Taxes are done!

[The Preacher]

My debt is so severe that it's going to take a while to make a significant dent in it. I've got some other money squirreled away, so I figure I could drop $1000 on the card (half of the rem. balance on the highest rate, which will allow me to pay off the rest of it this year), the TV and the trip and still have a bit of nest egg for future emergencies.

Not trying to cramp your style or prioritize for you, but I'd do either the trip or the TV and blast the rest into the card. The cash flow that you open up when you pay off the card will be huge.

[Isgrimnur]

No, I appreciate it. Trust me, the debt is a major thing that I want to get taken care of, but I have a plan in place, know who to pay first, and am working on it. But during that time, I'm not going to live in a refridgerator box, living on dialup and bologna sandwiches while I do it. My debt level is substantial, but I'm finally making enough money to make a decent amount of headway against it. And since every card used the 9 months before the Credit CARD act to attempt to raise my rates, I now don't have any active credit card accounts.

Like I said, my initial plan is to drop a grand on the top CC. The TV is headed south and needs replacing. If it was still working properly, it wouldn't even be on the list.

As for the trip, I'm attempting to kill two birds with one stone. I haven't taken anything more substantial of a vacation than hanging out at my parent's house in the two years since I've moved to Dallas. Getting to spend time with her and then transitioning to Origins would be a lot cheaper than trying to fund a trip somewhere else where I'd have to worry about lodging and car rental.

[Guy Incognito]

Depending on factors like resolution / screen size / distance, you may do well to save the cash and stick with 720p. Article.

I've see other articles with similar graphs, they might actually be better but this is the one I ran into first upon my google search.

[Carpet_pissr]

Yep...I was just about to say the same thing. At 32", you won't be able to tell the different between the two resolutions (unless you hook a computer up to it).


DAMN...I don't even have the W2 from my employer yet....COME ON DUDES. I have a massive refund waiting for me.

[Isgrimnur]

I sit pretty close to the screen at the moment, but I haven't done side-by-side comparisons to see the differences up close yet. Maybe I'll go look at that size this evening and see what I can see.

[The Meal]

Trust me, the debt is a major thing that I want to get taken care of, but I have a plan in place, know who to pay first, and am working on it. But during that time, I'm not going to live in a refridgerator box, living on dialup and bologna sandwiches while I do it. My debt level is substantial, but I'm finally making enough money to make a decent amount of headway against it. And since every card used the 9 months before the Credit CARD act to attempt to raise my rates, I now don't have any active credit card accounts.

I can't put myself in your shoes with regards to advice for your tax refund windfall, as with substantial debt to my name I wouldn't even think of luxuries such as a television or a new gaming computer, especially the types of luxuries which would tempt me to spend more money (on television programming, netflix, games, etc.). That's me, and you're you. (And FWIW, I'm not particularly judgmental, so please don't take my "I can't relate" commentary the wrong way!)

The trip may be something I'd consider as an extravagance, depending on how much I missed my sister and/or how much I felt like I deserved to get out of town for a few days.

Full disclosure, I'm one of those bull-headed optimists who doesn't often find himself in a situation where he doesn't think he can claw his way out. If you're feeling like you're making adequate head-way on your debt, then that's fantastic. I'd still want to put the debt 100% behind me before moving forward with bringing extra things into my life. (It was that sort of thinking that led me to not owning a TV until I was 30, not purchasing a home or new vehicle until I was 35, etc. I tend to deprive myself of things longer than most, and accept less risk than many.)

[coopasonic]

Completely irresponsible. Enjoy your youth while you still can.

I'm going to continue slaving away at work so I can pay for the house for my wife and kids and the minivan payments. I've had two vacations that weren't long weekend in the past 15 years (honeymoon and 5th anniversay). I get 4 weeks off a year. Where the hell do they go?

Yay!

[pr0ner]

I did my taxes over the weekend.

I probably should change my withholdings sometime, but there is a certain allure to getting a big fat check from the government come tax time....

[Carpet_pissr]

Isn't there a deadline by which companies have to give your W2 to you?

[Isgrimnur]

Isn't there a deadline by which companies have to give your W2 to you?

February 1st.

[naednek]

Isn't there a deadline by which companies have to give your W2 to you?

Jan 31st

[coopasonic]

The only company that ever gave me W2s late was Uncle Sam. The Army was late every freaking year.

[Kraken]

Isn't there a deadline by which companies have to give your W2 to you?

February 1st.

Generally true, but there are a whole lot of excuses for a company to be late.

I know because I read the employer instructions today while creating and filing my own W-2 and W-3, the cover sheet for a company's W-2s that made sense in the paper era but is just plain silly when filing online.

We're waiting on about half a dozen 1099-MISCs and a 1099-G to trickle in. I suppose I could get started on the expense side.

[Isgrimnur]

I sit pretty close to the screen at the moment, but I haven't done side-by-side comparisons to see the differences up close yet. Maybe I'll go look at that size this evening and see what I can see.

