Bear in mind that in calculating this income you dont count municipal bond interest or unrealized capital gains.

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The uncertainty is also problematic for those with unrealized capital gains or estate issues.

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The fund has had an abundance of unrealized capital gains, which it distributes to shareholders as a return of capital.

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Finally, when he dies, his heirs will enjoy a stepped-up basis and the government will never collect any revenue from all those unrealized capital gains.

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Investors who have owned MLPs for years and who had large unrealized capital gains have decided to take their medicine today rather than wait for the inevitable.

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The "Buffett Rule" would not tax the vast majority of his shielded income, including either his unrealized capital gains, which are currently taxed at zero percent, or charitable contributions, which are tax deductible.

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Further, he gives so much to charity, he gets big deductions on the full market value of the stocks he gives away, most of which are unrealized and therefore untaxed capital gains.

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Yes, we figure in the tax on distributed capital gains but not on the unrealized appreciation in the fund's shares.

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In addition, Morningstar.com's tax analysis will show you a fund's potential capital gains exposure in the future--that is how much in unrealized gains it has accumulated.

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