Italian anti-mafia prosecutors said they seized a record $6 trillion of allegedly fake U.S. Treasury bonds, an amount that’s almost half of the U.S.’s public debt.

The bonds were found hidden in makeshift compartments of three safety deposit boxes in Zurich, the prosecutors from the southern city of Potenza said in an e-mailed statement. The Italian authorities arrested eight people in connection with the probe, dubbed “Operation Vulcanica,” the prosecutors said.

The U.S. embassy in Rome has examined the securities dated 1934, which had a nominal value of $1 billion apiece, they said in the statement. “Thanks to Italian authorities for the seizure of fictitious bonds for $6 trillion,” the embassy said in a message on Twitter.

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Washington Mutual Inc. won court approval for a $7 billion reorganization plan that resolves some legal claims related to the biggest U.S. bank to fail.

Creditors may be paid the first chunk of money as early as March 8 once a deadline passes for shareholders to decide whether they will waive their right to sue over the collapse of WaMu’s former bank, said Fred Hodara, a lawyer for the creditors’ committee.

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From CNBC:

The wealthiest Americans have been in the spotlight for reasons ranging from public outrage over lavish lifestyles during the recession to executive bonuses in the midst of the financial crisis. The Occupy Wall Street movement was perhaps the most visible culmination of these concerns, broadly protesting against the divide between the majority of the U.S. population and the ultra-rich, referred to by the protesters as the “one percent.”

The question arose: Who are the one percent, and where are they from? In fact, the composition of the group varies from business people, doctors, lawyers and financial professionals to celebrities, farmers and even government workers. But where do these high-earners live?

A UHNW individual is defined by Wealth-X as anyone with at least $30 million when accounting for a range of assets, including shares in companies, real estate, cash, art collections, private planes and other investable assets.

As it turns out, some cities are magnets for UHNW individuals, and the cities with the most of this wealthy class average approximately one in 3,075 people, according to Wealth-X, while the 27,540 UHNW individuals in the top 10 cities have a combined net worth of $3.6 trillion, or 6.2 percent of the total U.S. net worth. “Certain geographic clusters generate and attract wealth,” said Wealth-X co-founder David Friedman. “A concentration of UHNW individuals is certainly indicative of an area’s overall economic health.”

So, which U.S. cities have the most ultra-high net worth individuals?

1. New York

It’s now officially time to get serious about filing your 2011 Form 1040, especially if you expect a refund. Here are five little-known write-offs that could make your refund bigger or cut what you owe.

1. Medicare Insurance and Long-Term Care Premiums

You can claim a Schedule A itemized deduction for unreimbursed medical expenses, including health insurance premiums, to they extent they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income, or AGI. (AGI is the number at the bottom of Page 1 of your Form 1040.) The 7.5%-of-AGI hurdle may seem insurmountable, but seniors can often clear it–especially if they remember to include the following in the medical expense pot:

*Premiums for Medicare Part B coverage. For 2011, the per-person Part B premium for most folks was $96.40 per month ($1,157 for the year). For higher-income folks, the premium could be as much as $369.10 per month ($4,429 for the year).

*Premiums for Medicare Part C coverage (so-called Medicare Advantage HMO-type coverage).

*Premiums for Medicare Part D coverage (for prescription drugs).

*Premiums for Medicare supplemental insurance (so-called Medigap coverage).

*Premiums for qualified long-term care insurance, subject to the following age-based limits for each covered person.

2. Medical Expenses Paid by Someone Else

As explained above, you can only deduct unreimbursed medical expenses to the extent they exceed 7.5% of your AGI. In a 2010 Tax Court decision, the IRS argued that a daughter could not deduct some medical expenses because she did not pay for them with her own money. Instead, her mother covered the expenses by directly paying the medical service providers. The Tax Court disagreed. The facts of the case demonstrated that the mother intended the payments to be gifts. Therefore, the Tax Court characterized the transactions as gifts from the mother to the daughter followed by payment of the expenses by the daughter with the gifted funds. So the daughter was allowed to count $24,559 of medical expenses that were actually paid by her mother in calculating her medical expense deduction. Source: Judith Lang, TC Memo 2010-286 (2010).

[Also see: If You Don’t File, Beware the Ghost Return]

Important Point: When you directly pay medical expenses for a person who is your dependent (meaning you pay over 50% of that person’s total support for the year), you can add the expenses you pay for the dependent to your own expenses and claim a deduction for the total to the extent it exceeds 7.5% of your AGI. That rule would have applied to the mother in this case if the daughter had been the mother’s dependent. Apparently she was not, so the deduction for the daughter’s expenses belonged to the daughter rather than the mother.

