, if your AGI will exceed certain levels ($254,200 for singles and $305,050 for married filing jointly), be aware that your itemized deductions will be reduced.

If you’d like more information on miscellaneous itemized deductions, the AMT or the itemized deduction limit, let us know.

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