The smart move Jeff Bezos made to “save” $600 million in taxes

His $2 billion stock sale Jeff Bezos last week it came with an added… perk: excluding state taxes. Last year, Bezos announced on Instagram that he was leaving Seattle after nearly 30 years to move to Miami. He said the move was to be closer to his parents but also to his Blue Origin rocket launches.

However, there was one more important reason that has to do with his … pocket. And this is that he escapes from the taxes he has to pay to the state.

As it conveys the CNBCin 2022 the state of Washington mandatedwith a new tax 7% capital gains on sales of stocks or bonds over $250,000. Washington state has no personal income tax, so the new levy marked the first time Bezos would face state taxes on sales of its shares.

The tycoon businessman started selling her shares Amazon billions of dollars to fund his philanthropy, his space company Blue Origin and most recently his $500 million mega yacht and a growing collection of ultra-luxurious properties he bought with Fiancee of Lauren Sanchez.

In 2022, when the tax took effect, Bezos stopped selling. He didn't sell any Amazon stock in 2022 or 2023, giving away just $200 million in stock at the end of last year.

After moving to Miami, Bezos made up for… lost time. Last week, an SEC filing revealed that the tycoon had launched a pre-specified plan to sell 50 million shares before January 31, 2025. At today's price, it would total more than 8.7 billion dollars. Florida has no state income tax or capital gains tax. So in last week's $2 billion sale, it saved $140 million that it would have paid to Washington state. In the entire sale of 50 million shares next year, it will save at least 610 million dollars. And that's assuming Amazon's stock remains flat. If they continue to rise, the value of his shares – and his tax savings – will be even higher.

In other words, it's more than paid for his more than 127m yacht, Koru, with just his Florida tax savings.

For his new venture, Bezos bought two Indian Creek mansions for $147 million and is reportedly considering three other properties on the island. Miami realtors say Bezos is likely to tear down the homes and build a new one, with the total cost of the new property exceeding 200 million dollars.

Source: News Beast

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