The first thing we need to understand about taxes, is WHAT ARE THEY? Why do we fork over up to half of our income every year to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the state!? By definition, taxes are mandatory contributions levied on individuals or corporations by a government entity. Taxes are used for the betterment of the economy and all who are living in it. They help us build and maintain roads, public buildings and any other infrastructure used in a country, state, town, etc.

That’s all for this email. Next up: What are the different “tax buckets” and why do we like Roth so much?