Stats of 2005 Tax Refunds and Why Tax Refunds Cost You Money

According to Newsvine, the IRS is reporting that about 80% of taxpayers who filed their federal tax returns by mid-March claimed a refund. And the average refund is $2,380, up about 4% from last year’s average of $2,290 Continue reading »

Fidelity Gripes and SEP-IRA Woes (A Rant)

I made the decision a few weeks ago to sign up for an SEP-IRA through Fidelity. The account setup was a breeze (although a glitch in the system caused me to end up with two accounts). Next step – transferring money into the account. Continue reading »

Top 5 Missed Tax Deductions

To counterbalance my last post on audits, here are CNN Money’s top 5 missed tax deductions. Continue reading »

Think You Can't Be Audited? Consider This…

I’m not speaking from personal experience here, but a nifty article over at the Motley Fool reminds us that the IRS has been cracking down on delinquents.

Here are their top 5 audit myths or ‘I won’t get audited because (insert common audit myth here).’ Continue reading »

One Fourth of Eligible TaxPayers Miss Education Related Tax Breaks

According to Marketwatch, there are at least 10 different tax breaks related to education. Yet one-fourth of elibible taxpayers neglect to take the credits.

The article states that the money lost is a relatively small amount ($169 on average). Still, tuition and fees deductions can take off as much as $4000 in taxable income. Continue reading »