Making the best of a capital loss

Description

Abstract: Incurring a capital loss might be considered an unfortunate part of investing or an opportunity to lower tax liability and reposition one’s portfolio, respectively. As this article explains, it’s possible to use capital losses to offset any capital gains realized in that same tax year, even if one is short term and the other is long term. The article discusses trading stocks in a manner that doesn’t run afoul of the “wash sale” rule and choosing among several methods of designating lots when selling securities.