NortonAccountingServices.com 985-640-6072 Info@NortonAccountingServices.com JUNE 2020 NORTON NEWSLETTER EASE OF MIND • AVAILABILITY • FLEXIBILITY • INDIVIDUAL APPROACH • EXPERIENCE • TAX SAVINGS OPPORTUNITIES THE REAL ESTATE TAX PRO ™
FROM THE DESK OF Bob Norton
After Katrina hit in 2005, Congress allowed taxpayers harmed by the storm to withdraw
retirement funds with no penalty. I did that and regret it to this day. I lost out on a lot of growth in the stock market as a result. With the pandemic, Congress is allowing certain taxpayers affected by the COVID-19 virus to withdraw up to $100,000 from their retirement accounts with no penalty and to spread the taxes over three years. Several clients have asked me about this and I cannot definitely tell them that they are eligible for penalty-free withdrawal because the CARES Act refers to IRS guidance, which the IRS hasn’t issued yet. So, if you withdraw funds before the IRS issues guidance, then you may owe both the penalty and pay all the tax this year. Keep these points in mind if you are considering withdrawing funds. You have until Dec. 31, 2020, to withdraw the funds. If you withdraw funds now, you will lock in any losses you sustained in the recent market meltdown. If you have to withdraw funds, draw minimal amounts to get you through a few months at a time to let the market recover. And remember, you can use your retirement funds to invest in real estate without withdrawing them from your IRA.
Why YourWorkout Routine Might Protect You From Infection CAN EXERCISE STAVE OFF SICKNESS?
the time if hard workouts really did reduce immunity — actually took fewer sick days than athletes who exercised less. And in 2005, a study on mice showed that jogging for 30 minutes a day over several weeks made them more likely to survive rodent flu. What’s even more interesting is that according to The New York Times, a 2008 study conducted on mice in Germany suggested that rather than dying off during exercise, immune cells “traveled to the animals’ lungs, guts, and other parts of their bodies potentially most vulnerable to germ invasions during exercise” before returning to the bloodstream. Basically, exercise helped the mice become even better illness-fighting machines! On top of staving off illnesses like the flu, there’s evidence that working out can help control allergy symptoms. Fitness and Wellness News reports that the link between the two comes down to blood flow. When you exercise, your blood flow speeds up, which moves allergens more quickly through your body so your kidneys can eliminate them. On the contrary, sedentary living encourages
Unless you’ve been living under a rock since January, you know all about COVID-19, more commonly known as the coronavirus, and the global chaos it has caused, including massive quarantines, flight cancellations, and medical supply shortages. Understandably, people have since picked up new habits to avoid contracting the illness, like washing hands more thoroughly, wearing masks outdoors, and avoiding big crowds. Those are all good precautions, but according to The New York Times, there might be another strategy you can employ year-round to boost your immune system: regular exercise. If that surprises you, you’re not alone! Back in the 1980s, misleading research conducted on marathon participants spread the myth that a tough workout suppresses your immune system, making you more susceptible to illness. However, in recent years, new studies on both mice and humans debunked that theory. In 2014, scientists at Umeå University in Sweden found that elite endurance athletes — the people you’d think would be sick all
–Bob Norton
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