2010 Federal Income Tax Brackets (IRS Tax Rates)
JimEvery year about this time, when the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) releases inflation data, specifically the CPI-U, experts from a variety of magazines and newspapers try to predict what the tax...
View ArticleHAPPY Act: $3,500 Pet Care Expenses Deduction (Proposed)
JimWouldn’t you throw your support behind something called the HAPPY Act? I know I would, it sounds so… cheery! It exists and it’s a bill that has been introduced in the House of Representatives by...
View Article9 Year End Tax Moves to Make by Dec. 31st
Jim9 Year End Tax Moves to Make by Dec. 31st from personal finance blog Bargaineering.com. This blog was posted by Jim
View ArticleClaim Haiti Relief Donations on Your 2009 Tax Return
JimThis week, President Obama signed into law a bill that lets taxpayers claim donations made to earthquake relief in Haiti on their 2009 tax returns. If you make a cash contribution between January...
View ArticleMortgage Interest Deduction Myth
JimThe mortgage interest deduction is one of the most celebrated tax deductions in all of tax deduction-dom. It’s cited as one of the benefits of homeownership, right behind “you’re not throwing your...
View ArticleWhat’s My Tax Bracket?
JimIn personal finance, you have to make a lot of decisions with imperfect information. You contribute to a Roth IRA because you like the tax free growth and you believe that you will be taxed at a...
View ArticleBest Investments for Retirement Accounts
JimWhen I started working after college, it was a bit of a stretch to contribute to both my 401(k), to get my employer match, fully fund my Roth IRA, and build up a small cash cushion (I would later...
View ArticleTax Audit Red Flags
JimLast month I had the pleasure of talking to Rich Preece, Director of Product Management for TurboTax, about the improvements they’ve made to this year’s version of the tax preparation software. One...
View ArticleNew Car Sales & Excise Tax Deduction
JimIf you bought a car between February 16, 2009 and January 1, 2010 (non-inclusive), and you paid a sales tax or excise tax, you may be able to deduct it from your income taxes. This was one of the...
View ArticleWyden-Gregg Tax Plan: The Bipartisan Tax Fairness and Simplification Act of 2010
JimThis year will mark the final year of many of President George W. Bush’s tax cuts from 2001 and 2003. Many deductions and tax cuts are set to expire this year and there’s a lot of talk about what...
View ArticleWhat if the mortgage interest deduction didn’t exist?
JimWelcome to the first edition of our What If? series, where we wonder aloud and ponder some of financial life’s great mysteries. This first edition will take a look at the mortgage interest...
View ArticleThe Standard Deduction
JimTax deductions are wonderful, aren’t they? While they’re not as good as a nice tax credit, tax deductions can reduce your tax liability significantly depending on your income tax bracket. In the...
View ArticleWhy You Should Put Off Year-End Charitable Contributions
Guest ContributorWe’re getting close to the end of the year and as everyone does their year end tax planning, it’s important to remember that not all “last minute tax tips” work for everyone. It’s...
View ArticleItemizing Taxpayers Must Wait to File Tax Returns
JimYou know how it took until the 11th hour for Congress to extend the Bush era tax cuts? One of the consequences of that late change to the tax structure was that the IRS had been preparing for the...
View ArticleWatch Out for these Expired Tax Breaks
Miranda MarquitDuring the last two years, many of us have become accustomed to a number of tax breaks that were instituted to help during a time of economic difficulty. However, these tax breaks were...
View Article
