Gambling is widely considered to be recession resistant. When times are tough, people may in fact be more likely to take a chance. Sales of lottery tickets, for instance, were up in most states. So why have state tax revenues from gambling dropped?
Taxes
Whiskey Rebellion: Heading Over the Border to Avoid Booze Tax
Live free or die. And please stop by to shop for tax-free alcohol. New Hampshire, which doesn’t assess a tax on alcoholic beverages, is surrounded by states that do. And guess what? A disproportionate number of out-of-staters buy booze in the Granite State.
Mapping Out Your Retirement: Find Out Where There’s No Income Tax
Where to retire in your golden years? Someplace sunny and temperate year-round? Or a city with great culture, where there’s always something to do? Or perhaps just wherever the government won’t crack your nest egg with a constant barrage of taxes.
What?! A Postage Stamp Should Really Cost How Much?!
A first-class postage stamp cost 2¢ in 1950. If the cost of a stamp had risen with inflation, it would cost 30¢ today. Instead, we’re paying 44¢ to mail a letter.
Prices for Solar Panels Are No Longer Sky High
Is solar power in your future? The combo of new government tax credits and incentives and manufacturers dropping prices to entice customers in a down market means that it’s less expensive than ever to equip your home with solar panels. That doesn’t mean it’s cheap. That also doesn’t mean solar power makes sense in all homes and …
Sales Tax Breaks: Help the Economy and Stick It to the Government at the Same Time
Sales taxes of as much as 7 percent will be taking holidays in 15 states in the coming weeks. The dropping of sales tax has become a summer tradition to spur on back-to-school shopping. Some people worried that states dealing with budget crunches might suspend the annual tax break, but it looks like the shop-a-thon is on.
Appeal Your Way to Lower Property Taxes
I wish I’d read this WSJ story three years ago, when I was cluelessly trying to appeal the tax assessment on our old house. The companies that towns hire to do assessments do quick, rudimentary work, which is why homes that are really worth about the same on the open market can be appraised at vastly different values—and therefore the …