Bill’s By The Number$

Posted by: Lisa Navarro | Posted on: May 3rd, 2021 | 0 Comments

FOUR MONTHS – The S&P 500 gained +5.3% (total return) in April 2021, putting the index up +11.8% YTD (total return) through Friday 4/30/21. The S&P 500 consists of 500 stocks chosen for market size, liquidity and industry group representation. It is a market value weighted index with each stock’s weight in the index proportionate to its market value (source: BTN Research).

NEED A SCORECARD – The Biden White House announced last week its 3rd stimulus proposal since taking office on 1/20/21. The “American Families Plan” is a $1.8 trillion proposal (released on 4/28/21) that directs money to childcare, paid family leave and other domestic priorities. Previously, the “American Rescue Plan Act,” aka HR # 1319, scored at $1.9 trillion and signed into law on 3/11/21 and the “American Jobs Plan,” the $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal released on 3/31/21, was introduced by the administration (source: White House).

TO START IN JULY – 90% of the estimated 50 million households in the United States that have children under the age of 18 qualify (based upon the household’s adjusted gross income) for the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) per the “American Rescue Plan Act.” Beginning 7/01/21, the CTC will pay $300 per month per child under age 6 and $250 per month per child between the ages 6-17. Additional amounts may be available for full-time college students older than age 18. Please consult a tax expert for details (source: Tax Policy Center).

HIGHEST EVER – The top capital gains tax rate in 2021 for a married filing joint taxpayer with taxable income of at least $496,600 is 23.8%. On Thursday 4/22/21, reports surfaced that the White House favors increasing the top capital gains tax rate in 2022 for a married filing joint taxpayer with taxable income of at least $1 million to 43.4%. The highest capital gains tax rate in US history is 39.875%, last levied in 1978 (source: IRS).

READY FOR A VACATION – The average daily cost of a short-term vacation rental, i.e., for 3-7 days, for the summer of 2021 is +26% higher than the average daily cost from the summer of 2019 (source: AirDNA).

WOOD – The average cost of building a new single-family home in the US has increased by +8% in the last year ($24,000) solely because of the rising cost of lumber. Lumber mills shut down nationwide in 2020 for as long as 4 months, leading to a lumber shortage as homebuilding demand accelerated. Lumber imports into the USA have been impacted by a beetle plague ravaging Canadian forests (source: National Association of Homebuilders).

DEMAND FOR EXISTING HOMES – The median price of a new single-family home built in the USA in March 2019 was +17% more expensive than the median price of an existing single-family home sold in March 2019. The median price of a new single-family home built in the USA in March 2021 was just +1% more expensive than the median price of an existing single-family home sold in March 2021 (source: Census Bureau).

MAKE A QUICK DECISION – Existing homes that were sold nationwide in March 2021 were on the market on average of just 18 days (2 ½ weeks) before selling (source: National Association of Realtors).

SIMPLER RETURN – The “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA) of December 2017 increased the standard deduction for taxpayers effective with the 2018 tax year. As a result of the change, the percentage of households taking the standard deduction has increased from 70% (pre-TCJA) to 90% (post-TCJA) (source: Tax Policy Center).

TAX INCENTIVE – Just 45% of households in Germany are homeowners (compared to 66% in the USA). Interest paid on a home mortgage in Germany is not deductible on a personal tax return (unless the homeowner does not occupy the property), whereas mortgage interest expense is deductible for US homeowners who itemize their deductions (source: Deutsche Bundesbank).

KEEP YOUR DISTANCE – As of March 2021, 4.2 million American workers have stepped away from the workforce because they are afraid of catching the COVID-19 virus at work (source: Department of Labor).

IT’S NOT AN OPTION – Just 1 in 25 US corporations (4%) surveyed anticipate requiring its employees to be vaccinated for the COVID-19 virus (source: ManpowerGroup North America).

LONE STAR – Texas gained 2 seats in the House of Representatives (to 38 seats) based upon the 2020 Census, on top of the 4 seats it gained (to 36 seats) following the 2010 Census (source: Census Bureau).

HALF – 49% of the USA’s 330 million population maintain their health insurance through an employer’s health insurance plan either as an employee or a dependent of an employee (source: Kaiser Family Foundation).

SOCIAL MEDIA – The PGA began on 1/01/21 a “Player Impact Program” that pays $40 million per year to the top 10 golfers based on “fan and sponsor engagement.” The top-rated golfer earns $8 million (source: PGA).