Can i save Property Tax by filing it online? (QandA : 005)

Question 005

Can i save Property Tax by filing it online?

Property Tax needs to be paid for every property (real estate) that is fully or partially owned by you. Last date for filing property tax this year (2014-15) is 30th June 2014. Check out how can you can file it online from the comfort of your home, and save 2% of property tax at the same time.
Answer 005
Government has been encouraging citizens to file property tax online for the last few years. Not only it is easy and convenient, it also saves you 2% of the total payable tax.

Some of the advantages of filing property tax via online medium are:

1) You only need to do a one time filling of property details. Each subsequent year, when you come to file property tax, you just need to enter your property id - and all details will appear automatically.

2) Tax calculation is automatic every year. Don't need to bother about complex tax calculation.

3) You can pay online or generate a challan, through which you can pay it by cheque at the nearest bank.

4) You save 2% of the total property tax if you decide to file it online (either online payment or challan generation online)

So..go online..save money and enjoy filing your taxes !!

Related Posts:

• Income Tax Slabs for FY 2013-14 / AY 2014-15
• See what people say when they move from the rat race to financial freedom
• Learn how to pursue Financial Freedom
• Save Taxes on Capital Gains
• Read what readers of the book have been saying.
• All about Income Tax
• Difference between Financial Year and Assessment Year

Cheers

Manoj Arora

Freedom can buy you....what money cannot !!

Author’s Life Mission | Freedom portal | Author's Fan Page | Blog | Face Book  | Google+ |  YouTube | Read Book Reviews | Twitter | Ask for help

Is investing in NPS (National Pension Scheme) really useful? (QandA : 004)

Question : 004

Is investing in NPS (National Pension Scheme) really useful?

Even if your company has aligned its salary structure to provide you "additional tax benefits" and persuading you to invest in NPS, you must think through before indulging in this long term commitment.

Answer : 004

Well, it depends on how your portfolio is currently aligned.
If you are already heavy on non-debt based investments like EPF (Employee Provident Fund), PPF (Public Provident Fund), FDs (Fixed Deposits), Debt Funds etc...i see no point investing in another debt based scheme.

While NPS looks lucrative from additional tax savings perspective, but one must remember that:

1) NPS falls under EET tax regime, which means any withdrawal is taxed at the prevailing income tax rates at the time of withdrawal. (unlike EPF and PPF, which fall under EEE regime - and everything is tax free). Though making NPS as EEE complaint is being discussed by the government, but not sure what will finally happen. 

2) You might feel that you might save 30% tax right now and when you retire and withdraw money, you might be in a lower tax bracket (may be 10% or 20%). Well, difficult to say, but i would rather plan my life to be in 30% tax bracket after i retire, than plan for being in 10%.
 
3) 40% of the entire Corpus in NPS will be mandatory to be invested in Government Annuity (which, as per me, is the worst possible investment of money)
 
4) Your portfolio overweight to non equity (debt) based investments must be looked into. As a thumb rule, if you are 40, you should have not more than 40% of your total invest able surplus money invested in debt based investments. If you are already overweight on debt, you might not want to further increase the weight of non equity based investments.

I personally decided not to invest in NPS, and i would advise you to at least wait and watch (till there is enough clarity from the govt on EEE regime), unless you are already too heavy on equity based investments and are desperately searching for debt based safe instruments.

Related Posts:

• Income Tax Slabs for FY 2013-14 / AY 2014-15
• What are Tax Regimes : EEE, EET
• See what people say when they move from the rat race to financial freedom
• Learn how to pursue Financial Freedom
• Save Taxes on Capital Gains
• Read what readers of the book have been saying.
• All about Income Tax
• Difference between Financial Year and Assessment Year
• What is PRAN Number?

Cheers

Manoj Arora

Freedom can buy you....what money cannot !!

Author’s Life Mission | Freedom portal | Author's Fan Page | Blog | Face Book  | Google+ |  YouTube | Read Book Reviews | Twitter | Ask for help

How does one react to politics in office? (QandA : 004)

Question 004

One of my book readers shared her concern on the politics in her office. She mentioned that she realises when someone is playing politics, but is unable to react at that very moment. What should she do? Should she study some books and articles to learn the technique of responding to the other person so that she is not taken for granted among her peer circle?

Answer 004

Always remember that the first person who is impacted by your reaction is YOU yourself. And the impact is obviously not only emotional, but also physical. You not only get disturbed in your thoughts, but can also feel your heart beat difference, pulse rate change, and in some extreme cases, even headache. 