I apparently can't tell the difference between 720 and 1080 at the 32" size, even after several minutes of watching the Best Buy feed. That will save me some money there.

I'd need something with a total of three HDMI inputs (DVR/Cable Box, 360, PS3). Looking at the Vizio linked earlier, it only has two. Not that I have any HDMI sources now, but if all my stuff has them, I'd like to be able to use them. I'll probably go look at this one tomorrow night.

As for the trip planning, it looks like round-trip airfare would be ~$300. Due to the timing of a conference she needs to attend and Origins, I would likely have to transition from her house to paid lodgings for at least two nights, which would also include food expenses, transport expenses, and whatever nifties I wanted to purchase at Origins plus the $60 registration cost. I don't suppose anyone else wants to go and split lodging expenses?

Say I keep the trip to $800 and the TV to $400, that leaves me $1600 over my base nest egg to drop on CCs, which is 5% of my outstanding non-student loan debt. (My late 20s were not kind to my financial well-being.)

[Daehawk]

Got our money..or so they say. haven't checked yet.

[Daehawk]

32" tv $349

720p. My current is 27" 720p. If I'm going to upgrade, I'm going 1080p.

ok...
http://www.walmart.com/Vizio-32-1080p-L ... p/10778775" target="_blank

[Bakhtosh]

Finally got mine submitted last night. I was using TaxAct, and saw that my bank is offering free TurboTax basic that's already keyed into the bank account, so I filled it in just to make sure they agreed. Turns out I was missing about $200 in eligible refund from my state filing. Glad I checked (of course, I was also missing $200 from my TurboTax Federal refund that TaxAct DID have, so I had to double check everything to make them agree).

This will be my first year as a net taker. With 2 kids, daycare expenses, medical withholdings, education expenses, and a wife making less than 1/3 of my salary, we'll get more back than I paid in this year. Now that she's quit work entirely to go back to school full-time, it will be even more next year.

Since I pre-registered in October, I only had to pay $13 to file state and federal electronically (TaxAct is only $17 normally). http://www.taxact.com" target="_blank

[godhugh]

Did mine this weekend. Getting a refund for the first time in 4 years (thanks Wes!) and it's going to be going to a new washer/dryer. We're quite excited .

[Kraken]

I think we have most of our 1099s now. I won't get my K-1 until the CPA finishes my business return, so there's no point moving forward with ours yet.

I started my MIL's return last weekend just to warm up. Hers is trivial, really -- medical expenses easily make her income go away. The real chore is getting her paperwork from my BIL. When I started filling in the questionnaire at I-CAN (which was kind enough to import all of last year's data), I quickly discovered that he needs to send me some interest statements. If I'm lucky, he'll do that before April 15. More likely I'll end up filing for the extension again. Everyone in my wife's family are champion procrastinators.

Nice thing about a low-income 80-year-old is that e-filing is free for both federal and state.

[Skinypupy]

I did my taxes over the weekend.

I probably should change my withholdings sometime, but there is a certain allure to getting a big fat check from the government come tax time....

I hear ya. This was my first year with a baby, and I honestly had no idea how much that was going to affect my taxes. Between the baby and the tax credit for putting in a new furnace, I'm getting quite the substantial refund. Unfortunately, it'll all be going towards paying for said furnace, as well as the thousands in dental bills I've racked up over the last 6 weeks. Sucks, as I was really hoping to finally be able to upgrade my 4-year-old PC.

[LordMortis]

I'm hoping I can get organized on Saturday and do my taxes then in one fell swoop. We'll see what happens.

[naednek]

Anyone know if you can claim closing cost fees (appraisal fees, escrow fees, etc) for first time buyers? I'm seeing conflicting statements.

[pr0ner]

Anyone know if you can claim closing cost fees (appraisal fees, escrow fees, etc) for first time buyers? I'm seeing conflicting statements.

I personally did not when I bought. I deducted the points I paid and taxes, but not any of the fees.

[stessier]

Anyone know if you can claim closing cost fees (appraisal fees, escrow fees, etc) for first time buyers? I'm seeing conflicting statements.

IANACPA, but I don't think you can. Points, PMI, and Interest are all that are deductible.

[LordMortis]

They told me you could when I bought my house. I couldn't find anywhere for it on Turbo Tax, so I didn't. (They being the realtor and the loan officer)

[Jeff V]

Just how badly does one get reamed taxwise when severance and vacation pay all come out on one check? Enough so an additional $20,000 of untaxed income still left enough for a $2,200 refund.

The state, though, wants $400 of it.

[Bakhtosh]

The document I read said clearly that you could only deduct costs related to the cost of the loan: points, origination fee, and interest. The survey, appraisal, filing fees, or any fee for someone's work cannot be deducted.

