April 15 is HERE - GET YOUR TAXES DONE

[Zomby Woof]

Ok? :spank:

[BlondieK143]

1. How many people haven't done them yet?

I'm curious now!

[Zomby Woof]

4. too many!

I have been booked solid with last-minute filers all week! Everything from 1040-EZ's to the complex forms and schedules for self-employment and expense write-offs, education credits, capital gains, and endless domestic disputes over ex-spouses claiming their dependents.

This species never fails to amuse and well, not amuse... :-)

[BlondieK143]

8. No, amuse and scare are the right words.

You'd think that if people were getting money back that they'd want it sooner!

[Zomby Woof]

10. refunds are scarce right now

Still a few to be had, but the payers are putting that off as long as possible and filing now.

Have had real procrastinators filing for refunds going back to 2001 though!

Coffee? :hangover: :hi:

[BlondieK143]

11. Mmmm

:hi: Coffee sounds GREAT.

[northzax]

15. hey, zomby-

I havea share in three LLCs in different states and real estate in two states and the district of columbia (two of which generate revenue. And I can't find a 1099-m from one of my contract jobs. Can you help me out?

I kid, but I'd doing them right now, or maybe I'll just file for an extension and take some time to get them right.

[Zomby Woof]

17. YOW!

LLCs are way over my head. I would do that extension, just for sanity's sake. :D

[northzax]

20. eh, of course I'm filing the extension

and I don't have an LLC, I just figure that TurboTax will be cheaper tommorow and I can swing a better refund then (what with itemising deductions and all.

and no, I don't own realestate or an LLC, I do have shares in a couple of money losing ventures, but they aren't even on the IRS's radar.

[tigereye]

54. you're an accountant?

interesting.. how do you find time to post with all the tax stuff to do?

[Zomby Woof]

57. no

I am just a seasonal hack for a major tax preparation company. My hours vary with how busy we are - 20-50 hours a week. But no, I don't have an accounting degree, but have lots of on-the-job experience.

[tigereye]

60. cool that is why you need all that coffee?

:) Well God bless you. You must hear some wild stories.

[Zomby Woof]

62. Coffee before during and after

Always. That got me through college. :-)

I hear stories you wouldn't believe. It's amazing the things people do to their lives. Or have done to them.

[Liberal Classic]

34. Just finished them up

Stupid worksheet. Add lines 4 through 6. If line 7 is less than line 3, subtract line 7 from line 3 and write the result in line 8. If line 7 is more than line 3, write the amount in line 2 in line 10, and skip to line 12.

:mad:

I believe the tax form should fit on a postcard.


Your income is X. Your tax rate is Y. Your taxes: ______

[frank frankly]

2. just mailed

:smoke:

[Zomby Woof]

6. good man!

:toast:

[Zinfandel]

3. Done and in the bank,.

[Zomby Woof]

7. weeeeeeeeeeeee!

:-)

[Dookus]

5. filing the automatic extension tomorrow...

[Zomby Woof]

9. You make procrastination an art form!

I have been urging lots of people to do that because they still don't have everything ready.

Free advice to lurkers: No extension necessary if you are claiming a refund. I have brought lots of happiness today with that news.

[Dookus]

12. and the state

grants one automatically (well, MY state, CA). You don't really have to file 'til Aug. 15th.

If I expect a refund, I don't even have to file a federal extension?!

[Zomby Woof]

13. nope!

The refund statute of limitations is 3 years from the due date of the return. Some people file the extension just in case they end up owing due to an oversight later. But no harm done if you are certain to get a refund.

I also have to remind people that extensions to file are NOT extensions to pay. Filing and paying are two separate entities. But if you owe the federal government, and don't do a filing extension, you pay steeper penalties on the unpaid balance due. Late filing penalties are MORE severe. Late payment penalties are not as severe, but if you bundle them with late filing penalties, you will have penalties and interest even MBNA would envy. So I urge extension filers who expect to owe to send as much as they can by tomorrow night so that the late payment penalties (again, less severe) are only applied to the post-April 15 balance due. Avoid the additional late filing penalty with that automatic 4 month extension form.

[democratreformed]

75. Hi fellow procrastinator. I filed my extension last night. On the phone

:hi:

[Zomby Woof]

14. ZombyAssKick!

[supernova]

16. Yes, I'm doing them right now

as a matter of fact. :P

[Zomby Woof]

18. Do them for Johnny!

;-)

[supernova]

19. Lol! That's the spirit!

:D

I have one thing to say: Online filing RAWKS!

