This is the time of year when the IRS sends out notices about things they’ve noticed in your tax return. It’s easy to feel your heart beating faster when you see that letter in your mailbox. Here are some tips to follow if you get one of those dreaded notices. Don’t panic. You often only…

When it comes to filing a federal tax return, many people discover that they either get a larger refund or owe more tax than they expected. But this type of tax surprise doesn’t have to happen to you. One way to prevent it is to change the amount of tax withheld from your wages. You…

If you plan to claim a deduction for your medical expenses, there are some new rules this year that may affect your tax return. Here are eight things you should know about the medical and dental expense deduction: Higher limts. Starting in 2013, the amount of allowable medical expenses you must exceed before you can…

If you don’t have taxes withheld from your pay, or you don’t have enough tax withheld, then you may need to make estimated tax payments. If you’re self-employed you normally have to pay your taxes this way. Here are some tips you should know about estimated taxes: You should pay estimated taxes in 2014 if…

Every year about this time, we get the panicked calls. “I owe and I can’t pay! I need to file an extension!” An extension is going to give you extra time to file, not extra time to pay. If you owe, IRS wants you to pay by April 15th. Even people who file an extension…

When you file your tax return, you usually have a choice whether to itemize deductions or take the standard deduction. Before you choose, it’s a good idea to figure your deductions using both methods. Then choose the one that allows you to pay the lower amount of tax. The one that results in the higher…

Recently I saw a discussion board for a group of local residents. The question was asked, someone paid me $500 in cash. Do I need to put it on my tax return? Lots of very knowledgeable sounding people jumped in, and the answers were all over the board. No, not if you didn’t get a…

It’s that time of year again. Everybody’s thinking about taxes, the scammers know this, and increase their activity. You already know the IRS will never contact you by text or email. You know not to click on links in emails you didn’t expect to receive. Here are several more steps you can take to help…

So what do you do when someone near and dear to you dies suddenly, and leaves no financial information behind? This can create a real nightmare for the person(s) in charge of settling everything up. Here are some ideas I’ve found helpful over the years. If you can find last year’s tax return, it can…

Today, I was asked that question everyone dreads having to ask. “My dad passed away suddenly last night. He took care of all the investments and taxes. My mom doesn’t know anything. What should she do?” How can you and your spouse avoid being in this position? Today I will talk about the bare minimum…