Guest FourAces Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I'm wondering how many here do their own taxes and if so do you use a program? My tax situation had been a nightmare till last year when I decided to get it cleaned up. I went to H&R Block I felt they did well and they sure know how to charge! If I return this year I found out my estimated fee will be $800.! Keep in mind I no longer own any property, sold the condo, and my income is mostly 1099 and I do have my own very small business so I do list deductions. There must be a less expensive firm or a computer program I can use to file myself. I do not even need to worry about state tax cause we have none here! Any suggestions are appreciated! Quote
Guest EXPAT Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 I use an tax accountant back in Ohio actually. I started to use tax accountants when I was an EXPAT 15 years ago and have been using them every since. The reason is that it is so complicated with expatriate compensation and investment compensation it is just easier to let the experts do it. I suspect I will keep going that way even though it costs me $1000 a year to do it that way, but I think it is worth it considering the complexity I face every year. Quote
Members TampaYankee Posted March 20, 2012 Members Posted March 20, 2012 I'm wondering how many here do their own taxes and if so do you use a program? My tax situation had been a nightmare till last year when I decided to get it cleaned up. I went to H&R Block I felt they did well and they sure know how to charge! If I return this year I found out my estimated fee will be $800.! Keep in mind I no longer own any property, sold the condo, and my income is mostly 1099 and I do have my own very small business so I do list deductions. There must be a less expensive firm or a computer program I can use to file myself. I do not even need to worry about state tax cause we have none here! Any suggestions are appreciated! This reflects my circumstances too. I do my own taxes and always have. I use one of the free sites through the IRS which my age and income level permit. The software these days is pretty much idiot-proof if one can read with a modicum of care. At least it seems so to me, but I have always done taxes so maybe I have familiarity with the terms that newbies might not have. Quote
Guest hitoallusa Posted March 20, 2012 Posted March 20, 2012 Yes I do mine myself. Mine is not so complicated. Quote
caeron Posted March 21, 2012 Posted March 21, 2012 I use turbotax online. It is very good at keeping your records and pre-importing your tax materials from last year into the current year. I invest in a number off limited partnerships, and have stock option/stock program stuff that mildly complicates my return, but I find that the top level of turbotax walks me through it quite well. It takes a while to gather all the materials and itemize, but I find that it's much cheaper than using an accountant, and I like to be able to review the materials myself. You don't have to pay until you actually file, so you could give it a try, and abandon it if you find it doesn't work for you. Quote
Guest FourAces Posted March 21, 2012 Posted March 21, 2012 I use turbotax online. It is very good at keeping your records and pre-importing your tax materials from last year into the current year. You don't have to pay until you actually file, so you could give it a try, and abandon it if you find it doesn't work for you. Hey thanks for the tip ... that is a good idea. I'm gonna give it a try Quote
Members RA1 Posted March 21, 2012 Members Posted March 21, 2012 Turbo Tax's fees seem quite reasonable. I, too, shall further investigate their products. Thanks. Best regards, RA1 Quote
Members lookin Posted March 22, 2012 Members Posted March 22, 2012 TurboTax, but not the on-line version. The software CD for both Federal and State costs $45. I'm leery of putting my tax info on-line and probably needlessly so. I like the format of answering questions, and the instructions are pretty easy to follow, with a help button if I want more info about any of the questions. What's especially nice is the way it imports relevant info from last year's return, asking if I've donated to the same charities and such. So the second year is easier than the first. I get the feeling that it's always making sure I'm not overlooking anything. When I've answered the last question, it's ready to roll. It asks a few more questions for the State filing, gives me the Federal and State totals, and an assessment of my risk of being audited. Filing on line is probably super easy but, again, I'd rather not. So it prints out all the Federal and State forms for me to sign and mail, including a cover sheet with the proper mailing addresses. There's really nothing it doesn't do and I've been using it for about ten years with no beefs. Quote
