Rating: 
Summary: A must have for people with equity in their company...
Review: An excellent resource for anyone seeking to understand and be involved in planning strategies to maximize the after-tax value of your stock compensation. Covers restricted stock grants, options (ISOs & NQSOs), employee stock purchase programs (ESPP). Various areas of tax planning are covered in detail: strategies to minimize AMT, effects of early exercise thru 83b election, gifting or donating options/stock, etc.The author describes topics in a matter that is both thorough and easy to read. The book is organized into sections devoted to specific topics making it easy to skip or skim sections that may not pertain to your particular situation (e.g. there are separate sections on NQSOs and ISOs). Additionally, the author makes good use of examples throughout the book to illustrate complex rules. This latest edition (Apr 2002) includes updated information regarding changes to tax laws as well as explanations of pitfalls that many optionees have encountered recently (e.g. ISO "wash" sales). This book is a must have to anyone who receives a portion of their compensation in the form of equity, whether it be stock grants, options, ESPP, or any combination of these. The book is both an informative read as well as a handy resource to keep on your bookshelf. After reading this book, most people will have all or nearly all the tools & info they need to develop their own strategies for managing their stock should they so desire. For those seeking professional advice, this book serves as a great overview so that you can understand the process and ask all the right questions. I only wish I had found this book sooner :)
Rating:
Summary: A must have for people with equity in their company...
Review: An excellent resource for anyone seeking to understand and be involved in planning strategies to maximize the after-tax value of your stock compensation. Covers restricted stock grants, options (ISOs & NQSOs), employee stock purchase programs (ESPP). Various areas of tax planning are covered in detail: strategies to minimize AMT, effects of early exercise thru 83b election, gifting or donating options/stock, etc. The author describes topics in a matter that is both thorough and easy to read. The book is organized into sections devoted to specific topics making it easy to skip or skim sections that may not pertain to your particular situation (e.g. there are separate sections on NQSOs and ISOs). Additionally, the author makes good use of examples throughout the book to illustrate complex rules. This latest edition (Apr 2002) includes updated information regarding changes to tax laws as well as explanations of pitfalls that many optionees have encountered recently (e.g. ISO "wash" sales). This book is a must have to anyone who receives a portion of their compensation in the form of equity, whether it be stock grants, options, ESPP, or any combination of these. The book is both an informative read as well as a handy resource to keep on your bookshelf. After reading this book, most people will have all or nearly all the tools & info they need to develop their own strategies for managing their stock should they so desire. For those seeking professional advice, this book serves as a great overview so that you can understand the process and ask all the right questions. I only wish I had found this book sooner :)
Rating:
Summary: Great Book for the working person who wants more info
Review: As a working guy in a high tech company which is about to go public, I found it hard to understand the tax ramifications of the companies stock options and stock purchase plans. This book is written with folks like me in mind. It has great examples and enough detail to help you make plans and avoid some of the tax traps while still being simple enough that you do not have to be a tax attorney to understand the words. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Probably the best book on the subject at this point
Review: Excellent overall. I learned a lot although it was the 3rd book I read on the subject. If you really need this book, consider also "Stock Options..." by Pastore (2nd edition only). If you consider only one of them, then I liked Thomas' book better. :) Yair.
