Taxes

Cherokeekid88

Cherokeekid88

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 30, 2007
Location
High Point, NC
Ok I just got my W-2's from work....This will be the first time I have worked for this company for a full year (2011). Last year, I did my taxes online and for only working 6 months and living at home with my parents, I got what I thought was a nice refund back....Well I just went online to do my taxes for 2011 and my refund only ended up being like $100 more than it was last year, but I worked 6 months longer and moved out and am living on my own....I mean I know I am not the sharpest knife in the kitchen when it comes to taxes, but I figured I would be getting back way more than I did last year....I didn't file anything last year differently than this year...and I just can't believe it.

Is it worth taking it to someone and getting them to file them for me like H&R block?
 
You made more money so that means they take a higher percentage out. I payed 25% of my income in taxes. On a side note, Mitt Romney only paid 15% on the millions he made. Welcome the the wonderful world of getting fuct by your government.
 
i umderstand that the more you make the more you pay...but I thought you usually always get close to what you put out for federal? I went to another website and it says I should be getting back like $600 more than the last one said....is it worth taking it to H&R Block?
 
Cherokeekid88 said:
i umderstand that the more you make the more you pay...but I thought you usually always get close to what you put out for federal? I went to another website and it says I should be getting back like $600 more than the last one said....is it worth taking it to H&R Block?
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Spend $30 on the H&R block software, formerly "TaxCut".

Regardless of how much you make, if the pull-out is budgeted correctly, the amount of your refund should be pretty close to the same amount - zero.
The amount you pay goes up. You only get a refund if you overpay.
 
Unemployment got me last year. Thier website and the IRS planely state that you can ern up to $2500 on unemployment before youhave to file it. Last year I was layeed off for 2 weeks, that was $1100 in unemployment so I didn't file it. Mid December I get a letter from the IRS claiming that I owe them $172 due to not filing the W2 from unemployment..... go figure
 
Green ford said:
It amazes me how many people don't understand that. They get all excited about getting money back. Heck I would rather keep mine during the year.
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or the ones that dont pay and still get a refund wtf is up with that.
 
Always wondered how people get back more than they actually paid.

I use taxact.com It's really cheap, no need to buy software anymore. Only a few bucks to e-file with them. I think feds are free if you print and mail them.

Happy Tax Season:beer:
 
FYI H&R Block Deluxe + state (which includes multiple E-files) is on sale on Amazon today for $27.
 
rattlecanpaint said:
You made more money so that means they take a higher percentage out. I payed 25% of my income in taxes. On a side note, Mitt Romney only paid 15% on the millions he made. Welcome the the wonderful world of getting fuct by your government.
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I think there are some math errors in the 15% thing, I read that somewhere... most of his income is capital gains from investments or something, so it is taxed differently.

Decomp said:
Always wondered how people get back more than they actually paid.
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Credits, man, it's the credits.

I may be the only person left who actually does taxes long-hand, on paper, and mails them in. :lol: Ours aren't simple, but I don't find it to be all that difficult.
 
rattlecanpaint said:
On a side note, Mitt Romney only paid 15% on the millions he made.
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You're confusing income taxes with capital gains taxes. That 15% capital gains rate was already taxed once at 15%, then again at 15% when it was distributed. The effective rate is somewhere closer to 30-35%.

You could also say he pays 15% tax on his savings, which would be no less true. Capital gains taxes are taxes on saved money that's put to work.

Edit: Check out this James Pethokoukis essay for more:

http://blog.american.com/2012/01/actually-mitt-romneys-tax-rate-is-too-high/
 
Decomp said:
Always wondered how people get back more than they actually paid.
I use taxact.com It's really cheap, no need to buy software anymore. Only a few bucks to e-file with them. I think feds are free if you print and mail them.
Happy Tax Season:beer:
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Dont get married to your baby daddy, have lots of kids, work a little bit, be on gov't assitance, get a $5000 earned income tax credit, repeat next year
 
i get my work to take out $10 bucks extra in Federal. that way you have less chance of having to pay in, and you got a better chance of gettin more back
 
Ok...your employer is required by law to withhold out a certain amount of your check every pay period and pay those taxes throughout the year to the IRS. The amount of withholding is based upon how much you make per pay period.

Since you worked less last year, you made less money total and therefore had a large portion of your taxes taken out of your income as a relative percentage. Thus your refund.

This year you worked all year and probably had the same amount taken out per pay period. But you worked all year and made a lot more money, so more while the percentage taken from your checks was the same, you paid more dollars into taxes throughout the year.
Since you filed on your own and probably no longer a dependent of your parents you get the standard deduction, instead of them claiming you as a dependent .

You need to adjust your W-4 so the amount withheld at the end of the year is close to the amount of tax that is due. Unless you don't have the discipline to save money throughout the year.

I use online software to file mine. Being young and single, it's doubtful you have any deductions so I would just do it yourself. Are you married, own a house, pay tuition or student loans ?
Give more than 5500+ to charity?