Members MsGuy Posted March 22, 2012 Members Posted March 22, 2012 Guys, the dirty little secret is that many CPA's are actually using a similar tax program but charging you by the hour to go through your paper work to enter the data. Did you think they were typing up that neat return all by themselves? Quote
Guest hitoallusa Posted March 22, 2012 Posted March 22, 2012 Some tax law issues need professional help and expertise so it's better to get professional help... Yes they use similar programs but they are experts so it's better to go to them. My tax is not so complicated and I usually like to learn new things so I do it by myself. I like getting student ids from local universities by attending courses. Once I stayed at Duke university for a week in their dormitory and it was very fun experience. I felt young again. Quote
Members lookin Posted March 22, 2012 Members Posted March 22, 2012 Once I stayed at Duke university for a week in their dormitory and it was very fun experience. I felt young again. Sounds quite tempting, though I worry the campus police might take a dim view. Quote
caeron Posted March 22, 2012 Posted March 22, 2012 TurboTax, but not the on-line version. The software CD for both Federal and State costs $45. I'm leery of putting my tax info on-line and probably needlessly so. I like the format of answering questions, and the instructions are pretty easy to follow, with a help button if I want more info about any of the questions. What's especially nice is the way it imports relevant info from last year's return, asking if I've donated to the same charities and such. So the second year is easier than the first. I get the feeling that it's always making sure I'm not overlooking anything. When I've answered the last question, it's ready to roll. It asks a few more questions for the State filing, gives me the Federal and State totals, and an assessment of my risk of being audited. Filing on line is probably super easy but, again, I'd rather not. So it prints out all the Federal and State forms for me to sign and mail, including a cover sheet with the proper mailing addresses. There's really nothing it doesn't do and I've been using it for about ten years with no beefs. I guess it's a matter of comfort. I figure that there are plenty of places I've put stuff on line already. Somebody figuring out exactly what I make isn't going to help them as much as the credit card info I have stored on amazon and other places. I agree that one of the big benefits comes in year 2, since it remembers all the stuff from the previous year it makes entering charitable donations, wages, interest income much easier, since it usually knows 80% of them from the previous year. Quote
Guest hitoallusa Posted March 22, 2012 Posted March 22, 2012 Lol....All the guys were so hot around me! It was a dorm for guests and scholars but there were hot guys all around and but I had a single room. It was a nice room though. I am not sure whether students can afford a room like that but I guess some students can. I used my student Id card to get movie and show discounts so I got some of my tuition back that I paid.. Lol.. Sounds quite tempting, though I worry the campus police might take a dim view. Quote
Members seattlebottom Posted March 24, 2012 Members Posted March 24, 2012 I use H&R Block online. Those 1099s are a real pain with the schedule c's and all. Make sure you get offical IRS transcripts to show that you paid self employment taxes otherwise you may not get social security or medicare benefits. Quote
Members JKane Posted March 24, 2012 Members Posted March 24, 2012 Just found out getting my taxes done this year cost me $400. But I also got a lot more back on them than I expected, so overall a win. WTF, now the underline spellcheck is working?! Quote
Guest FourAces Posted March 24, 2012 Posted March 24, 2012 I use H&R Block online. Those 1099s are a real pain with the schedule c's and all. Make sure you get offical IRS transcripts to show that you paid self employment taxes otherwise you may not get social security or medicare benefits. Thats a good heads up thanks Quote
Guest CharliePS Posted March 24, 2012 Posted March 24, 2012 I did my own taxes yesterday, the old fashioned way--mostly. I picked up paper forms at the local IRS office, did the calculations by hand, and filled them out. Like the feds, the state of California no longer automatically mails forms to your home, and I couldn't find them anywhere, so I had to download and print them myself, and I read the instruction booklet online. Then I did the same as above, and mailed everything in my own envelopes. The whole process took me about three hours, and cost me only the postage. If it sounds like my financial assets are pretty simple, that's unfortunately true. Quote