[Zomby Woof]

22. e-file!

You are correct, as usual, my Depp-lovin' friend! :D

[northzax]

21. one other question:

if I list my profession as "bikini inspector" can I deduct my visits to houses of ill repute asa business expense?

[Zomby Woof]

23. that depends

If the bikinis are polka-dotted, you can double the deduction!

[5thGenDemocrat]

24. Just finished them two minutes ago

Broke even with the Feds (most of my income is unearned) and the State of Michigan owes me $2. I did qualify for a $410 Michigan home heating credit, though (my total gas bill last year was $1,206).
John
1040 this and Schedule E that. They should just have instructions that say "Empty your pockets, put the cash in an envelope and mail it to us."

[supernova]

25. Question about dividends and capital gains v the personal deduction

If I made no income last year, no job, but I made investment income, do I still take the standard personal deduction? I say standard because I've never had enough deductions to make itemizing worthwile.

I'm curious because this is the first time I don't have a W-2.

[5thGenDemocrat]

29. Well, my income is from two natural gas wells

And I always take the standard personal deduction. I haven't been called on it in ten years and counting -- so I'd have to say "yes."
John
I file a 1099 MISC. I don't know which form you use, but I'd say the same principle applies.

[supernova]

32. Thank you

for that, 5thGenDemocrat. Natural gas, huh? Cool. :thumbsup:

I'm wrestling with my Merrill Lynch Year_End Summary Report. :P
Everything is there, I just have to understand it. :P

[5thGenDemocrat]

59. The wells

Are on property that great-grandpa E (2ndGenDem) bought at a tax sale in 1919. For years, it passed down through grandma G and my mom, and we never did anything with it except pay the property taxes on it.
Mom died in Nov. 1994. Two months later, all five sibs get letters that read (I'm paraphrasing): "We have sunk exploratory wells on said property and struck two big pockets of natural gas. Enclosed please find check for..."
They've been coming monthly ever since.
John
I mean, I ain't Jed Clampett -- but checks are checks, you know? The extra paperwork (1040 long form, 1099 MISC, Schedule E, etc.) is a major pain each April 15 -- but I don't complain the other 364 days of the year.

[Zomby Woof]

33. most definitely

What kind of investment income? That way, I can narrow down some pointers and tips.

Interest, dividends, and stock gains/losses are all types of income right below where you would report W-2 wages on the front of the 1040 (ok, you are doing e-file, but it helps to have a paper form for visualizing how it all works out - download one off of www.irs.gov).

Certain kinds of dividend income, and stock sales or other capital gains (the latter almost always requires a Schedule D) will possibly qualify you for a lower tax rate.

The standard deduction for a single taxpayer is $4,750 this year, and if no one else can claim you as a dependent, you get a $3,050 personal exemption (each dependent is also that exemption amount). That means up to $7,800 of your income, no matter the source, is non-taxable for a single taxpayer, under 65, and not blind. Blindness and/or being 65 or over gives you a higher standard deduction.

The formula, in order:

Gross income is added up. (wages, interest, self-employment income, pensions, capital gains/losses, etc)
Subtractions to income. (called adjustments - includes student loan interest, moving expenses, IRA deductions, half of self-employment tax, etc)
Gross income minus adjustments = AGI (Adjusted Gross Income).
AGI minus standard deduction minus personal exemption(s) = Taxable income.
Taxable income is matched with the tax amount on the tax table. (Filing status and taxable income both determine tax amount on this table)
The tax amount can be reduced by credits for education, children, daycare expenses, etc.
Additional taxes for self-employment, or penalties for early withdrawal from IRA's, 401(k's), etc, are added, if any, after these credits are applied.
Payments to taxes already made - what we best know as withholding on our W-2's or 1099-R's, but can also include quarterly estimated tax payments, the EIC, or amounts applied from last year's refund.

If payments exceed your tax liability, you get a refund.

If not, you owe.

:-)

[supernova]

39. Mine is stock gains/losses and dividends

this year.

[Zomby Woof]

43. ok, here goes!

You will have to complete a Schedule D to accompany your 1040. The amount from your Schedule D will be reported on line 13a of your 1040. If it's a loss, the maximum you can claim is -$3,000, but any amount over that can be carried over to next year.

