One of the key ingredients to successful long-term investing is patience – one of the world’s most treasured natural resources which is being depleted daily.
Patience unlocks the value of time. Long-term investing does not have deadlines within the next eight years. If your investment deadline is shorter than that, a short-term investing strategy may be more appropriate.
The only short-term deadlines to which long-term investors are subject are December 31 and April 15.
Obviously, December 31, 2023, has passed. Now April 15, 2024, looms large as long-term investors must share a portion of their 2023 blessing with their friendly federal and state governments. While we dedicate significant time and energy to creating tax efficiency for our clients, the tax man still cometh.
Obtaining the required tax forms to file your taxes also requires patience. One would think in this day and age of artificial intelligence and powerful microprocessors this would be a simple task. Unfortunately, the tax code is not known for its simplicity, and complexity creates a tax on time.
It takes time for investment companies to document, classify, and reclassify all of their sources of income during 2023. They must then relay this information to LPL Financial to share with long-term investors. LPL Financial cannot share what they do not have, and they prefer to report final accurate tax information rather than issuing amended tax documents that force you to amend your tax return. This minimizes the odds of another tax on your precious time.
For the simplest of investment accounts, you should have your 2023 tax forms already. LPL Financial issued retirement account distributions forms (1099-Rs) on January 19. For the simplest of investment accounts, they issued 1099 consolidated tax statements (1099-B, 1099-DIV, and 1099-INT) on January 19, January 26, and February 2.
For more complicated investment accounts, they will issue consolidated 1099s on February 9, 16, and 23. For the very rare extremely complicated investment accounts, they will issue consolidated 1099s on March 1, 8, and 15.
Your consolidated 1099 forms will be mailed to your address of record. If you prefer to obtain your tax forms more quickly due to either a patience deficiency or a dedication to efficiency, they are all available through LPL Financial’s AccountView program (link) on the release date.
While the complicated tax code may tax your patience, we wish you and your family a painless and efficient tax filing season.
Quote of the week: Thomas Sowell: “Elections should be held on April 16th — the day after we pay our income taxes.”
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