The IRS Deductions Blog

Posts Tagged ‘tax deductions’

Question: Can you use the cost of home improvements as a Tax Deductions?

For example, new wood flooring, new tile, new kitchen counter tops, etc…?

Answer: Nope….no deductions there.

Certain energy improvements (windows, doors, etc.) qualify for a small credit but general home improvements are not deductible in any way.

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House Passes Tax Cut for Small-Business Investment

House passes tax cuts to help small businesses, bill to be merged with lending measure Small business – Business – Tax cut – Business and Economy – Finance

Tax Deduction Tips & Advice : How to Take Federal Income Tax Deductions

Question: I’m making a donation for someone else, can they get the tax deduction?

A friend gave me a gift card to sell on ebay (they don’t have an account) and told me to send the proceeds to a specific charity instead of writing them a check, cashing it, then they have to write out another check to the charity. Can I send the proceeds to the charity and have them use the receipt from the donation at tax time for the deduction??

Answer: Depending on the amount the card sells for, it may not be worth it to deduct it. If your friend is filing the short form, meaning he or she has no specialized deductions or other donations, that friend will have to file on the long form to take the deduction and if it’s a small amount of money, it may not be worth the extra effort.

That said, you can make the donation in his or her name, but if you make it by check or credit card, your name and address will have to be used to verify payment so it could get a little difficult to get a receipt with his or her name on it.

What you might be able to do is donate cash in person to a local charity and have them put your friend’s information on the receipt.

Really the most sure fire way to ensure that receipt is in order for tax purposes is to have the friend donate the money his or herself.

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J.K. Lasser’s 1001 Deductions and Tax Breaks 2012: Your Complete Guide to Everything Deductible $9.98 A straightforward guide to taking tax breaks and deductions on your 2011 tax returnCompletely revised to reflect important changes in this year?s tax laws, J.K. Lasser?s 1001 Deductions & Tax Breaks 2012 will help you take advantage of every tax break and deduction that you may be entitled to. This comprehensive guide is clearly organized by subject matter so you can easily find situations that ma…

Dog park, ice rink clear hurdles

The Stillwater City Council on Tuesday gave the thumbs up for two different organizations to start exploring additions to the city: a dog park and an outdoor hockey rink.

Get Tax Deductions for Holiday Donations -TurboTax

Question: Can Go Zone investment 50% deduction be taken on California state tax returns, or is it limited to Federal?

Go zone deduction allowed on California returns?

Answer: Just limited to federal.

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TurboTax Deluxe Federal + e-File + State 2010 – [Old Version] $5.75 The Intuit TurboTax Deluxe Tax Year 2010 Software walks you through over 350 deductions including mortgage interest, charitable contributions, education, medical expenses and more. Audit Risk Meter™ helps you reduce your chance of an audit. ItsDeductible® helps you accurately value charitable donated items. The Intuit TurboTax Deluxe Tax Year 2010 Software also guides you through changes…

TurboTax Home & Business Federal + e-File + State 2010 – [Old Version] $8.07 Designed for sole proprietors, self-employed, consultants, 1099 contractors, and single-owner LLCs. Expanded interview walks you through entering business income and expenses to help you maximize business and personal deductions, home office deductions, depreciation and more. Create W-2 and 1099-MISC forms for your employees and contractors. The Intuit TurboTax Home & Business Tax Year 2010 Softwa…

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Tax cuts to cover individual tourists

The government will revise its plan to provide tax incentives for domestic packagetour travellers within Thailand, expanding the scheme to cover individual tourists too in a bid to help tourism recover.

Personal Investment & Loan Tips : ROTH IRA Qualifications

Question: Who’s in the better tax bracket, employees or contractors?

Assuming same annual pay and no Tax Deductions for the contractor who pays less in taxes?

Answer: Technically the work for an employee and a contractor can’t be the same. If it is, the contractor is misclassified and the company will pay dearly during a payroll audit.

For an employee, they get workman’s compensation, unemployment insurance coverage, paid vacation, insurance, etc. A contractor must supply his own insurance and pay for his own downtime.

For an employee, most expenses are covered by the company so the fact that it’s difficult to deduct expenses on schedule A is moot. A contractor is expected to provide his/her own equipment so the ability to deduct them on schedule C is logical.

A contractor with an LLC is still just a schedule C filer. The payer CANNOT use the fact they are an LLC as a reason not to issue a 1099-Misc. The form W-9 should still show the facts.

If I ever do contract work again, I’ll want 50% more than the equivalent employee job to make up the difference.

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Measure against corruption riles foes

In Alaska, where prosecutors have sent a string of politicians and bribe-payers to federal prison in recent years, who could oppose what has been billed as an anti- corruption ballot measure?

How To Increase Your Tax Return 2011

Question: Help understanding the importance of Tax Deductions??

It seems to me that this time of year the majority of people are clamoring over what tax breaks they can receive. This confuses me. I realize we all need the money; however let me explain my logic:

Answer: To use your made up example. If the couple had $60K in income, used the $10,200 personal exemption available to them, and had another $50K in Itemized Deductions, then they would get a refund of the full $9K they had withheld. If they just used the $10,500 standard deduction they would get substantially less back. Of course, in the first scenario the AMT might come into play.

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Why you should itemize deductions even if you don’t qualify

Here’s a strategy to help cut your income-tax bill: shuffle tax deductible payments and charity deductions to the following year to optimize deductions.