Turbo tax has a taxcaster app / website dedicated for estimates. Check it out. I have played around with the app for mine and my girlfriends taxes to get an idea of where we each stand.
 
Pinhook said:
Ok...your employer is required by law to withhold out a certain amount of your check every pay period and pay those taxes throughout the year to the IRS. The amount of withholding is based upon how much you make per pay period.

Since you worked less last year, you made less money total and therefore had a large portion of your taxes taken out of your income as a relative percentage. Thus your refund.

This year you worked all year and probably had the same amount taken out per pay period. But you worked all year and made a lot more money, so more while the percentage taken from your checks was the same, you paid more dollars into taxes throughout the year.
Since you filed on your own and probably no longer a dependent of your parents you get the standard deduction, instead of them claiming you as a dependent .

You need to adjust your W-4 so the amount withheld at the end of the year is close to the amount of tax that is due. Unless you don't have the discipline to save money throughout the year.

I use online software to file mine. Being young and single, it's doubtful you have any deductions so I would just do it yourself. Are you married, own a house, pay tuition or student loans ?
Give more than 5500+ to charity?

Turbo tax has a taxcaster app / website dedicated for estimates. Check it out. I have played around with the app for mine and my girlfriends taxes to get an idea of where we each stand.
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I understand now...I honestly thought I would be getting way more back than I did based on the fact that I made more last year, but I understand now...a lady that I work with, her ex husband worked for the IRS and was explaining it to me.
 
I will go ahead and throw this out there, I say it every year... you really don't want to get a refund from the Government, you want to owe a little at April 15.

A refund is not free money... it is YOUR money that the government held all year interest free for you.

It is like giving someone $100 on January 1st with them promising to give it back to you at the end of the year with no interest.
 
BigClay said:
I will go ahead and throw this out there, I say it every year... you really don't want to get a refund from the Government, you want to owe a little at April 15.

A refund is not free money... it is YOUR money that the government held all year interest free for you.

It is like giving someone $100 on January 1st with them promising to give it back to you at the end of the year with no interest.
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Ive always claimed "0" on my W2 in which they rape me in withholdings so I can get a portion of my money back at the end of the year - I dont wanna be stuck with a bill...

On another note, the IRS is coming down hard on folks. They tried to say I didnt file my taxes in 2008 which I did but I had to prove it to em.. So they started garnishing my wages almost immediately even after I appealed their claim. They were totally rude on the phone when trying to clear up the matter and after being passed around like a 3 dollar hooker I finally got someone of some help.

Needless to say, I got my W2's from 2008 and tax forms from that year and proved them wrong.. They stopped the garnishment but I still havent gotten that money back from my employer yet..

Oh, and the debt was for $600 in 2008. They billed me for $2500!! Talk about ridiculous interest!!
 
BigClay said:
I will go ahead and throw this out there, I say it every year... you really don't want to get a refund from the Government, you want to owe a little at April 15.
A refund is not free money... it is YOUR money that the government held all year interest free for you.
It is like giving someone $100 on January 1st with them promising to give it back to you at the end of the year with no interest.
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While this is true - in practicality it doesn't matter.
Lets pretend you put that money into a savings acct. Ok 2-3%? 5% max? Unless you go high risk investment you're not going to get much more than that.
Now do the math on how much $ you'd actually make, considering that you're only accumulating $$ over the year; Jan 1 it is a very small amount in your pot.

The total amount you "could make with that money" is trivial, unless you are in a really high income bracket, especially compared to the penalty fees if you owe too much.
 
RatLabGuy said:
While this is true - in practicality it doesn't matter.
Lets pretend you put that money into a savings acct. Ok 2-3%? 5% max? Unless you go high risk investment you're not going to get much more than that.
Now do the math on how much $ you'd actually make, considering that you're only accumulating $$ over the year; Jan 1 it is a very small amount in your pot.
The total amount you "could make with that money" is trivial, unless you are in a really high income bracket, especially compared to the penalty fees if you owe too much.
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True with today's rates; but what about in the 70s when rates were 14% or so. Personally I like to have access to my money whenever I need it, and you can't access a tax refund until it is sent to you.
 
Its the priniple that counts. I'd rather pay a bill at the end of the year, than have the IRS take and hold my hard earned cash each paycheck, only to give back what I overpaid at the end of the year. A "trivial amount" saved is a "trivial amount" earned...better than nothing.
 
lockedup5 said:
Kinda like paying PITI on your house to the bank. They get to hold your taxes and insurance till they're due.
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yes but that is 100% optional.
With taxes, you HAVE to pay ahead.
If, at tax time, you owe too large of a % of the total amount due, they fine you. Big time. so you HAVE to make quarterly (at least) payments.

I actually see both sides of this, though. Yes it sucks and yes it's not really fair...
... but lets be honest, if you weren't forced to pay ahead, how many people would actually pay up at the end of the year? You can bet yer ass alot of folks would just never pay.
The IRS would be spending waaaaay too much time and money hunting people down.
Paying taxes sucks but it's a necessary evil...
 
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