[Carpet_pissr]

It will be interesting to see how I end up this year. Commissions screws everything up so I never know what I will get back, but it's always in the several thousands. This year though, bought one of the new furnaces, so will get a tax credit on that, BUT also will get hit with an early distribution penalty on one of my IRA accounts that I decided to close since it was like a secondary, in a rollover account (and I needed some quick cash for some house remodeling).

Not sure that furnace tax credit is significant though...what is it, like $400?

[Skinypupy]

Not sure that furnace tax credit is significant though...what is it, like $400?

Mine was $1,100 and I think that's a standard federal deduction. A little tough to find in TurboTax...listed under "Oscillating Fan Systems" or something like that.

[Kraken]

This morning I decided to quit waiting for my lazy B-I-L to track down missing paperwork, and plowed through to e-file my M-I-L's taxes. She had $12,000 worth of deductions against $7800 of income, so the missing 1099s hardly mattered anyway.

Now that that's out of the way, I'm motivated to start our own tax return. First step: Sorting the tax records from the nontax records and stuffing 2009's unnecessary receipts into a filing cabinet. I can get that done in an hour this afternoon.

[LordMortis]

I found and organized all my crap this weekend. I somehow ended up owing $500 this year when I'm used to getting about $300 back. What's even worse, is that rather than walking away from my house, I paid off my 2nd mortgage and I got one time tax write off of the sales tax on my new car. That means they'll be taking an even larger chunk in addition to my mortgage credit that is slowly going away. How is it all of these "tax cuts" are seeing my owe more every year? I'm missing something. Though I did see that Turbo Tax informed me that a $400 credit we got from Obama last year was really just a loan and that I owed that money. Did I even get a $400 credit from Obama? I remember the $400 Stimulus loan I got from W. They need to stop it with all this shit. For someone who runs a tight ship, it's really beginning to wreck havok on my zen yet responsible budget.

Where's my damned tea bag?

[Scuzz]

Anyone know if you can claim closing cost fees (appraisal fees, escrow fees, etc) for first time buyers? I'm seeing conflicting statements.

It is confusing...I believe some are and some aren't.


Got my taxes done this weekend. I see the IRS has added forms L & M to their list of overkill forms. I get my taxes professionally done simply because I have a guy i trust and he does the business at the same time. I worked for the IRS for 8 years and I wouldn't think of doing my own tax returns.

[Scuzz]

I was surprised to learn that 1099's are legally required to be mailed out until the 15th from now on....used to be Jan 31st.

[LordMortis]

I was surprised to learn that 1099's are legally required to be mailed out until the 15th from now on....used to be Jan 31st.

I am surprised to learn this now too. When and why did that change happen? Does that mean we have until the 30th to get them done now? Don't mind me. I'm just pissed at the amount of money that is going to taxation. Jesus. It's not like I'm Geezer or anything.

[Scuzz]

Feb 15th..........

[Kelric]

Waiting on two W-2s to come in. Once that happens I can have my taxes done within half an hour. I'm not too sure one of the W-2s will even get shipped out, though.

And... done. Yay, refunds!

[LawBeefaroni]

I found and organized all my crap this weekend. I somehow ended up owing $500 this year when I'm used to getting about $300 back. What's even worse, is that rather than walking away from my house, I paid off my 2nd mortgage and I got one time tax write off of the sales tax on my new car. That means they'll be taking an even larger chunk in addition to my mortgage credit that is slowly going away. How is it all of these "tax cuts" are seeing my owe more every year? I'm missing something. Though I did see that Turbo Tax informed me that a $400 credit we got from Obama last year was really just a loan and that I owed that money. Did I even get a $400 credit from Obama? I remember the $400 Stimulus loan I got from W. They need to stop it with all this shit. For someone who runs a tight ship, it's really beginning to wreck havok on my zen yet responsible budget.

Where's my damned tea bag?

The $240 we pay ($120 per filer) to an accountant for tax prep and filing is worth every penny. No surprises and no nagging feeling of missing something.

[Isgrimnur]

In the interest of closure, I spend a little under $500 for a new 32" 720p TV with 2 year replacement plan from "Best" Buy and dropped $1800 on my highest rate CC. That card now has less than $100 left on it and will be paid off next month.

[stessier]

Congrats Isgrimnur! That has to be a nice feeling (both the TV and CC).

I'm still waiting on a K-9 form (or something like that) from a stock I own. I think it usually shows up in March sometime. The distribution they report is miniscule, though, so I've already figured out everything else and look to be getting a nice little return. Hooray for new babies and not changing withholdings!

[LordMortis]

The $240 we pay ($120 per filer) to an accountant for tax prep and filing is worth every penny. No surprises and no nagging feeling of missing something.

I lead a simple life. An accountant would have to stretch the truth thinner than an Olsen Twin to get me money. I think about some times. But I'm just not that guy. Which is precisely why I'm not one of the people who walked away from their mortgage and am working hard to pay my responsible fixed rate 30 year mortgage out of having negative equity.