Tax Carnival Ecstasy – December 17, 2013

Welcome to the December 17, 2013 edition of Tax Carnival Ecstasy. We start with some information on filing your taxes at the end of the year for the 2013 tax season. We have a TradeKing review from John Schmoll. And finally Mark Wang looks at assets that you can own that create passive income. Make sure to bookmark the carnival on social sites, like on Facebook, Tweet, and share with all your friends.

filing

Bill Smith presents Important Dates For Filing Your 2013 Tax Return Forms posted at 2011 Taxes, saying, “As the year comes to an end, it is important to start thinking about filing your 2013 taxes.”

A Granny Smith apple
A Granny Smith apple (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Bill Smith presents The TurboTax ItsDeductible App posted at 2010 Tax, saying, “Intuit Inc. announced on December 3, 2013 its new TurboTax ItsDeductible app, had become available for use on the iPhone.”

retirement

John Schmoll presents TradeKing Review: An Online Brokerage Worth Considering posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Investing in the stock market is vital to building wealth and with the variety of options available of where to invest it can be confusing. Choosing a good brokerage that has good offering and low fees can be a great way to help grow your retirement portfolio and get your investing on the right foot.”

John Schmoll presents My Retirement Dream: to Keep Working! posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Many want to follow the traditional retirement dream of working until 65 and then leaving the workforce completely. My retirement dream is different – to continue working. With frugal living and an aggressive investing strategy I believe many can pursue that dream and eventually work for yourself in retirement.”

taxes

Bill Smith presents IRS Forms To File Back Taxes posted at 2008 Taxes, saying, “Even if one is certain there are no mistakes in the forms when following federal tax procedures, a little shiver goes down a taxpayers spine at the very thought of a letter arriving from the IRS.”

Bill Smith presents How To Survive The Holidays posted at 2012 Taxes – Free Tax Filing Options, saying, “The holiday season can be fun yet challenging. Everyone wants to share in showing appreciation and love for those they love.”

Bill Smith presents Voting For Big Game’s Final Four In Last Days posted at 2014 Taxes, saying, “On Feb. 2, 2014, Intuit, the home company of TurboTax Canada, will make one small business a star in the biggest commercial game of the year.”

tips

Bill Smith presents Twitter IPO Vs. Facebook – FastSwings.com posted at FastSwings, saying, “At first glance, it would seem Twitter had no intentions of posting such a high IPO, but their current policy of growth says otherwise.”

Bill Smith presents Burger King Worldwide 2013 Third Quarter Results posted at FastSwings, saying, “Over the years, Burger King have been steadily going from strength to strength, so it comes as no surprise that the third quarter results are so impressive.”

Bill Smith presents Halliburton Profit Jumps 17% posted at FastSwings, saying, “Halliburton beat its earnings expectations with a seventeen percent profit jump this week, owing largely to its operations on a global scale”

Mark Wang presents Which assets produce passive income? posted at The Money MailThe Money Mail, saying, “When it comes to taxes, passive income assets can be completed as in how much they are taxed, how is the income treated and what accounts as income from tax purposes. Let us take a look at the various passive income producing assets in this article.”

Bill Smith presents How Secured Loans Can Help posted at Debt Consolidation, saying, “Consumers who need to rebuild their credit histories can take secured loans to start the process. A secured loan is an advance that a lender gives to a person who is willing to offer some type of collateral.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of tax carnival ecstasy using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

The TurboTax ItsDeductible App

The TurboTax ItsDeductible App

Intuit Inc. announced on December 3, 2013 its new TurboTax ItsDeductible app, had become available for use on the iPhone. The app is geared towards assisting the estimated seventy-five percent of US citizens, who make donations to charity, to be able to convert their goodwill into considerable tax deductions. Free of charge, the app is offered on the iPhone with iOS7 app store.

The Turbo Tax Online program is very popular. Persons are able to monitor their charitable donations easily with TurboTax ItsDeductible, through the combination of the convenience and portability of a mobile device. Valuations for over ten thousand items commonly donated, such as toys, sporting goods, clothing, appliances, games, household products among others, are featured on this app.

