Recently, President Obama has been talking about another mortgage help program for struggling homeowners. Now he has released his proposal, which is an expansion on the already existing HARP (Home Affordable Refinance Program). Outlined below are the main points of the new HARP plan (based on The White House’s Fact Sheet). Broad-Based Refinancing Plan • [...]
Tax News
There is now buzz about a new financial transactions tax ― nicknamed the Robin Hood Tax ― which would place a small tax on financial transactions. Supporters of this proposal say that take money from the wealthy and help combat speculation. Critics, on the other hand, argue that it won’t raise much revenue and will [...]
The deadline for extending the payroll tax cut is December 31, 2011 – and politicians in Washington are in gridlock over what to do. President Obama would like to extend the tax holiday (already currently in place) for one more year and cut the employee’s share of the payroll tax from 4.2% to 3.1%. Obama [...]
You should contact the IRS if you have tax questions, such as how to respond to an IRS notice, how to resolve tax problems, how to eliminate tax debt, or to look up your tax refund status. Individuals may call the IRS at (800) 829-1040. IRS customer service representatives can answer questions about individual tax [...]
When you open an IRA, make sure you are smart about who you list as the beneficiary. This may not help you after you are gone, but it is definitely a big deal to those you leave behind. If somebody other than a spouse is the heir, they must begin to take distributions by December [...]
For Social Security benefits, a portion of them may be taxable. This depends on your marital status and your total income. Your AGI (half of your Social Security benefits plus your projected income from all other sources), plus any tax-free interest from municipal bonds or foreign income, is called your “provisional income.” If this sum [...]
If you did not file your taxes by the original due date (typically April 15th), you should still file your return as soon as possible. The longer you wait to file, the more penalties and interest you will be charged by the IRS. There are two main advantages to filing a late tax return and [...]
Regardless your situation, it is always best to file and pay your taxes as soon as you can. If you make no effort to pay your taxes, the IRS may levy your bank accounts and wages, or take other assets. Additionally, the IRS may file a Notice of Federal Tax Lien on a delinquent taxpayer [...]
If you are buying a house, you know that you are likely to get some tax help in the form of tax deductions for mortgage points you pay as well as the mortgage interest you pay on the loan during the year. What about home sellers, though? Is there any tax help for those who [...]
Do you need a copy of your past tax return? If so, you should first decide if you need an exact copy of your return or just a simple transcript. Many taxpayers are unaware that there are differences between exact copies and transcripts. Along with this, the process of getting an exact copy of a [...]
