Newspaper Page Text
■ Financial
Focus
Reported by Sonny Doehring
Your Tax Refund: Invest Today for Tomorrow’s Goals
The tax-filing deadline arrives this
week. Will you be getting a refund? If
so, take the time to consider how best
to use it — because, when used wisely,
your tax refund can give you a few
added steps on the road toward achiev
ing your financial goals.
Of course, if you filed your taxes
weeks ago, you might have already
received a refund. But given the cur
rent economic environment, you might
have kept the money in a “holding
place” while you waited for an uptick
in the financial markets. At any rate,
if you have access to a refund this year,
you now have the opportunity to put
that money to good use.
How? Here are a few ideas:
• Help fund your IRA. In 2008,
the average federal tax refund was
$2,429, according to the Internal Reve
nue Service. If you were to receive that
amount, it would cover almost half of
your IRA contribution for this year, as
the annual limit is $5,000. (You can put
in $6,000 if you’re 50 or older). A tradi
tional IRA grows tax deferred, while a
Roth IRA grows tax free, provided you
have held your account for at least five
years and don’t take withdrawals until
you reach age 59-1/2. Your IRA may
have taken a hit last year, but if you
fund it with quality investments and
avoid making withdrawals until retire
ment, you can take important steps to
help rebuild your portfolio.
• Help build an emergency fund.
You could use part of your refund for
an IRA and part to help build an emer
gency fund. Ideally, you should have six
to 12 months’ worth of living expenses
in a liquid account to help pay for unex
pected costs, such as a major car repair,
a new furnace or a costly medical bill.
Without such an emergency fund, you
might be forced to dip into your long
term investments to pay for these costs
— and that can hurt your progress
toward your financial objectives.
• Help rebalance your portfolio.
Based on your risk tolerance, time
horizon and long-term goals, you may
have decided to put a certain percent
age of your assets in “growth” vehicles
and a certain percentage in income-ori
ented investments. At that point, your
portfolio was in equilibrium.
But during the long bear market,
your portfolio may have sustained
enough losses to become “imbalanced.”
In other words, some of your invest
ments may have lost so much value
that they no longer make up the per
centage of your holdings that you had
originally intended.
Of course, you could wait for these
investments to bounce back — and
they may, given enough time — but if
you wanted to speed up the rebalanc
ing process, you could use your tax
refund to add the right types of new
investments to your mix.
Ironic as it may seem, there may
not be a better year in which to invest
your refund. You can find many qual
ity investments at reasonable prices
today, so your refund can help you add
extra shares to your accounts — and
the more shares you own, the better
off you may be when the market turns
around. So put your refund to work
soon. □
Build a free
website workshop
A "Build a Free Website" workshop
will be held Wednesday April 22 from
9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the marine
extension building at 715 Bay Street
in Brunswick. Students will learn to
use free software to build, test and
maintain a website. Preference will be
given to fishermen, farmers and small
business owners. Cost of the workshop
is $10.00. To register or gain further
information contact Liz Brown at 912-
264-7222 or brownliz@uga.edu. □
Main Street Gourmet to close
After 33 years in business, business in downtown Bruns-
23 years as florist shop own- wick and treasure all the
ers, and 10 years owning friends we have made during
Main Street Gourmet, Fran- £ S our years in business."
cene and Jesse Roberson have ^ n / Gift T Main Street Gourmet will
decided to retire. 5 ;i & PkM S §,> d° se its doors on April 30.
"We plan to visit with fam- c0( Until then all merchandise
ily and relax," Francene said. is on sale from 25% to 50%
"We have enjoyed being in off. □
Home
Improvement
Design
Remodeling, additions, kitchen &
bath design, outdoor living
areas and interior design services.
Over 15 years experience in
residential design,
Call to discuss your new home
improvement project.
(912) 638-7884
THE ISLANDER, APRIL 13, 2009, PAGE 3
Business Upda
Rotary Club supports school's science initiative
Rotary Club of St. Simons members Cathy Petkash (left) and Charles
Cansler (right) present two checks to St. Simons Elementary School para-
professional Sarah Dodd, who is helping to coordinate the school's new
science initiative. Rotary Club of St. Simons members worked with school
counselor Vicky Sawall to write a grant that provided $2,850 from the
Rotary district to fund science-related field trips, speakers and programs.
The Rotary Club of St. Simons provided an additional $500 for the school's
science initiative. "These funds will help us to provide trips to places like
Jekyll Island's Sea Turtle Center and 4-H Center that will reinforce the sci
ence standards that students are learning in the classroom," said Suzanne
Clements, St. Simons Elementary principal. "We appreciate the Rotary
Club of St. Simons for all of the support they provide for our school. Thanks
to Rotary, science will be even more fun at St. Simons Elementary."
Tax Office Reminder
School Tax Exemption
Deadline Extension
Homeowners who are 65 years of age or older on January 1, and
whose income together with the income of the spouse does not
exceed $40,000 for the immediately preceding year may claim an
additional exemption from School Ad valorem tax. Income in this
instance is defined as Georgia Net Taxable Income. The deadline for
filing for this exemption is April 1, but for this year only the time
allowed for application of this exemption has been extended until
April 20, 2009. Bring in the 2008 Proof of Income (State, Federal Tax
Return). If State and Federal Income Tax is not required to be filed,
bring documents reflecting the total Household Income (Social
Security, Retirement...etc.) Must supply Social Security Number and
Picture I.D. (New voted on November 2008)
Under Georgia law, all property is to be returned and assessed at fair
market value every year (O.C.G.A. 48-5-6). Counties are required
to establish a value as of January 1 of each year that meets the
definition of fair market value pursuant to O.C.G.A. 48-5-2. There
is not a state mandated revaluation schedule, rather the counties
annually review the values on the digest compared to sales data and
if property values are determined to be either too low or too high
then values are updated.
Taxpayers may challenge an assessment by the county board of tax
assessors by appealing in writing to the county board of equalization
or to an arbitrator or arbitrators within 45 days from the date of
notice. Taxpayers may file an appeal on matters regarding value,
uniformity, and denial of homestead exemption. Once a decision
has been made by the county board of equalization or by an
arbitrator or arbitrators, the taxpayer may appeal their decision to
the Superior Court of Glynn County by mailing or filing with the
county board of tax assessors a written notice of appeal.