Dividends are reported on line 9a. Pay special attention to the new "Qualified dividends" on line 9b, if you have any. Those, along with your capital gains on line 13a, make you eligible for a potentially lower tax amount (this new "qualified dividend" is what the Repubs were all excited about last year, but for most of us, dividends aren't that much, and it makes little difference unless you are wealthy - surprised? lol).

These line 9a and 13a amounts will become part of your gross income, used to compute your AGI (see my formula checklist if needed).

So yes, the standard deduction is available to everyone, regardless of the income sources. Good luck, and please ask any questions when needed.

I will be at the office and doing appointments all day from 1-12 PDT. :-) So I have 2 1/2 hours or so.

[LynneSin]

26. My taxes are done and were spent on Tequila shots in Boston

:eyes:

[supernova]

27. Must have been a very large refund

:D

[LynneSin]

28. well it wasn't cheap tequila - it was Don Patron Silver

(they didn't have anything better than that)

[TahitiNut]

30. Finished last night ....

... in time to join in the Community Spirit at the post office this evening.

[Zomby Woof]

35. haha! "Community Spirit"

;-) We're staying open until midnight to accomodate last-minute filers, but you were early if you finished last night.

[TahitiNut]

76. Well, just got back. Sierra Club and liberals were out picketing.

Some folks were offering free coffee. The police were directing traffic within a block of the post office all around. Ahhhh... the Rites of Spring. Just like Stravinsky. :silly:

[matcom]

31. NOPE

accountant is filing an extension just like every year. will get around to it in a month or so (she will anyway) :D

[Zomby Woof]

36. is your asscrack deductible??

:D

[matcom]

45. absolutely!

we are a minority after all :D

[Fenris]

37. Nope. I'm a dependent!

:7
I only spend the money, I don't make it!

[Zomby Woof]

40. dependents may have to file too!

If you either had enough gross income to require filing, or if not required, that you should file, because you are eligible for a refund.

Being a dependent does not necessarily exempt you from filing. A common misconception!

[Fenris]

41. It wouldn't require filing. It's very minimal.

[Zomby Woof]

44. under $3,050?

Any withholding no matter the amount?

[Fenris]

47. WAY under.

[Zomby Woof]

50. but any withholding?

Check Box 2 on your W-2. If you have any, file for it. You won't be bound by the deadline for 3 more years.

[Kadie]

38. We have already spent our refund.

What little there was. Bills bills bills.

[Zomby Woof]

48. you gotta love...

How taxes follow the holidays. :-)

[bikebloke]

42. Done

I did mine early, discovering I owed a tithe to Halliburton & Thieves. So I let the forms stew a while, sending them in over the weekend.

[WilliamPitt]

46. Time to fund the occupation

[Zomby Woof]

49. hear ya loud and resoundingly clear

I am heartened by the comments from most of my clients regarding Bush and the war. They don't like their taxes being thrown in that hole for all the waste of life and limb. I do lots of returns for low-wage working people, tribal residents, and students. They know what is going on, but I think need encouragement. Lots of cynicism, and earned for the most part. If any were pro-Bush, they were quiet about it, and understandably so. (I ranted about my pro-Bush colleague recently, but even she has cracks in the armor).

And so it goes.

[southerngirlwriter]

51. More to the left, please.

:evilgrin:

[Zomby Woof]

52. I knew you were a left-winger!

So to speak... :think:

[tigereye]

58. the guy who does our taxes dropped them off yesterday

We are terrible procrastinators! I wrote the checks ( we actually will get money BACK from the feds this year since my business wasn't as good as last year) and just have to go to the post office. It's always bills, bills, bills. I want someone to send ME money for a change.

[VelmaD]

53. Tax Cut MY ASS

I have to pay this year for the first time in my entire life. Nothing has changed since last year. I have the same salary. I have the same withholding. I have the same deductions. The only thing that has changed is we had an alleged tax cut. I'll say it again...TAX CUT MY ASS. x(

[supernova]

55. It wasn't a tax cut

More like an advance against an anticipated return. :P

Zomby can probably explain it better than me.

[Zomby Woof]

56. Single people with no children get SCREWED

Speaking as one, and doing lots of their returns, you are not imagining things!

We don't have a powerful lobby in DC for us, and we're invisible to the media, so no tax increase stories for us.

[VelmaD]

61. This SUCKS ASS!

x(

I filed an extension though on the theory that it won't be so bad to send the government my money later after we've botted Chimp-boy outta the White House.