Rating:
Summary: Probably the best book on the subject at this point
Review: Excellent overall. I learned a lot although it was the 3rd book I read on the subject. If you really need this book, consider also "Stock Options..." by Pastore (2nd edition only). If you consider only one of them, then I liked Thomas' book better. :) Yair.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening, educational & defintely worth twice the price
Review: I bought this book after checking out the reviews on Bob Pastorie's book on Stock Options and after visiting the author's web site. I wanted a thorough understanding of stock awards, stock options, and option strategies. I'm glad I bought this book. It's packed with facts and how to-do-it information that takes the mystery out of stock options and pre-IPO stock. This is a complicated subject and the book does justice to everything. I especially liked the first couple of chapters that reviews the basics of taxes and terminology before launching into stock awards and stock options. Despite plenty of examples and clearly written material, this is not a book that you'll read once, and retain everything. The IRS has made sure of that. I will have it close by to refer to. Besides the book, the author's web site is very helpful. He promptly responded to my specific questions. Wish I could say that about others! There's a great potential to make some serious and costly mistakes when it comes to stock options. Yes, you'll need help from lawyers and tax professionals, but without this book, you won't understand anything they're talking about. In fact, I think you'll spend more than the cost of the book in legal and professional fees if time has to be taken out to educate you about the basics. I read the book at light speed the first time around. I initially thought that things were confusing and unorganized. I realized that this was a mistake on my part. The subject matter is complex, especially on the various kinds of options and when they vest. I read the book a second time to get prepared to see my lawyer, tax, and estate planner. The book gave me the knowledge to fashion some specific strategies on my stock grant and also how to exercise my options. The benefits of the book's organization have now become more obvious to me. Is there a negative aspect of the book? Sure. It didn't get into estate planning or suggest ways of sheltering the potential wealth that could accrue from stock and options from firms going to an IPO. I also wish it would have talked more from the perspective of a firm getting ready to do an IPO, although there were some examples of this. I was also only interested in Nonqualified Options and not the exhaustive coverage on Incentive Stock Options that employees usually receive. However, this was no reason to give it less than 5 stars. I think the estate planning aspect is a great subject for Mr. Thomas' next book or something that the web can handle. Bottom line here: the book is well worth the price and your time. Read it once, twice, and keep it handy. You'll definitely refer to it today and in the years ahead.
Rating: 
Summary: Pastore's book for options...this book for ESPPs
Review: I disagree with the reviews on this site. Thomas's book is good but too encyclopedic covering options, estimated tax payments, employee stock purchase plans (ESPPs), mutual funds, gift and estate taxes, what a share of stock is, and more. There are 75-100 pages in this book covering basic material. This book and Pastore's are totally different....but buy both because presumably you've got real money at stake.
Rating:
Summary: Almost Too Late!
Review: I wish I would have had this book before I exercised the first 3 blocks of stock! Fortunately, I found it before I had gone any further. I -- along with many other pre-IPO company employees -- were quite surprised to find out about the dreaded AMT liability after we exercised our first blocks and got hit with a huge tax bill. And I paid $175 for a 45 minute session with a CPA just to find out about it. Now I am reading this book and learning how it should or could be done to avoid much of the tax liability to preserve our much earned new wealth. The information in this book is complicated -- but not because the author makes it so -- that's the IRS' fault! Read it, read it again, then read it once more -- I also found Turbotax to be helpful in testing different scenarios -- like how much AMT credit I could use by calculating my regular tax and AMT -- then go see a good CPA who specializes in option strategies. At this point you will have the basis for formulating a strategy and not have to pay excessive amounts of time to get yourself educated on how this all works. I would have easily paid $100 or more for this book. Its well worth it! regards, Director at now Post-IPO software company
Rating: 
Summary: Plenty of details little advice...
Review: I've tried, and struggled (I'm not a finance whiz... I write software) to create a strategy for using my stock options without the counsel of professional help. Learn from my experience. Reading this book, or any other book such as Robert Pastore's "Stock Options" will not equip you to make strategy decisions for exercising your options (unless you're gifted in finance). You will need a CPA and or financial planner. Until I was granted options, I had no clue what stock options were or the issues that I would face. Having read this and other books, I'm now better educated about the issues but I was only given a vague idea of what to do practically/strategically. Don't expect Ms. Thomas' book to provide "strategy advice" expect it to provide facts; and lots of them. Read her book and other's with the intention of going to someone whose full-time job it is to help you with issues in exercising your options. You will be well equiped to test what you're being told and you'll be ready to receive and act upon (or reject as I've also learned) real "strategic advice"
Rating:
Summary: Buy this book
Review: If you ever had to deal with stock options, AMT, and vesting, this book was written for you. I have never seen a better reference on the subject. His companion web site, when combined with his book, is all you need to figure it all out.
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