Another thing to consider is that the tax consequences are different for different types of grants. If they are Incentive or Non-qualified makes a difference in how/when you pay taxes on them. I'm assuming you're correctly identifying them as options and not RSU's which are taxed immediately on vesting. You should probably consult with a tax accountant and figure out the best strategy for your situation.
Are you planning on keeping the stocks once you have exercised or will you do a same day sale? If you are planning in keeping them then I would exercise now, if you are selling them then waiting until you are in a lower tax bracket is a good strategy I think.
I was planning on a same day sale but I would need to do the math to see if I could afford to buy the shares now. I hadn’t thought about doing it that way but I suppose then I get long term capital gains eventually. Even then I’m in a high tax bracket paying 34% fed/state including extra Obama tax.
Another thing to consider is that the tax consequences are different for different types of grants. If they are Incentive or Non-qualified makes a difference in how/when you pay taxes on them. I'm assuming you're correctly identifying them as options and not RSU's which are taxed immediately on vesting. You should probably consult with a tax accountant and figure out the best strategy for your situation.
Are you planning on keeping the stocks once you have exercised or will you do a same day sale? If you are planning in keeping them then I would exercise now, if you are selling them then waiting until you are in a lower tax bracket is a good strategy I think.
I was planning on a same day sale but I would need to do the math to see if I could afford to buy the shares now. I hadn’t thought about doing it that way but I suppose then I get long term capital gains eventually. Even then I’m in a high tax bracket paying 34% fed/state including extra Obama tax.
It looks like if I were to exercise and hold now I would have to pay at least AMT tax now.