[Zomby Woof]

64. please read my above posts on extensions

Extensions are for filing ONLY. There are no extensions to pay! You will get interest and penalties on any unpaid amount after today regardless of an extension. The IRS does offer installment agreements though when you do pay late and owe. They always include penalties and interest.

BUT!

Late filing penalties are assessed separately from late payment penalties, and late filing penalties are FAR MORE SEVERE, hence the extension granted. Although assessed separately, they are compounded together into one big bill. When filing an extension, send a payment. You can report that payment on your 1040 later, and it may cover all or most of your bill, allowing a refund or a smaller penalized balance due.

Both penalties, filing and payment, are calculated on a percentage of the balance of tax due.

[Beaker]

63. I file an etension, and then file/pay in august.

the "penalty" for doing so is 1/2 of 1 percent of the amount owed, per month after april 15...in other words, by paying in august, you pay an extra $2.00 on every $100 owed.

that's a penalty i can live with.

[Zomby Woof]

65. don't forget interest

The late payment penalty is small as you said, and not bad - far better than the late filing penalty. That is 5% of the balance due, on top of the 8% or so interest from the U.S Treasury. For people with thousands owed, and not paying the required estimated taxes, that adds up like a bad credit card debt.

With taxes, the comfort level of debt varies, but if you can't file on time, an extension is good sense.

[VelmaD]

66. I only owe about 300 bucks...

but it's 300 bucks I don't have at the moment. Therefor the extension.

[GOPisEvil]

67. WTF?!?! You must be doing something wrong to OWE!

Ever since I started with the state, I have always gotten a refund. This year I got over $600 back.

Do you claim 0 or 1? I claim 1 on my W-2. I don't think I've ever written the IRS a check. They always write me one. (Or direct deposit it.)

[VelmaD]

68. I honestly don't know

I've redone the damn things and came up with the same answer. I'm gonna sit down an do them again sometime this weekend and hopefully the lightbulb will go on over my head and I'll figure out that they owe me money. But I'm not hopeful.

[GOPisEvil]

69. Hmmm...strange.

I always figured my refund would go down as I made more money, but actually it's gone up. :shrug:

But even when I was making $1900 a month as a caseworker, I still got a refund. I haven't even been making 401(k) contributions lately because I'm paying off a loan. Weird.

I do the 1040EZ Telefile. It figures my taxes for me, but I double check them to be sure, and they're correct. So, I'm not doing anything tricky. :shrug:

[VelmaD]

70. I can't use the good ol' 1040EZ anymore...

because of the deduction for my student loan payments.

[GOPisEvil]

71. Ahhhhhh...I see now...

Is the deduction from your student loan payments in excess of your standard deductions? I think for a single person the standard deductions and personal exemptions total to $7050 (from memory). If the student loan deduction and your personal exemption are under $7050, then you are costing yourself money.

[Zomby Woof]

72. $7800 for single deduction/exemption

But student loan interest is rarely above the hundreds or low thousands. It only lowers the gross income, so has no relationship to the $7,800.

Velma, if you aren't already, claim 0 on your W-4's, and if you are, request an additional amount to be withheld. I could give better advice with more specifics, but won't press you.

[GOPisEvil]

73. Ahhh...ok.

I should leave the advice to the professionals. :7

I knew it was in excess of $7000. I mean, I did my taxes back at the end of January, what do I remember? :think:

[Nikia]

78. We owed even more money

We are getting back money from the state since Wisconsin lets you claim rent payments. On the otherhand, we somehow owe the feds too much money. I cannot figure it out. I claimed 1 and my husband claimed 0. I make more than my husband, but we don't really make that much. We have no other income Last year, we owed $78, which I thought was good (An affordable amount and meant the government wasn't holding onto our money when we needed it). This year, we owed over 10 times that amount. Maybe, I should have double checked my husband's figuring. Luckily my inlaws are helping us out with it, but it is scary.

[private_ryan]

74. how long does it take for them to cash the check?

Last time (not even during tax season) it was weeks.

[mobuto]

77. I'll be done before midnight (hopefully)

I've spent five days solid working on them. Which means I'm not working on other things like, well, work. My taxes are a little more complicated than most' people.

[Zomby Woof]

79. I had the grand finale tonight

Everything from farm income to 2 self-employment forms, offshore investment income, with regular wages, casualty losses, and depreciation on 3 vehicles for business use, and oh yeah, business use of the home. Lots more, but that's the basics. I hope your form was simpler.

Nice couple, but jeezus, don't procrastinate next time. Was able to efile by 11 PM. Commission will be nice - charged $500.