@Chaulk wrote:
I thought we are supposed to do something every December before Capitol gains are distributed to save on taxes or am I wrong?
That depends on what kind of investor you are. Most people are not knowledgeable enough to actively manage their investments, and should just buy good quality stocks or mutual funds, and hold them until they need the money. Trying to buy and sell and time the market is dangerous and most people don't have the time to dedicate to learn enough to do it well.
If you are really into buying and selling and trading and being an active investor, then there might be things you can do to reduce your taxes. For example, if you ABC stock that has lost money and XYZ stock that has gained a lot in value, you might sell your position in ABC before 12/31 to create a loss, and then also sell XYZ for a profit, and the loss will offset the gain so you don't have a net taxable gain.
But you need a pretty big portfolio for these opportunities to come up, and you need to know a lot about stocks and investing. The fact that you are even asking the question suggests you don't know enough about investing to try and get this fancy with your buys and sells. If you are mostly a buy and hold investor, there is really nothing you need to do or should do. Your portfolio may have some capital gains this year (mainly if the mutual funds you owned sold some of their positions) and you will get a 1099-B, and add it to your tax return.
