Happy Tax day: $100K-Plus Earners Pay 72% of Federal Income Taxes

[Rosicrucian]

Earn 100k a year where I am, with a wife and kid at home and let me know how you get on.

At least the noodles you'll be dining on have a decent amount of carbs 

Which metro area do you live in James?

I guess it's easy for me to say but I would sacrifice a lot to make sure my kids have a solid environment and aren't raised by daycare strangers. Kinda stuff you can't buyback later. (no chromohomo)

[jephrius]

Those of you who don't understand what money is don't know how to shelter it or invest it. Thus you pay taxes through the nose. If you are indeed making 100k or more (which you're not) you should have your wealth managed.

[Rosicrucian]

Those of you who don't understand what money is don't know how to shelter it or invest it. Thus you pay taxes through the nose. If you are indeed making 100k or more (which you're not) you should have your wealth managed.

You sound like quite the Wolverine of WallStreet looking down on "us".

Carebear to share some "tricks" with us Gordon Gayko>?

[cephissus]

Middle class? My friend, on 90k I wouldn't even be able to look after my dog if it was just me and him. To be the SOLE breadwinner for a family of 4, pay all the bills and buy food, live in a nice area away from human garbage, run 2 cars and go on holiday once or twice a year you're looking at 150-200 MINIMUM. Between the girlfriend and myself we're hitting around 230 a year. And believe me, we don't live it up.

money management of peace

[The Ugly]

Nah... Even in the Suburban LA area, if you make 100K you are doing alright.

I mean, you're not rich, but you're getting by just fine.

Now NYC... especially Manhattan... Yeah... That's a struggle, and of course if you're trying to live in Beverly Hills or something, but you're not doing too badly in 99.99% of the places in America.

Don't see you around here much anymore. Do you still post on MD?

[Mick33]

Which metro area do you live in James?

I guess it's easy for me to say but I would sacrifice a lot to make sure my kids have a solid environment and aren't raised by daycare strangers. Kinda stuff you can't buyback later. (no chromohomo)

I would like to know this answer as well.

[Rosicrucian]

Middle class? My friend, on 90k I wouldn't even be able to look after my dog if it was just me and him. To be the SOLE breadwinner for a family of 4, pay all the bills and buy food, live in a nice area away from human garbage, run 2 cars and go on holiday once or twice a year you're looking at 150-200 MINIMUM. Between the girlfriend and myself we're hitting around 230 a year. And believe me, we don't live it up.

LOLOLOLOL.. of course you are... no offense chief but unless you live downtown NYC or SFO, have a massive coke habit, it's mathematically impossible to not have decent disposable at 230k. 

[gcb]

man - some of you people seriously lack comprehension skills - it says that 72% of tax comes from 100K+ NOT that people on 100K+ are paying 72%.

[James28]

LOLOLOLOL.. of course you are... no offense chief but unless you live downtown NYC or SFO, have a massive coke habit, it's mathematically impossible to not have decent disposable at 230k. 

Haha. That made me chuckle.  

What do you know about my expenses 'chief'  

[James28]

man - some of you people seriously lack comprehension skills - it says that 72% of tax comes from 100K+ NOT that people on 100K+ are paying 72%.

No shit. Obviously we know that.

I believe our dear OP also once made a post asking in seriousness whether people in Denmark paid 150% tax 

[James28]

Oh and before people pounce, we're saving as the girlfriend want to get married and have a baby soon, giving up work in the process. So we're squirreling away like mad. Once her income is out of the equation, we go down to being very middle class again. In a city where the house prices are at historic highs along with historic shortage (Christchurch NZ). And here's the kicker, we're still renting. I still need to buy (though I still have my place in the UK). So I guess I have no reason being out there every night snorting coke off hookers' tits. I just like wasting away the odd few hundred at the slot machines    

[James28]

Those of you who don't understand what money is don't know how to shelter it or invest it. Thus you pay taxes through the nose. If you are indeed making 100k or more (which you're not) you should have your wealth managed.

Brutal thinking a 100k is a lot of money in 2014 (unless living in Anus, Idaho). Epic not realizing that plumbers and electricians earn that. Mega thinking that you're going to turn up at Goldman Sachs with your 4-6k a month take-home salary and think you're going to get face time with a 'wealth manager'.  

[WalterWhite]

What really sucks is when you pay well over 100k in income taxes, pay quarterly taxes and still get audited!

[James28]

What really sucks is when you pay well over 100k in income taxes, pay quarterly taxes and still get audited!

Then you must be on a decent screw. Back in the UK I heard from a 'revenue inspector' that unless you're earning more than 250k a year, they're hardly interest in you.

[Rosicrucian]

Haha. That made me chuckle.  

What do you know about my expenses 'chief'  

Hey no harm intended, colonel Sargent. .. ppl tend to lie a lot about their income and hurtfully believe it.

More power to you. The American way, be happy about a brother's prosperity. Quite different from euros.

Question remains... what's the average household income in your neck of the woods?

[Irongrip400]

I pay quarterly estimates. I had a good year this year and have to pay an additional $19,367. Brutal ownage on the part of the IRS.  

[Roger Bacon]

I pay quarterly estimates. I had a good year this year and have to pay an additional $19,367. Brutal ownage on the part of the IRS.  

A lot of Obama voters are depending on you!

[James28]

Hey no harm intended, colonel Sargent. .. ppl tend to lie a lot about their income and hurtfully believe it.

More power to you. The American way, be happy about a brother's prosperity. Quite different from euros.

Question remains... what's the average household income in your neck of the woods?