Most taxpayers are aware that non cash donations can be tax deductible, however they do not always accurately value the goods that they donate. This is usually because they randomly guess the value. An example of this is when bags of clothing are donated, and perhaps valued at $50.00, when in fact the actual value is over $300.00.

Before leaving a donation facility, persons can quickly and easily enter their donated items into TurboTax ItsDeductible. The app will then automatically use the guidelines established by the Internal Revenue Service, to make a fair market valuation. This will ensure that users receive the total deductions that they are entitled to, on their tax returns. Location sensitive technology is used by the app to capture the address of the charity quickly, for the purpose of tax record keeping. So that philanthropists can be rewarded properly for their generosity, they should use this app to monitor their donations.

Finding Free Tax Tips For Your Taxes

Free Tax Tips

No one wants to make a mistake when filing his or her taxes to the federal government. Unfortunately, filing on your own can be a bit difficult. If you want to file correctly, you probably want to take the time to look at free tax tips. Below are a couple sources of free tax tips for your 2013 or 2014 filings.

One of the best places to start looking for tax tips is always with the IRS (www.irs.gov). Not only is this the official source for tax information in the United States, but its tips are actually quite easy to follow. If you want a bit more information, it might be useful to take some time to look at some of the tax processing sites out there. Sites like TaxAct (www.TaxAct.com) and TurboTax (www.turbotax.com) have a great deal of filing information available even for those who do not choose to use the services. If you want to go straight to a trusted information source for even more, though, you might want to check out CNNMoney (money.cnn.com) for information when it gets closer to tax time.

If you are looking for more traditional sources, large tax processing services like H&R Block tend to have information about filing taxes available around tax time. In fact, it may be possible for you to get a quick class on how to file your own taxes from a similar giant, or even from a local tax accountant. Free classes tend to pop up around January each year, so taking the time to look at these information sources can be helpful.

New Tax Relief For Education

New Tax Relief For Education

The Lifetime Learning Credit 2010 gives a tax credit of up to $2,000 dollars for types of higher learning. It differs from the American Opportunity Tax Credit because it can be claimed for part-time students  and even for courses that don’t count towards a degree. This credit has been made available through 2011, 2012, and again this year. Eligible Expenses include Tuition but not room and board, Books, Equipment, and fees that may be required by the University. The Lifetime Earning Credit isn’t eligible with tuition paid fro by a scholarship, employer funds or a grant. Even if multiple students are eligible the Lifetime Learning Credit can only be claimed once a year per household. The tax credit reduces taxes by 20% for non qualified expenses for up to $10,000 dollars for a total of up to $2,000.

A construction project to repair and update th...
A construction project to repair and update the building façade at the Department of Education headquarters in 2002 resulted in the installation of structures at all of the entrances to protect employees and visitors from falling debris. ED redesigned these protective structures to promote the “No Child Left Behind Act”. The structures were temporary and were removed in 2008. Source: U.S. Department of Education, (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You may claim the credit if you, a dependent or your spouse attends an eligible university or educational institution. even if only one class is taken, the tax credit may be claimed. All accredited colleges and universities are eligible as well as vocational schools as long as their also eligible for the US Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid Programs. Single head of households and qualifying widows earning between $53,000 and $63,000 have been phased out for 2013. If you’re married and filing jointly, the phase amount is $107,000 to $127,000. This amount is up from 2012’s phase out range of $52,000 to $62,000 for qualifying widows and single, head of household and a range of $104,000 to $124,000 for Married couples filing jointly.

Tax Carnival Ecstasy – June 18, 2013

Welcome to the June 18, 2013 edition of Tax Carnival Ecstasy. In this edition we start with an article by Jason Hull on tax accountants for your business. John Schmoll has a great post on retirement planning and saving for college together. Bill Smith takes a look at the online sales tax proposals that have been made. And we have an article on fake charities popping up after the recent events in Boston and how to protect yourself. Hope you like all the articles, bookmark, share, tweet, and like on Facebook.

