The U.S. tax code can be loaded with booby traps for unwary investors, but your advisers can help you avoid the dangers and reap potential tax rewards. Here are seven enticing incentives to consider:

1. Offsetting capital gains and losses: Your capital gains and losses from selling stocks and other assets may cancel each other and could reduce your tax liability. If your losses exceed your gains, you can use the excess to offset as much as $3,000 of highly taxed ordinary income. And you can use any additional losses in future years.

Even if you don't have offsetting losses, long-term capital gains on assets you've held longer than a year have a maximum tax rate of only 15% (20% for those in the top ordinary income tax bracket). Investors in the two lowest tax brackets benefit from a 0% rate on long-term capital gains.