Income Tax Refunds

[ny biker]

I used to owe/get back very little each year. I made changes to my withholding to keep things even. After I bought my condo I started getting bigger refunds due to the mortgage interest deduction despite the fact that I changed my withholding to try to account for it. So I just gave up.

[NoNo]

I'm sure the fact that I rent plays a large part in my numbers being smaller than other people's . I also have them take the max out of my paycheck. I should probably get an accountant anyway as I'm trying to start a business and have no clue where to start with that stuff. Don't need the IRS on my case down the road because I did something wrong now.

[bmccasland]

I should probably get an accountant anyway as I'm trying to start a business and have no clue where to start with that stuff. Don't need the IRS on my case down the road because I did something wrong now.

Nono - I had a tax accountant for a short while and learned a lot from him. His prices weren't much different from the chain tax prep agencies. I would say go for the tax accountant, especially if you're starting a business. He/she will help you separate business expenses from home and maintain some level of sanity check. The only reason I no longer use the tax accountant is that I changed states.

[tulip]

I just dropped all my stuff off at the accountant's this afternoon. I am not inclined to do my own taxes anymore (not since I could do a 1040 EZ). To me it's well worth the expense of having them done, on time, and correctly.

But some people like to do them and know what they are doing. Makes my eyes glaze over.

[ginny]

I'm expecting some $$ back - bought a house this year and also put in a highly efficient wood burning insert (for some reason, I get 30% of that back too).... I plan on fully funding my ROTH IRA for the year. Depending on how much over that I am, I will probably put it into the 'house savings' fund. We are redoing a bathroom in an 80+ year old house and ... WOW! talk about money pit! We also hope to redo the basement at some point. Oh yeah, and we have to re-grade and put in a French drain and ... and... and... it sure is a good thing I love my house!

[moonfroggy]

we have an arrangement where we do our own taxes but then have someone go over it and make sure everything looks good. it is cheaper than having him do the taxes for us but makes sure we get the maximum back and that everything is done right.

[Crankin]

We are getting a lot back (kind of let the gov. use our money) and it is going to pay for our trip to Spain. We were not depending on the tax refund to actually do the trip, as my DH gets a huge bonus and stakeholder check in February. So now, we were able to use that money to invest in our 401Ks (which due to my DH's diligence are above the amount the were at prior to the "crash.").
This is the first year since we moved into this house (2005) that we haven't had to use all of this extra money for home repair or remodeling.

[NoNo]

Nono - I had a tax accountant for a short while and learned a lot from him. His prices weren't much different from the chain tax prep agencies. I would say go for the tax accountant, especially if you're starting a business. He/she will help you separate business expenses from home and maintain some level of sanity check. The only reason I no longer use the tax accountant is that I changed states.

Yesterday a friend gave me the name of his accountant from when he had a bakery. I'm going to email and see what she has to say. I feel a little better knowing it's someone who specifically has dealt with small businesses and comes highly recommended.