Funny you should ask. Read yesterday that's it's around 74k, but that might be a bit low. Read here, taking into a account it's 2013 figures. Heaps and heaps of jobs available here so employers can't take the piss. So at 74k and mom and dad both works. The maths = easy.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/8144749/Christchurch-wages-show-big-increase

Remember, this is NZ Dollar so not sure how it compares to Yank $$$. I don't know the average country wide. All I know is that I'm getting gouged HARD on rent and food prices are very dear. I only came here as I got a good offer. Otherwise I'd be in your neck of the woods or Oz. Or Canada.

To be brutally honest, it's all earthquake money. Had that not happened I'd still be in London slaving for peanuts.

[ESFitness]

except cars over a million dollars 

but according to you, you need to be a 'millionaire' (do you even know what a 'millionaire' is? lol) to drive an S-Class Mercedes.

lol

you can have a garage with an 09 S63, a 997 C4S, a 360 Modena, for just over $150k the first two less than 45k miles and the Ferrari less than 25k.

that's only $30k out of pocket if you only put down 20%.

maybe if you quit spending your sons money on your black crack hookers you too, could drive an S550.

[Rosicrucian]

Funny you should ask. Read yesterday that's it's around 74k, but that might be a bit low. Read here, taking into a account it's 2013 figures. Heaps and heaps of jobs available here so employers can't take the piss. So at 74k and mom and dad both works. The maths = easy.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/8144749/Christchurch-wages-show-big-increase

Remember, this is NZ Dollar so not sure how it compares to Yank $$$. I don't know the average country wide. All I know is that I'm getting gouged HARD on rent and food prices are very dear. I only came here as I got a good offer. Otherwise I'd be in your neck of the woods or Oz. Or Canada.

To be brutally honest, it's all earthquake money. Had that not happened I'd still be in London slaving for peanuts.

Well thanks for your honesty james. Hope you prosper and enjoy llife. Word of advice, lavish weddies sound cool on paper but buy a house instead . Ownership ♢ liberation.

[James28]

but according to you, you need to be a 'millionaire' (do you even know what a 'millionaire' is? lol) to drive an S-Class Mercedes.

lol

you can have a garage with an 09 S63, a 997 C4S, a 360 Modena, for just over $150k the first two less than 45k miles and the Ferrari less than 25k.

that's only $30k out of pocket if you only put down 20%.

maybe if you quit spending your sons money on your black crack hookers you too, could drive an S550.

I think a lot of us talk about buying a car outright and not make expensive payments every month where you get bent over a barrel with interest payments. I'd rather wait until I've saved the money before buying the car.

Come to think of it, it's probably why I've always driven shit cars.

Not that cars matter all the much to me  

Bugatti's are nice though.

[James28]

Well thanks for your honesty james. Hope you prosper and enjoy llife. Word of advice, lavish weddies sound cool on paper but buy a house instead . Ownership ♢ liberation.

My friend, I hear you so loud and clear it's scary. It's as if you're sitting next to me.

There's a big argument going on in the 'James' household about the price of engagement rings. All the friends are rocking 20 grand rings (at hefty interest rates) She's not happy with anything less. I'm thinking 2k max (I'm thinking $100 max), she's countering with 15k. Neither of us willing to move on price. So there might not be a wedding any time soon to argue over.


I may try and make light of this but she's pulling out the 'I'll wear it for the rest of my life' and 'don't you want me to have the ring I really desire?' or 'We're only doing this once' arguments.

[WalterWhite]

Then you must be on a decent screw. Back in the UK I heard from a 'revenue inspector' that unless you're earning more than 250k a year, they're hardly interest in you.

The one was a pain because it was expense related so very time consuming and the next was options related. Of course they took place after our new president took office.   

[Red Hook]

(CNSNews.com) -- Taxpayers earning $100,000 or more a year pay 71.6% of the nation’s share in individual federal income taxes, according to the latest data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) from 2011.

These data do not include corporate income taxes, or taxes on capital gains or dividends, or payroll taxes for Social Security and other programs.

In 2011, according to the IRS, there were 145,370,240 individual income tax returns filed. Among those returns, 125,914,418 or 86.6%, belonged to taxpayers earning a salary less than $100,000. The remaining 19,455,822 returns belonged to those taxpayers earning more than $100,000, or 13.4% of the total.

While those top earners, earning six figures or more, represented only 13.4% of the total number of individual income tax returns reported to the IRS, they contributed nearly three-fourths of the total amount of federal  tax revenue from individual filers reported for that year.
US Capitol

Dome of the U.S. Capitol. (AP photo)

In 2011, the IRS collected $1,088,559,743,000 based on taxpayers' taxable income. From that total, 71.6%, or $779,547,834,000 came from those taxpayers earning six figures or more. Only 28.4%, or $308,816,180,000, came from those earning less than $100,000.

The IRS has been posting these tax data online since 1996, when the share of the nation’s tax-burden (on individual income) held by six-figure earners was 51%.  Since then, the share of the nation’s taxes paid by six-figure earners has increased, peaking (so far) in 2007 when top earners paid 72.6% of the nation’s individual income taxes.

Those individual income taxes, $1.08 trillion, comprised 47% of the federal government's revenue in fiscal year 2011, which was $2.3 trillion,  according to the Congressional Budget Office. The balance came from employment or social insurance taxes (36%); corporate income taxes (8%); excise taxes (3%); custom duties (0.3%); and miscellaneous receipts (4%).    (See Historical Budget Data.xls and CBO Budget Outlook.pdf)

coach regardless of who is office I don't think that there will be a reduction in the amount of tax dollars the government collects. Ofcourse the Republicans are going to place the burden on the poor and ever dwindling middle class.

Unless we are willing to cut the military budgets which is currently 1/2 of all federal dollars then we are just arguing over pennies.



everybody wants to cut taxes as long as it doesn't affect their benefits.

[Roger Bacon]