Once more the single biggest expense category for this tax year is taxes. I suppose I really can't complain as it means I am making money. I just think though how much better things would be if there were other ways to collect revenue. Then there is the issue if you are paying your fair share.

The single biggest tax avoidance tools I used were 1031s and Solo retirement plans. Tax deferral has saved me more than $130,000 just this year alone. That was only three exchanges, so these are not huge transactions - but they add up fast for this coupon clipper. The solo retirement plan allowed me to squirrel away $42,000 into self-directed accounts. I did have to pay a small self-employment tax on part of my income but then dumped it to my retirement with a company match.

How did the tax year treat you and how did you save (or lose) money on your return?

We were not treated as poorly as we had feared it seems.

The kicker for me is paying the quarterly tax. I still hate this. I am paying ahead hedging that I will make $XXXX profit.

I would much rather pay at the end of the year like most do anyhow (well, April, but you get the idea).

Think Tank,

I respectfully disagree in part. You do pay taxes. The taxes just shift. Do you pay property tax for example? The best we can do limit what we pay. I have one under contract that I have owned for 27 years. I'm losing depreciation on that one so it is part of multi legged exchange.

For those of you who don't pay taxes - I am not sure how you do it so you are not paying tax. They seem to be everywhere.

Federal Income Tax

State Income Tax

Local income tax

Local right to Work tax

Spring Property Tax

Summer Property Tax

FICA

Transfer tax when you buy

Transfer tax as you sell

Short term Capital Gain tax

Long term Capital gain tax

Depreciation Recapture

Medicare Tax

State Inheritance tax

Sales tax

Value added tax

payroll taxes

Excise Tax -“sin tax,”

Tariffs

Personal property taxes

social security tax

Medicare surcharge

Foreign investment tax - money made from different states

estate tax

gift tax

Toss in rental inspections and the various other fees the government charges so they can operate.....there is good reason why I use 1031's, land and personal property trust. The government just seems to need more money. The scary part is do you ever really know what your fair share really is?

Putting the list out like that is depressing.

Couple of those I have not heard of around here. Unfortunately the big hitters are still here.

My tax hit was around 15k higher than normal with the sale of the one property. I would like to use 1031 but I am just uneasy about what happens when I die and my children inherit it. Will it really pay them the appreciation value or just what I put in or even, goodness forbid, less than I put in. If you don't mind sharing Ra Ray-N-Pa what 1031 company do you use? Why/how to you have confidence in it for the next owner. (and more infor on the solo IRA please) btw, you list of all the taxes, most of which we pay..is depressing. lol

I paid a LOT of taxes in 2025, then got a $42k refund. No, that's not a good thing, but it was a complicated year with a large Roth conversion so I wanted to avoid penalties and Roth conversion taxes are tricky.

Overall our tax bills are high right now as we do Roth conversions over the next couple years. Once we're on SS, our tax bill will decrease dramatically...as most of our money will be in Roth accounts and SS receives preferential tax treatment.

I thought financial planning was tricky when building wealth, but I've learned it's way more complicated after you retire...with all the weird rules around SS taxes, widows tax trap, tax torpedo, NIIT, IRMAA, and all the other nuances.

Just gotta hang in there about two more years until wife gets on SS and we're done with Roth conversions and things will get much simpler.

Just for fun I'm going to go down this list (respectfully):

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Federal Income Tax - No, deductions higher than liability (unless you count reduction of deductions as "paying")

State Income Tax - No, same as above

Local income tax - No, there is none of this in my locality (other than property taxes, listed below)

Local right to Work tax - No, my locality does not have this

Spring Property Tax - Yes

Summer Property Tax - Yes

FICA - No, I'm not an employee

Transfer tax when you buy - Yes

Transfer tax as you sell - I have only sold once, but yes

Short term Capital Gain tax - No, had no capital gain on my 1 sale

Long term Capital gain tax - No, had no capital gain on my 1 sale

Depreciation Recapture - Never had to pay this, and I won't if I pass my assets to my heirs correctly

Medicare Tax - No, I'm not an employee

State Inheritance tax - No

Sales tax - Yes

Value added tax - No, and most people in the US do not pay this

payroll taxes - No payroll

Excise Tax -“sin tax,” - No

Tariffs - Indirectly (but you could call any price increase due to a societal change a "tax" in this case)

Personal property taxes - Yes (but it's not much. assume I rent and have an old car)

social security tax - No, I'm not an employee

Medicare surcharge - No, I'm not an employee

Foreign investment tax - money made from different states - No

estate tax - not yet, and after I pay it I'll be dead

gift tax - don't have to pay this until you've gifted $27.22 million as a married couple

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I have an addition to your list, Think Tank! In NYS if you have a business and you are expected to withhold sales tax on jobs that are NOT capital improvement, NYS has added a "USE TAX" on to the bill since 2024.

I use 1031 Corp for my exchanges. They are not the cheapest, but they have an attorney on staff that you get free access to. That comes in handy when the scenarios get more complicated. So you can exchange: second homes, Air BnBs, vacation properties and raw land even though you might not have schedule Es.