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Old 04-01-2007, 03:07 PM
 
3,020 posts, read 25,674,056 times
Reputation: 2806

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Time to fess up. Who is safe and who ain't.

You only got 14 days (a fortnight) and a wake up left.

Who wrote them instructions for that Form 5695, what brain dead GS-16 bureaucrat crafted that part about Line 8? Your typical screw the peeps formulas. But $500 is $500 big bucks.

I am essentially done with Feds. One more good read to be sure nothing is being left on the table. State usually is only one day. No sweat on a roll here.

Take two men and a boy to help carry this sucker to the Post Office.
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Old 04-01-2007, 03:54 PM
 
Location: Central Florida
1,408 posts, read 5,081,899 times
Reputation: 874
And don't forget your telephone tax credit...I think it's hidden on line 71. I heard the IRS said a bunch of those first received didn't include that and it's available to everyone! Not a lot, but every little bit helps.

And my taxes are done...I don't understand this. We're both retired and still have to PAY! And it's not like we're rich by a long shot. Just honest I guess.
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Old 04-01-2007, 04:03 PM
 
Location: NE Florida
17,833 posts, read 33,011,427 times
Reputation: 43378
We did ours the first week of Feb
But this thread reminded me that I need to call good ole herb to see about the sales tax deduction the form wasn't available when I went. A $135 is $135.
thanks for the reminder
karla
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Old 04-01-2007, 04:13 PM
 
Location: Marion, IN
8,189 posts, read 31,147,652 times
Reputation: 7343
My best friend is a tax preparer, so mine have been done for a few weeks.
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Old 04-01-2007, 04:29 PM
 
Location: Naptowne, Alaska
15,603 posts, read 39,650,043 times
Reputation: 14881
Mine have been done for 2 months...and I've already spent my return on some awesome island property. Have a nice day!
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Old 04-01-2007, 04:34 PM
 
Location: a primitive state
11,364 posts, read 24,319,862 times
Reputation: 17360
My junk is in a stack on the tax shelf. I'm going to owe a little money, so I'm in no hurry to get the task done. I have a combination of self-employed work and work where taxes were taken out. Same thing every year. Nothing to get wound up about.
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Old 04-01-2007, 04:40 PM
 
3,020 posts, read 25,674,056 times
Reputation: 2806
Default Very Sneaky...

Quote:
Originally Posted by FL_TN_Nana View Post
And don't forget your telephone tax credit...I think it's hidden on line 71. I heard the IRS said a bunch of those first received didn't include that and it's available to everyone! Not a lot, but every little bit helps.

And my taxes are done...I don't understand this. We're both retired and still have to PAY! And it's not like we're rich by a long shot. Just honest I guess.
Yup, very sneaky putting that Line 71 that way. But I was zeroed in on it.

You are only paying because you choose too. There is actually a way to have a pretty decent income and never pay the Fed's a dime and it is all legal. Not simple but can be done. There are a zillion type credit deals the average smuck can participate in. One of the better ones is like the low income housing credits. You basically sort of give a group money like a loan, that gets spun around into a credit based on strange formulas and you get a bunch of deductions and credits each year. Simple in principle to understand. Investment period is like 15 years. At the end of that period the properties get sold, the investors get their money back plus usually a capital gain. The ones I know about have been paying like 50% gain on the principal over the period.

Your return over all is typically your tax rate plus 3 to 5% per year. The total credits / deducts can exceed the principal over the period. Sure beats putting money in the bank. Plus you can owe nothing year after year without being a poverty case. Even the average working stiff could do it to get their entire income in the pocket. They have an additional advantage they would get the money immediately because they can change their withholding. All how you dial it in, everything has to be figured in advance. The folks that sell these deals typically do a standard tax gouge workup for you to copy the first year. Without it you would never have a prayer.

Even with it your tax life can be quite interesting. Sure is nice having that jingle in your pocket instead of Uncle Sam's.
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Old 04-01-2007, 05:20 PM
 
Location: The Conterminous United States
22,584 posts, read 54,033,362 times
Reputation: 13612
I STILL haven't started it, yet.
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Old 04-01-2007, 05:34 PM
 
Location: Central Florida
1,408 posts, read 5,081,899 times
Reputation: 874
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cosmic View Post
You are only paying because you choose too. There is actually a way to have a pretty decent income and never pay the Fed's a dime and it is all legal. Not simple but can be done. There are a zillion type credit deals the average smuck can participate in. One of the better ones is like the low income housing credits. You basically sort of give a group money like a loan, that gets spun around into a credit based on strange formulas and you get a bunch of deductions and credits each year. Simple in principle to understand. Investment period is like 15 years. At the end of that period the properties get sold, the investors get their money back plus usually a capital gain. The ones I know about have been paying like 50% gain on the principal over the period.

Even with it your tax life can be quite interesting. Sure is nice having that jingle in your pocket instead of Uncle Sam's.

Guess that explains why people who make a quarter mil a year pay less tax that we do! I think I should start investigating some of these possibilities! Thanks.
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Old 04-01-2007, 06:15 PM
 
Location: Dayton OH
5,647 posts, read 11,202,844 times
Reputation: 13110
Did my taxes in early February. Had to figure them up early to see how much I had to send in extra to IRS and to governator Arnold.

Here's my 2006 tax burden. These numbers are rounded off percentages of total taxable income (salary + investment income).
Federal = 18%.
State CA = 6.5%
Social Security = 5.5%
Medicare = 1.2%
California disability insurance tax = 0.6%
Sum = about 32 percent of total income.

Just taking round numbers here, I paid about $32K for various taxes for the year. I didn't have enough deducted from my salary to cover all the fed and state taxes this year, so I had to mail in about 3K to the feds and 2K to CA.

Since I live in an overpriced real estate zone, I rent a little 1+1 apt and pay no mortgage interest. Almost everyone I know around here that has fat mortgage payments got soaked by AMT this year (alternative minimum tax). AMT hits people hard in high tax states and high cost housing areas that have over $80K before tax income with big deductions (kids, mortgage, high state taxes, high property taxes) so that their taxable income comes out to something like half of their before tax income. AMT effectively removes the tax benefits of those big deductions - for me if I had a fat mortgage I wouldn't get the tax benefits cause I'd roll into AMT. Therefore I'll keep renting a few more years till I retire from this job and go to some place far less expensive.

Last edited by recycled; 04-01-2007 at 06:26 PM..
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