Bill Smith's gold medal
Bill Smith’s gold medal (Photo credit: Waikiki Natatorium)

filing

Jason Hull presents Tax Accounts for Your Business posted at Hull Financial Planning, saying, “Don’t forget that if you own a business which is treated as a partnership for tax purposes, you’ll be personally liable for the taxes at the end of the year!”

retirement

John Schmoll presents Retirement Planning and Saving For College: Can They Co-exist? posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Retirement planning and saving for college are both items that take years to save for. While it may not always be easy to balance the two, it can be possible to do so without sacrificing the other.”

John Schmoll presents How to Invest in Stocks When You Do Not Know Where to Start posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Investing in stocks, or anything in the market, can be overwhelming for many. The key to overcoming that fear is knowing where to start and educating yourself so that you can set up an investment portfolio that’ll help you grow your wealth and reach your long-term retirement goals.”

tax law

Bill Smith presents Implications Of Passing A Senate Bill Enacting An Online Sales Tax posted at 2011 Tax, saying, “Congress is currently moving forward with a Senate bill that could place sales taxes on buyers who place orders for items housed out of state.”

taxes

Bill Smith presents TaxCaster: The Mobile Tax Calculator For Taxpayers posted at 2009 Tax, saying, “Tax calculators are popular tools for consumers these days. Before filing one’s taxes, a person can take advantage of a calculator.”

Bill Smith presents After The Events In Boston And Texas, Charity Scams Are Common posted at 2009 Taxes, saying, “When you use TurboTax to file your taxes, you may notice that you can write off the money that you gave to charities.”

tips

Cherry Liu presents 30 Blogs Featuring the Most Reliable Tips for Estate Shoppers posted at House Sitting Jobs, saying, “Real estate laws, taxes and investment options constantly change to reflect the state of the economy, which is why the smartest investors know stay ahead of the game.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of tax carnival ecstasy using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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TurboTax Helps Users Get More Accurate Tax Returns

TurboTax Accurate Tax Returns

Each year, Americans are forced to go through last year’s financial information and prepare a tax return.  For some people, this is a happy time because they will be getting a tax refund, which can mean several thousand dollars in their bank account.  But for others, they will own more money to the Internal Revenue Service.

Day 093/365 - Tax Time Phat Cash!
Day 093/365 – Tax Time Phat Cash! (Photo credit: Great Beyond)

The Internal Revenue Service can not look at every single tax return because there are simply too many filed each year.  They do audit some returns, but it is only equal to one percent of all tax returns.  Most people will never have to worry about being audited by the IRS in their life time.  People cheat on their taxes to avoid paying more taxes each year or to try to get a bigger refund from the government.

The good news is that the majority of people do not cheat on their taxes.  Perhaps this peer pressure will deter other people from cheat on theirs.

Recently, the IRS Oversight board conducted a telephone survey that found that 87 percent of Americans felt that is is not acceptable to cheat on your taxes.  The main reason they were against cheating on taxes is due to personal integrity and not the possible punishment.  Just over 10 percent of people polled said it was acceptable to cheat a little bit on their taxes.

Some people cheat on their taxes without even realizing it.  They may omit important financial information or deduct something that should not be deducted.  These errors are not made intentionally, but they can mean big trouble if they get caught.

Using free Turbo Tax 2013 can help people prepare their taxes and increase the odds that their taxes will be accurate.

Sometimes an error or omission helps the individual by reducing the amount of tax they owe.  But sometimes it helps the government by raising their tax amount.  When this happens, you may not get as big of a refund as you normally would.

TurboTax is an easy to use program that many people use by themselves without hiring a tax professional.  It is less expensive than hiring a tax preparer, and you can use it at any time.

The computer program walks users through each step of preparing their taxes.  It asks questions and offers advice for every item that you need to enter, and it makes it easy for users to file their taxes.

Not only can free Turbo Tax 2013 help make your tax return more accurate, but it can also increase your refund.  Some people find they are eligible for more tax credits if they use a program to help them prepare their return.  When your tax return is accurate, you reduce the risk of an Internal Revenue Service audit.