Matthew Christopher Pietras played his part like a maestro in a Tom Ford tuxedo. He floated through New York’s glittering gala circuit, sponsoring opening nights at the Metropolitan Opera and the newly renovated Frick Collection, booking private jets like they were yellow cabs, and sprinkling six-figure “donations”as if he had an endless trust fund. To anyone watching, he was the charming young patron who had cracked the code to effortless wealth. He traveled in high society like he was born to it: with 60 friends in tow for opera night and a knack for name-dropping that would make a PR flack blush.
taxtips
Truth, Justice, and Form 1099
Netflix’s top-streaming crime drama Untamed drops us into the breathtaking beauty of California’s Yosemite National Park. When a young woman is found murdered, a park investigator with a haunted past follows a web of secrets. Untamed blends mystery, memory, and Yellowstone grit in a slow-burn thriller where every clue leads deeper into darkness.
Sparks Just Got Pricey
By now you’ve seen the clip. A kiss cam at a Coldplay concert outside Boston zoomed in on a couple enjoying a night of yellow lights and “Viva La Vida.” Except it turns out they weren’t just anyone. They were both high-level execs at the same company. Both married. Just not to each other.
Not Just Lipstick on a Pig
Hailey Bieber – daughter of actor Stephen Baldwin and wife of singer Justin Bieber – just proved she’s more than another nepo baby with a serum line. Today she’s a full-blown tax case study with a side of moisturizer! In a deal that left beauty insiders and financial planners equally slack-jawed, she sold her skincare brand, Rhode, to e.l.f. Beauty for $1.1 billion. The press called it iconic. Wall Street called it synergistic. And the IRS? They called dibs.
Taxing “Climate Criminals”
Last week, we discussed how the 2017 tax cuts are scheduled to expire at the end of 2025—and how the election results make it likelier that Washington will extend them. Here’s the problem: it won’t be cheap. The Congressional Budget Office estimates extending the current rules will blow a $4 billion hole in the budget over the next 10 years, along with an unknown amount of higher interest payments on the new debt. That’s making life difficult for a new administration that also wants to eliminate tax on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security benefits, along with other giveaways.
Understanding Disaster Losses for Your Taxes
We seem to be living in an age of natural disasters. Floods, fires, hurricanes, tornados, and other disasters often dominate the news. If a disaster strikes you, the tax law may help. It’s important to note that there are differences on how personal losses and business losses are treated and deducted under our current tax […]