3. Real Estate Taxes Paid by Someone Else

The daughter in the 2010 Tax Court decision mentioned above was also allowed to claim an itemized deduction for $5,508 of local real estate taxes that were paid directly to the taxing authorities by her mother. Once again, the facts of the case demonstrated that the mother intended the payments to be gifts. Therefore, the Tax Court characterized the transactions as gifts from the mother to the daughter followed by payment of the taxes by the daughter with the gifted funds. So the daughter was allowed to deduct the taxes that were actually paid by the mother. Source: Judith Lang, TC Memo 2010-286 (2010).

[Also see: States with the most homes in foreclosure]

4. Home Mortgage Points Paid by Someone Else

Assuming you itemize deductions, you can write off points (including loan origination fees) that you pay to take out a mortgage to buy your principal residence. Surprisingly enough, you can also deduct mortgage points paid by the seller on your behalf to sweeten the deal. In fact, the IRS actually requires you to claim the deduction. If this happened to you last year, don’t ask questions! Just follow the government’s directions and claim a deduction for the seller-paid points on Line 10 or 12 of your Schedule A. Source: IRS Revenue Procedure 94-27.

5. Fees to Charge Taxes to Your Credit Card

Surprisingly enough, the IRS says you can treat credit card convenience fees paid to charge personal income tax bills (including estimated tax payments) as miscellaneous itemized deduction items reported on Line 23 of your Schedule A. Source: IRS instructions to Schedule A. This favorable rule apparently applies to fees to charge both federal and state income taxes. However, you only get a write-off to the extent your total miscellaneous itemized deductions exceed 2% of AGI (other miscellaneous expenses include unreimbursed employee business expenses, union dues, job hunting expenses, fees for tax preparation and advice, and investment expenses). Fill out lines 21-27 of Schedule A to see if you can benefit from claiming miscellaneous itemized deductions.

Source

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If you e-filed…

According to the IRS, taxpayers who file electronically and select direct deposit can expect a refund the fastest, in about 10 days. If not, expect to receive your refund within 21 days. In fact, the IRS claims that 90 percent of tax refunds are issued within 21 days.

When should I check for an update?

To find out when you’ll receive your refund, check 72 hours after you file online or four weeks after you mail in a paper return.

You’ll need your Social Security number, filing status, and the exact amount of your refund.

What is the fastest way to get a refund?

No question about it: Filing on the Web is the quickest way to a cash return — and that’s partly because filing online means fewer errors on the return — such as an old address — which can slow things down even more. Avoid delays by filing online and have the IRS deposit your refund directly into a checking or savings account.

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As individuals we can’t do much about price hikes but Gregg Laskoski of GasBuddy.com says there are some things we can do to minimize the damage done to our personal finances every time to fill the tank. In the attached clip Laskoski discusses 5 ways to find cheap gas prices.

1. Track Prices Via Websites and Mobile Apps

Is your local station gauging you? The only way to know is to be aware of what you should be paying. Thanks to the Internet, drivers can drill down and find the average price by zip code. Laskoski’s Gasbuddy.com, Gaspricewatch.com or scores of other web sites or mobile applications make it easy to find gas stations taking the least amount of profit from consumers.

2. Inconvenience Yourself

It shouldn’t come as much of a shock but the easier it is to find a gas station, the more you’re going to pay. Laskoski says gas stations just off the highway cost more than others just down the way. If you’re willing to spend an extra ten minutes in your car you can find stations that make it time well spent. And, avoid affluent areas; that gas station conveniently existing right in the middle of town is likely charging a premium.

3. Fill Up at the Right Time

Urban legend says gas prices are lowest during hours when most folks are sleeping, from midnight to 5am. Laskoski debunks that myth, but says there is a best time to fill-up that most people wouldn’t think of: Wednesday. Gas prices are highest on weekends when the most people are out on the road. Filling up in the middle of the week saves you both sleep and money.

4. Mind the Fine Print on Your Credit Card & Reward Programs

Many companies offer “club” membership at their stations but the real savings come somewhere else. Liskoski says to look for partnerships between your local gas retailer and other merchants. Often times pairing the right card with the right grocery store is where you’ll find the benefits.

5. Get Out of the Car (Opt for Self-Service)

Despite the near-death of full-service, many gas stations will give you the option of having an attendant fill it up. The next time you’re tempted, take note of the premium being charged per gallon and start doing some math. At a reasonable-sounding quarter per gallon premium, you’re going to pay $5 more to fill a 20 gallon tank. One stop per week for a year works out to $260 a year for the right to sit in your car.

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Rates for 30-year U.S. mortgages held at the lowest level on record as fewer Americans sought loans to buy homes.

The average rate for a 30-year fixed loan was unchanged in the week ended today at 3.87 percent, the lowest in records dating to 1971 and the third straight week at that level, Freddie Mac (FMCC) said in a statement. The average 15-year rate remained at 3.16 percent, according to the McLean, Virginia- based mortgage-finance company.