Even if you cannot see a physical impact, it does not mean that the impact did not occur. Absence of evidence is not a conclusion for non existence. So was the case when there was no evidence of earth being round.
It is exactly the same in our lives.

Every negative emotion whether anger, jealousy, hatred, ego, competition...everything has a definite negative impact on your physical health, though you may not see immediate evidence of the same. Wake up before it is too late !! Every such negative reaction will make sure that you are permanently physically damaged.

Would you want to do that to yourself? Why would you want to harm yourself for a negative act by someone else? How long will you keep harming yourself?

The other way out of the situation is to insulate yourself from such negative triggers that come form outside. There are various techniques that are used to insulate your inner happiness from these triggers and shield your happiness. Carrying a destiny card every day and imbibing one such technique will help you in the long run the fiercely protect your happiness. You will learn about more such techniques in the upcoming book "Happiness Unlimited"

Need help in understanding how you can lead a happier life by protecting your happiness?
Write to us at help@happinessunlimited.co.in

Cheers

Manoj Arora

You are entitled to happiness unlimited !!

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What is the Cost Inflation Index for FY 2015-16 AY 2016-17

Cost Inflation Index (CII) is used to arrive at the adjusted cost of your capital gains after taking care of "official" inflation figures. CII for FY 2015-16 has just been declared...Read on..

Should we be clever and successful OR live by our core values? (QandA : 003)

Problem 003

Should we be clever and successful OR live by your core values? Can we be successful without living by our core values?

Solution 003

One of my close friends started discussing a very interesting topic on Linked In. And i thought, this is a very relevant topic for everyone in life.

To be successful in many of our professional goals, there is a common belief that we ought to learn the tricks of the trade, we ought to be clever and smart, we ought to be bluffing and playing with our values, at least sometimes, to reach our destination.

As this discussion thread was initiated, there are a few point of views i had for him, and i thought these might be worthwhile for all of us so that happiness can flow unlimited and unhindered in your life.

Happiness is the ultimate and only end goal of all your endeavors in life. Goals, achievements, milestones, success - will all give us temporary happiness, but the process of achievement of goals is what gives us lasting happiness. And if the process itself is not aligned to our core values, there is no way we can experience lasting happiness.

What if i follow the core values and miss my goals just because of that? 

So what if you missed your goal. 

So what if you did not come out no. 1 and came out no. 2, but you followed your core values of love, honesty, happiness, respect, integrity, service and caring. There is absolutely nothing wrong being no. 2. At the end of the life, number 2 is just another number.

My friend obviously commented that this would mean we would not be that famous. 

Who remembers no. 2? Everyone remembers only no. 1. 

Do you know the second person who climbed Mount Everest or who landed on the moon? The answer is No.

But here is the point. The question you need to ask yourself is that whether you want to be popular in someone else's eyes or in your own eyes. What gives you more satisfaction and happiness?

Living by your core values makes sure that you hold your head high in your own eyes and in the eyes of people who matter the most to you. And success comes with that experience of bliss that comes with a life filled with core values, and resulting happiness experienced by the soul and shared with other souls.

Need help in understanding how life can be happy even if we miss goals? 
Write to us at help@happinessunlimited.co.in

Cheers

Manoj Arora

You are entitled to happiness unlimited !!

My Life's Mission | Authors Fan Page | Facebook | Blog | Google+ | Ask for help |

Is electronic Filing of Income Tax Return Mandatory?

Is it mandatory to do electronic filing of Income Tax Returns? Or, can you continue to file returns in the manual format?..Read on...

Why is it important to know the purpose of my life? (QandA : 002)

Problem 002
Why is it important to know the purpose of my life? Does it really matter if i have not defined a clear purpose or a strategy in life?

Solution 002

Imagine driving a car and approaching a crossing which has four roads going to four different destinations - A, B, C, and D. Most of the traffic is going in the direction of A. What would you do? Which direction will you take? How do you decide the direction you would ultimately take?

Most of the times in our lives, we seem to ignore the importance of defining the purpose of life, assuming that this may not necessarily be needed. But remember that going through your life without a defined end purpose is like driving a car and approaching a crossing which has directions towards four different destinations.

We do not know which direction we want to take - because we do not where we want to reach. And then the only option that we take is to follow the herd. We go where maximum traffic is going - whether we enjoy that journey or not, whether we ever wanted to reach that destination or not.

A clear purpose or mission of life, with a strategy to achieve the purpose will enable easy decision making in life, ease out your competition, and will get you going in your desired direction. Following your mission is living a life full of happiness.

