Comments on: I’m $6,284 Poorer Today.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 15:54:12 +0000

Hah! Well look that that – I learn something new every day :) Thanks for the tips!

By: Melissa (Miss Lissy)

Melissa (Miss Lissy) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 18:30:19 +0000

Haha J, I used a tax program because if you make less than $57,000 a year, there are a lot of websites that work with the IRS to help you do your taxes for free (http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html?portlet=106). And yes, it is that law to file, but there are certain situations where you don’t have to file. They have a nifty tool where you can see that here (http://www.irs.gov/ita/article/0,,id=219890,00.html). Like I said, last year I didn’t make enough to need to file and I had nothing withheld so I was getting no refund so basically I would have been sending them a piece of paper that said “Nobody owes each other anything” Lol.

By: J. Money

J. Money — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 15:47:46 +0000

@Jen @ Master the Art of Saving – Haha, true true ;) I don’t mind paying even more next year either, as long as I keep making more and no one tricks me into thinking I’m getting a refund! Haha… lots of pros along w/ the madness here…
@Melissa (Miss Lissy) – Woah! Look at you go! That’s a helluva nice surprise, well done! And I’ll add a 3rd reason it’s important to file too – it’s the law ;) Haha… but good job with all that stuff, you’re more of an adult than I am since I still use an accountant! Hope the INS stuff goes really well too! All that kinda stuff freaks me out…

By: Melissa (Miss Lissy)

Melissa (Miss Lissy) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 07:02:58 +0000

We just did our taxes earlier this week – the first time that I have done taxes as an adult (or really at all – I let my mom do them for a while even after I turned 18 because she was willing and I dread the thought of doing taxes). Technically we didn’t have to file taxes this year because we didn’t make enough money (and I didn’t last year because I knew in advance I wouldn’t and didn’t have anything withheld) and it almost wouldn’t have been worth it except for two things. One, I know that me and the husband have an INS review within the next two years – the more paperwork in our name, the better, because they like that kind of stuff. And second, while we really only had $38 dollars withheld for federal taxes and $121 withheld for state taxes (which I wanted, but at the same time, is not a super huge deal for the pain of doing taxes), I was eligible for the American Opportunity Credit because of my schooling and that credit you can get a refund for even if you owe no taxes. You can get more of a credit from them if you do owe money, which is why in the past, my parents have always claimed it and then just given me what I would have gotten from the IRS to keep them from owing more taxes (haha) but this past year I was fully independent and so they couldn’t claim it anymore, so I claimed it (it’s the last year I’m eligible since I finished school and you can only claim it for 4 tax years anyways). So our measly $38 refund turned into a $1,038 refund – and that $1,000 wasn’t money that the government was giving back to me, that’s money that they’re just giving to me. It makes a huge difference – we’re going to use it to build our emergency fund which is something we’ve been wanting to do for a while, but it’s not quite where we want it to be yet (we’ve only been able to add really small amounts each month).

By: Jen @ Master the Art of Saving

Jen @ Master the Art of Saving — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:40:30 +0000

That is just crazy! At least you’ll have a better idea for next years taxes, plus you’re getting back $114. It could have been worse and you could have owed them too, instead of getting a refund. :-)

By: J. Money

J. Money — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 14:25:49 +0000

@Nicole -Woah! Exciting and scary at the same time, for sure. Congrats on your little bundle coming out soon! We’re only a couple months out from ya :) I wonder how having the baby will affect taxes and stuff too? Either way, glad you got a chunk of what you normally do at least! Def. better than paying (wanna switch? haha…).
@MoneySmartGuides – YES! Very true indeed – always better to play it safe and take actions on only things that are facts. Great reminder.
@Jackson – Wow, that is a HUGE return, haha… but again, always better than the opposite :) I think talking with someone to just review your overall status and plan is a great idea, even just to set you straight again for a while. And EXCELLENT job paying down that debt and puting the rest into savings/investments – you’ve got killer motivation! Most people will blow at least half of it, haha… but maybe not the ones reading finance blogs ;)
@BG – Yikes! Exactly what MoneySmartGuides up there just commented about – you can only count on the stuff that’s 100% true and right there in front of ya! I’m glad it seemed to have worked out for you both though, that’s always good :)

By: BG

BG — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 13:59:24 +0000

Haven’t received my tax return back yet but I’m expecting I’ll owe. It sucks to expect so much money refunded and them realize you have to pay!

My fiance had a scare when his return came back the other day, he was expecting $3000 back like he normally gets and only got a $300 refund. There was a lot of storming and grumbling on his part about not being able to make a loan payment, but we pulled through in the end. He always seems to count his chickens before they hatch.

By: Jackson

Jackson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 05:32:04 +0000

Apparently I have yet to figure out my W4 deductions because I got a federal return of $6959 and a state return of $1079. Time to ask for professional help…

I took the money and paid off the last of the credit card debt then split the rest between my emergency fund and my IRA (if I was smart I would have included the contribution on my return as you have until April to contribute if I’m not mistaken). I am single w/ 3 kids and a mortgage, so obviously that skews things a little.

By: MoneySmartGuides

MoneySmartGuides — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:51:28 +0000

This is the perfect example of why you should not spend money today because you are expecting money to come in at a later date. Sure, it looks like you are getting a tax refund, but until you sign the return, don’t count on it. And sure it looks like you are getting that inheritance, but don’t count on it until you actually have the check. Too many people spend money today because they think they are coming into money tomorrow.

By: Nicole

Nicole — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 19:29:26 +0000

I got married at the end of 2011 and I must say, filing single head of household makes for a much nicer tax return. I was used to getting between 4 and 5000 back every year. So, of course, I thought I’d be getting that back this time. But alas, when my accountant/tax preparer/older brother called me he said we were only getting back $1500.
Luckily, he just called back and said that he found something he could do with our rental, so we are now getting back $3000. Still not what I’m used to, but better than paying.
I can’t understand how though. I could understand if my husband made more money than me, but my W2 shows $5000 more in income than his. So, you’d think since the average is less than it was as me alone that I’d get more back.
Oh well…just so glad I dont have to pay! We have some landscaping and plumbing to fix, so thats where ours refund will go! Plus, maternity leave starts in July, and after talking to HR yesterday, I am a little concerned with money during my leave (considering 6 months off completely from work or a 10 month reduced schedule leave)