Thursday, February 08, 2007

The Tax Man Cometh....

And I am afraid that he is going to be beating our family into submission this year. When you are self-employed, there is no employer to take the taxes from you, thus we end up getting physically beaten at the end of the year. We do save for tax time throughout the year, but somehow handing the money over in one lump sum hurts so much more than the nickle and diming they do throughout the year on other people's checks.

TaxAct.com is a great place to do your taxes for free or for really cheap, depending upon the plan you opt for. You can download their program or do the whole process over the web. Considering the most expensive plan on TaxAct is a mere $19.95, this is definitely one of the cheapest options out there.

When we were first married, we used H&R Block for our taxes. My parents had always used H&R Block, so naturally that was where we went to when it was time to do our own taxes. We were newly married, had nothing to claim on our taxes and were bringing in the big bucks. I about fell out of my chair when the agent told me how much we owed. Then he told us how much we owed him and a repeat performance of me falling out of my chair ensued. What a rip off! We vowed never to return there again, as it was almost like getting robbed from twice in one night. Say what you will about me, but I find H&R Block to be extremely expensive, especially with all of the wonderful programs they offer today.

I do want to direct your attention to this link where they are offering an exclusive offer to American Express Card Members. You can save 25% on TurboTax Online federal products which includes free e-filing. They also offer a complimentary TurboTax Tax Estimator. If you have an American Express Card, you should definitely take advantage of this offer.

TurboTax also offers a great tool for those of us who are guessing how much our donations are worth. It is a software program called, "It's Deductible!" and the cost on it is $19.95. You can access thousands of values for the items you donate, track your donations throughout the entire year, auto-fills tax donation forms, and it all comes out in a printable report. We are going to purchase this program as we make many donations throughout the year. A quick picture with your digital camera and you will have all the paperwork you need to make the tax deductions.

I am wondering how you do your taxes? Do you hire a private accountant? Do you do them yourself? What programs do you use?

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