Need help in identifying your mission of life? 
Write to me at help@happinessunlimited.co.in

Cheers

Manoj Arora

You are entitled to happiness unlimited !!

My Life's Mission | Authors Fan Page | Facebook | Blog | Google+ | Ask for help |

Is it mandatory to file Income Tax Returns?

[Last Updated : 5-Jul-2017]
Is it mandatory to file Income Tax Returns? Or, based on your income, no taxability etc., are you exempt from filing IT returns? There are certain conditions...read on..

How can I avoid jealousy because of competition? (QandA : 001)

Problem 001

How can I avoid jealousy because of competition?

Background

One of the major causes of jealousy today, is the competition that we indulge ourselves in - consciously or unconsciously. This could be the sense of competition at your workplace, or comparing your standard of living with your peers - whether it is the race to gather the latest gadget, the newest car model, or the home theater.

And we see it all around - not only in our peer work group, I have seen couples competing among themselves. Not only that, it is common to see competition and jealousy among our siblings, close relatives and friends.

Solution 001

Let us see what changes we can bring in our thinking approach to avoid the sense of competition:

(1) One of the best techniques to overcome jealousy, and therefore to increase the happiness content in our life is to remember this we must take inspiration from others but compete only with our own self. And the reason is simple. Any competition with anyone else puts a limiting constraint on your own capability.

(2) The second technique is to understand that each one of us are in our own journey of life, just like two cars on a highway. The journey, their destination, their purpose of the journey - everything is different. Competing with the other car is like comparing an orange with an apple i.e. makes no sense.

(3) Last but not the least, remember that the only purpose of our life is to be happy, and share happiness all around. If jealousy snatches happiness away from you, then your purpose in life is being challenged - why are you allowing it to?

Cheers

Manoj Arora

You are entitled to happiness unlimited !!

My Life's Mission | Authors Fan Page | Facebook | Blog | Google+ | Ask for help |

What is the meaning of Taxation Regimes - EEE EET ETE TEE

There are different systems for tax exemption / deduction of investments, and for taxation of the income earned from it, like Exempt – Exempt – Exempt (EEE) or Exempt – Exempt -Taxed (EET).

What do these combinations mean? Which investment option follows which taxation regime? A fundamental understanding can help us select the right investment tool...Read on...

What are micro SIPs

Many investors are keen to start SIPs of small amounts for their household helps, drivers or other small investors. However, these investors may not have a PAN card or other documentation required for mutual fund investments.
In order to facilitate such small-ticket investments, Sebi has withdrawn the requirement of PAN for SIPs that do not exceed Rs 50,000 in a financial year. Such installments are called micro SIPs... read on...

Documentation

Micro SIPs are exempt from the requirement of PAN or KYC documentation.

However, a copy of a photo identification document, such as the Aadhar card, voter ID or driving license, issued by the government, needs to be submitted and verified with the originals.

A complete list of approved documents is available with the AMCs.

Attestation

The documents provided as identity proof have to be current and valid, self attested by the investor and also attested by an ARN holder registered with Amfi as a mutual fund distributor.

Applicability

Micro SIPs can be opened by individuals, NRIs (not PIOs), minors and sole proprietorships.

HUFs or other categories of institutional investors are not eligible for exemptions available for micro SIPs.

No lump sum

The exemption is not available for lump sum investment even if the amount is less than Rs 50,000.

It is available only for SIPs that don't add up to more than Rs 50,000 in a financial year.

More than one SIP can be created by the same investor using the exemption as long as the invested amount does not exceed the Rs 50,000 limit.

Points to note

• If the micro SIP documents are found to be defective or incomplete, the investor will receive a deficiency memo and the application will be cancelled.

• If the mutual fund house deposits the cheque of a defective application, the investment will be redeemed at the applicable NAV. No fresh investments will be accepted.

So, go on...help your domestic help, gardener, or driver or any low earning person hooked on to micro SIPs as a better investment option.

Related Posts:

• 10 Most Common Mutual Fund Myths
• See what people say when they move from the rat race to financial freedom
• Learn how to pursue Financial Freedom
• What are Direct Mutual Funds in India
• Read what readers of the book have been saying.
• Fixed Deposits Vs Debt Based Mutual Funds

Cheers

Manoj Arora

Freedom can buy you....what money cannot !!

Author’s Life Mission | Freedom portal | Author's Fan Page | Blog | Face Book  | Google+ |  YouTube | Twitter | Ask for help |