“Rates have moved very little now for the last couple of months,” Keith Gumbinger, vice president of HSH.com, a loan- data company in Pompton Plains, New Jersey, said in an interview yesterday. “Rates are at fantastic levels.”

Low borrowing costs have done little to spark consumer interest in buying houses. Financing applications for purchases have fallen in three of the past four weeks, according to data from the Washington-based Mortgage Bankers Association. The group’s purchase index declined 8.4 percent in the period ended Feb. 10, while its refinancing gauge rose 0.8 percent.

Bloomberg

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1. State taxes on benefits from retirement plans

Seven states don’t tax individual income at all and therefore don’t tax retirement income either…

• Alaska
• Florida
• Nevada
• South Dakota
• Texas
• Washington
• Wyoming

Two states only tax income from dividends and interest: New Hampshire and Tennessee. So while retirees in these states won’t have to pay taxes on Social Security or pension benefits, they will still owe some taxes to the state if they own dividend-paying stocks or bonds, for example.

n the other 41 states and in Washington, D.C., taxes on Social Security and pension benefits vary. Some states exempt pension benefits or Social Security benefits while other states tax both. For details, check out CCH’s state-by-state breakdown of taxes on pension and Social Security benefits.

2. State income taxes

There are 41 states that tax income, and if you live or plan to retire in one of them, how much of your retirement benefits you could owe depends on that state’s tax rate.

Some states have a relatively low income tax rate across all brackets. The rate for even the highest tax bracket in Arizona, New Mexico, and North Dakota, for example, is less than 5 percent. Some states – for example, Indiana (3.4 percent) and Pennsylvania (3.07 percent) – have a relatively low flat tax rate.

But in other states, income tax is a double whammy: Not only is the tax rate for the highest bracket relatively high, the bar to qualify for the highest bracket is low. In Arkansas, for example, any filer earning $33,200/year pays the highest bracket’s rate of 7 percent. In Maine, couples earning $40,700 and single filers earning $20,350 pay the highest bracket’s rate of 8.5 percent.

For more details on your state or the one you’d like to retire in, check out the state-by-state income tax breakdowns from CCH and the Federation of Tax Administrators.

3. Sales tax

Five states don’t have a sales tax, according to the FTA: Alaska, Delaware, Montana, New Hampshire, and Oregon.

In the other 45 states, the rate varies from 2.9 percent (Colorado) to 7.25 percent (California) – and that’s after California lowered its rate from 8.25 last year.

What types of goods sales tax applies to also varies from state to state. In Hawaii and New Mexico, for example, doctor services are taxed. In South Dakota, accountant and attorney services are taxed. Other goods and services taxed in some states but not others include barber services, landscaping, prescriptions, clothing, and food.

For details, check out the FTA‘s state-by-state breakdown of sales tax rates, which also lists which states exempt food, prescriptions, and over-the-counter meds.

4. State and local property taxes

Because property taxes can be significant, CCH suggests learning not only an area’s current property tax rate, but also the history of how it has changed over time.

To learn more about a state or county, try this search engine formula: [state/county] + state/county property tax. That should lead you to the applicable revenue department’s website. Here’s Florida, for example.

While reading up on a state’s property tax rates, don’t forget to check for tax breaks too. Some states and local jurisdictions offer some form of property tax exemption, credit, abatement, deferral, refund, or other benefit to senior homeowners or renters.

5. State estate tax

Wealthier retirees must also consider the estate tax of the state they’d like to retire in. If that state does tax estates, find out both the tax rate and what size estate the tax applies to.

Source

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From the Social Security website:

You can work while you receive Social Security retirement (or survivors) benefits. When you do, it could mean a higher benefit for you in the future. Higher benefits can be important to you later in life and increase the future benefit amounts your family and your survivors could receive.

While you are working, your earnings will reduce your benefit amount only until you reach your full retirement age. After you reach full retirement age we recalculate your benefit amount to leave out the months when we reduced or withheld benefits due to your excess earnings.

We use a formula to determine how much your benefit must be reduced:

• If you are under full retirement age for the entire year, we deduct $1 from your benefit payments for every $2 you earn above the annual limit.For 2012, that limit is $14,640.
• In the year you reach full retirement age, we deduct $1 in benefits for every $3 you earn above a different limit, but we only count earnings before the month you reach your full retirement age.If you will reach full retirement age in 2012, the limit on your earnings for the months before full retirement age is $38,880.
  (If you were born in 1946 or 1947, your full retirement age is 66 years.)
• Starting with the month you reach full retirement age, you can get your benefits with no limit on your earnings.Caution: If you apply for benefits more than 6 months after you reach full retirement age, we can only pay the benefits for the previous 6 months.

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