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This would be awesome! A new Missouri Income Tax Bill was just introduced. I always envied states like Washington or Florida where they have no state income tax.
Key points of the bill for Missouri:
Source: 10pm NBC Action News
It makes sense to me especially since moving to Kansas City (MO), I thought the cost of living was suppose to be a lot cheaper. I was very disappointed with the sales tax in metro area. Depending on where you shopped, your sales tax ranged from 7-10%!
That’s because Missouri has a different system (odd compared to what I grew up on in Michigan). When I lived in Michigan, sales tax was a flat 6% no matter where you went. That was nice! Michigan tax details here.
However in Missouri, there’s usually two parts of the sales tax. The state base sales tax is 4.225%, but the local jurisdiction gets to add on taxes. So the county or area usually tacks on top of the 4.225% which puts it in the 7-10% range. At that range, I might as well live in a city like Chicago, New York, or Orlando so it really doesn’t make sense since I pay like 6% state income tax. And another thing Missouri has is property tax on my car which I didn’t have in Michigan! Missouri tax details here.
Not sure why it’s bad timing though. I’m for it. I prefer to be tax on my purchases instead of my income since I generally try to be a frugal shopper. Florida and Washington probably also has the luxury of more sale tax revenue from more tourists. Uncle Sam will get their taxes one way or another so I’ll have to see more details to make a final opinion.
I get tired of people leaving lots of money on the table. And what’s worse is that the general media sources perpetuate the ignorance or inferior options.
There are many that just put their money in a savings account with a typical big bank like Bank of America whose savings rate is in the neighborhood of 0.2%.
Then there’s the next step up with online saving accounts such as Ally Bank, HSBC Direct, ING Direct, EverBank, and Emigrant Direct. I’ve personally have used ING Direct (4% in 2005), Emigrant Direct (5.25% in 2006), HSBC Direct in (6% in 2007).
However the rates have plummeted since 2008. The options above are somewhat respectable ranging from 1.20% to 2.50% which is still 6X the typical saving account rate.
Many people have seen finance blogs or websites continue recommending these so called great saving interest rates from these online banks giving the impression it’s the best thing out there. While the so called “best” options were around 3% or lower the last two years, I’ve been making between 6.01% and 5.01% the the last two years. (Rate dropped from 6.01 to 5.01 early 2009)
You can easily find a bank near you that beats all those other online saving accounts through:
https://www.checkingfinder.com/
It’s a site that finds high interesting checking accounts from regional banks (all FDIC insured). This checking account IS my savings account. There are some catches or qualifications you have to meet on a monthly basis or statement cycle in order to earn such a high interest like 5.01% currently for where I live.
Some include:
I easily get 10 card transactions per month. Setting a direct deposit with your employer to the bank is common nowadays, but if you’re not able to do that, you can just have one bill pay or automatic payment for a utility bill or something. Receiving your monthly statement electronically is probably a freebie if you’re reading this blog. And a typical bonus of these banks is free ATM refunds as well! And if somehow you slip up and don’t meet all the qualifications for a certain statement cycle, you’ll still earn more than 0.20% on your money.
One may wonder how can these banks offer rates that are so far ahead of the competition that most people know about. We’ll they’re definitely not making much money off you…maybe none at all. Which is why there’s usually a limit on your balance that can qualify to earn the high rate. Typically balances up to $25,000. But hey…if you’re fortunate enough to have more than that much, you can open another account at a different bank. Just search for another one at https://www.checkingfinder.com/
