Last year, I was in danger of moving up a tax bracket. We were pretty close to the line between the two, and the accountant recommended that we open an IRA in order to, perhaps, drop us down a tax bracket. We already had a Roth IRA, but the contributions to a Roth IRA aren’t […]
Taxes Are Going Up. Why Are Some People Seeing A Federal Income Tax Increase In 2011?
A few months ago I published what I thought the 2011 Federal Income Tax brackets might look like. At the time I thought that taxes may be going up because congress was having a hard time passing a tax package of any kind. Others were projecting that the rates were going to go up as […]
Why You Need To Hire A Tax Professional
Every year during tax season, many people consider whether they should hire a tax professional. They try to weigh the costs (money out of their pocket, time to travel to the preparer’s office, etc) and the benefits (assurance that their tax return was done correctly, time saved by not having to conduct research, etc). Below […]
If You Itemize Your Taxes You’ll Have To Wait Til February To File
The IRS has announced that if you plan to itemize your taxes, you will have to delay filing as their systems aren’t yet up to date with the current law. Find out when the IRS will start processing returns here.
Tips For Self-Preparing And Filing Your Income Taxes
If you’re preparing to file your own taxes this year, here are some tips to make things easier.
4 Big Money Mistakes To Fight This Year
Here are four problem areas that have the potential to blow up a financial plan.
2011 Flexible Spending Account (FSA) Changes
If you use a flexible spending account there are important changes for 2011 that you should be aware of, limiting your ability to use the pre-tax funds.
2011 Payroll Tax Holiday: We Will See A 2% Cut In Social Security Taxes In 2011
A week or two ago the Congress passed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010. The tax package was designed to extend the Bush era tax rates for another 2 years, in addition doing some other things like adding on 13 more months to expiring unemployment benefits, reinstating the estate […]
2011 Federal Income Tax Brackets: IRS Marginal Tax Rate Changes To Be Aware Of
The Congress and President Obama signed into a law a week or two ago an extension of the Bush era tax cuts, H.R.4853. We had been speculating for quite some time that Congress would actually raise the tax rates on the highest income earners only, but after the November election and solid Republican gains and […]
$1000 Child Tax Credit Extended Through 2011-2012
Yesterday we talked about how the energy efficient home improvement tax credit was extended into 2011, albeit at a lower reduced maximum of a $500 max credit per homeowner, at at a reduced amount for many eligible products. While the credit is still around, the effect it will have at this reduced amount is anyone’s […]
2011 Home Improvement Tax Credits For Energy Efficient Products (Insulation, Windows, Heaters, Etc)
In 2009 and 2010 a lot of people decided to take advantage of the home improvement tax credits for energy efficient improvements. The tax credits, which were a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, allowed you to claim up to $1500 in tax credits on qualified energy efficient home improvements like […]
Obama Set To Sign Tax Cut Bill After The House Passes It. Bush Era Tax Rates To Be Extended
We’ve talked quite a bit about the Bush tax cuts and how they are expiring at the end of 2010. If something wasn’t done about the expiring rates ALL taxpayers would have been seeing an increase in their taxes in 2011. An average family would have ended up paying thousands more in taxes. Tax Cut […]
Checklist Of Things You’ll Need At Tax Time In 2011 For Doing Your 2010 Taxes
The end of the year is coming up quickly, and with the end of the year comes tax time! Tax time is a time of year that many folks look forward to because they use their taxes as a way to save and get a once a year windfall in the form of a tax […]
10 Tax Deductions And Credits That You Can Still Claim In 2010
The end of the year is quickly coming upon us, and with it comes your last chance to take advantage of some last minute tax deductions for the 2010 tax year, in addition to planning ahead for the tax credits you’re going to claim. If you’re anything like me, you’ll do what you can in […]
