Taxes

Money 911: Early Retirement, IRS Debt & More on Today

Today’s panel looks at ways to reduce debt and plan for a lengthy retirement. What’s the best way to lower student loan payments? How do you handle a large debt to the IRS? What should you do if you are upside down on your mortgage? For answers to these questions and more watch the video clip below.

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Last-Minute Tax Tips and More on Money 911

On this morning’s Money 911, we covered a variety of your financial questions. Do you have questions surrounding the recent student loan reform bill? Which debts should you focus on paying off first? Watch the video below for answers to these questions and more!

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The Money Mom: Tax Deductions for Weight Loss

Last week, I was on Today with Madelyn Fernstrom, the show’s Diet and Nutrition Editor.  Seems like an odd pairing, but this time of year, it’s certainly not – did you know you can turn your weight loss into a tax break?

It’s true.  In April of 2002, the IRS designated obesity as a disease, and with that designation comes some tax deductions.  Now, tax payers can write off weight loss expenses, as long as they’re for health improvement.

You may be thinking that all weight loss is for health improvement, but it goes a bit deeper than that – your doctor must recommend the weight loss as a way to counteract a medical issue, and the IRS wants to see proof.  Weight loss to combat high blood pressure, heart disease, bad knees and high cholesterol will get you a tax savings; losing those last ten pounds will not. More…

Ask Jean Tuesday: Let’s Talk About Tax Returns

“I am going to get about $3500 as a tax return. I want to buy a CD at the bank for $1000 and try to pay some of the credit cards debt I have. I have about $13,000.00 in credit card debt outstanding. I also have 3 store cards and 1 credit card that are in good standing but maxed out. What should I do?”
– Annette, Pennsylvania

Once you have your emergency cushion in place, paying down credit card debt is a terrific use for your tax refund.  (If you don’t have that emergency cushion, put the $1,000 in a money market where you can access it if you need it rather than in a CD.)  Take a look at the interest rates on the cards you’re carrying.  Use the money to completely pay off (if you can) the card with the highest rate of interest. More…

Last Minute Tax Advice

Tomorrow is Tax Day and I was on Today this morning with my last minute tips for those of you who haven’t finished filing. Check out the video below, and a written recap is after the jump.
 

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You Get What You Give

This morning on Today’s Tax Hotline the phones were ringing off the hook with calls from people asking Jean and the other Enrolled Agents their last-minute tax questions.  I was chatting with Jean after the segment and she said that lots of people called wondering how to figure out how much to deduct for donations they’ve made to places such as Goodwill or the Salvation Army.

While I like to get good deals at thrift stores, I also like to give back every once in a while too by making a donation. Gaining some extra closet space doesn’t hurt either…Crocs, gladiator sandals…what was I thinking? Luckily, there are resources out there to help determine how much you can deduct from your taxes after you make a donation. More…

Taxes

Answers to Your Tax Questions

April 15th is quickly approaching, and as I mentioned in yesterday’s post, we spent over three hours answering your tax questions this morning as part of Today’s tax hotline.  Here’s a video of just a few of the callers we helped today:

The Phone Lines Are Open

Operators are standing by….  Okay, not operators, exactly, but something better: Enrolled Agents.  Last year, my longtime Today producer Patricia Luchsinger and I brainstormed the idea of a tax hotline.  A phone bank of experts ready, willing and able to answer your tax questions for free.  It went so well that we are doing it again tomorrow morning.    The phone lines open at 6:30 a.m. EST and close at 10 a.m. EST.  We’ll be answering many questions on the phones and a few live on the air. The number is 877-NBC-4-TAX or 877-622-4829.   More…

The Pepsi Tax

From the latest issue of Self magazine:

Increased taxes on liquor make a night out more expensive, but that heftier tab saves lives, the American Journal of Public Health finds.  Higher alcohol taxes in Alaska cut drinking-related ailments such as oral cancer and liver disease by one third.  Cheers to that!

I agree — so why was it that New York Governor David Patterson’s idea of a soda tax went nowhere fast? More…

TAX REFUNDS

Gimme My Money

This morning, tax expert Roni Deutch was a guest on my radio show.  First, I need to know what that woman eats for breakfast.  She is a bundle of energy on a subject that puts way too many people to sleep.  But she made a really important point about tax refunds.  If you’re among the Americans who receives one each and every year — and tax refunds have been running, on average, about $2400 for the past few years — or even if you simply got one last year, I want you to think about changing your withholding.  Here’s why: When you get a tax refund, that means you’ve been giving the government an interest-free loan. More…