The Tax Cut and Jobs Act made significant changes to the tax code and eliminated or diminished many tax breaks for the average person. It did this in several ways, including reducing deductions for property, state and local taxes as well as eliminating personal exemptions. Despite these changes, there are still many tax breaks that most people can still take advantage of. Below is a list of just a handful of them.
Tax season is about to start, which means it’s that time of year where you need to be on the lookout for tax documents such as W-2s and 1099s. But what other documents and information do you need to have ready to complete your tax return over the next few months? That precise answer depends on your unique tax situation, but the following guide will provide a good overview of what you might need to have ready when you or your tax preparer files your tax return this year.
Those who have read Lewis Carroll’s, Through the Looking Glass, may recall the Red Queen. This character explains to Alice that she must run as fast as she can merely to stay in one place. This is the origin of the Red Queen Hypothesis, which theorizes that living things adapt and evolve, not to gain an evolutionary advantage, but to survive. In other words, evolution doesn’t improve a species’ chances of survival, but prevents it from going extinct. Continue reading “Tax Scam Trends”
According to the IRS, individuals filed more than 150 million tax returns during the 2016 tax year. That equates to the IRS collecting a lot of money and having access to even more personal information. It should then come as no surprise that identity thieves focus on stealing tax information from individuals. Here are a few things the average taxpayer can do to reduce his or her chances of having their tax information stolen. Continue reading “Keep Your Tax Information Safe”
Technically speaking, “tax garnishment” is a misleading term. This is because a person’s taxes aren’t being garnished. When someone uses the term, tax garnishment, they are probably referring to the use of wage garnishment to pay the taxpayer’s back taxes. Not surprisingly, the garnishment of wages is a common tool used by the IRS. Continue reading “What Is Tax Garnishment?”
Wherever there’s money, there’s the potential for a scam. And there’s a lot of money in the federal tax collection process. Seeing the opportunity to make a dishonest buck, scammers use a multitude of schemes to trick innocent taxpayers into giving personal information. The scammers then use this information to steal money from the taxpayer or use the taxpayer’s identity to commit financial crimes. Don’t be a victim of phishing tax scams. Continue reading “Phishing Tax Scams to Watch”
You may have heard those commercials about settling a tax debt for pennies on the dollar. It sounds too good to be true, but is it? Yes and no. While it’s possible to significantly reduce your tax debt with the IRS, you’re probably not going to be able to pay pennies on the dollar. The following blog post intends to explain what the offer in compromise (OIC) is and help you determine if it’s something you should consider. Continue reading “Using an Offer in Compromise to Settle Your Tax Debt”
What’s worse than filing your taxes? Finding out you have an unexpected tax bill due. And what could be worse than a surprise tax bill? Having the IRS place a lien or levy on your property. But why are tax liens and levies so bad? Read on to find out.
One of the things that keep many of us from going too far in our attempts to reduce what we owe Uncle Sam is the fear of a tax audit. In most situations, the audit process isn’t as scary as most people fear, especially if there is nothing to hide. The following blog post will provide an overview of the audit process and explain certain steps you can take to reduce the chances of being an audit victim. Continue reading “IRS Tax Audits”
As long as there are telephones, there will be people trying to use them to steal money from others. And given the power and fear the IRS strikes into many Americans, it’s no wonder the many telephone scammers decide to use the IRS as the basis for their scams. The following is an explanation of some of these more common IRS telephone scams and what can be done to help you or others from falling victim to them. Continue reading “Telephone Tax Scams”