For the past several years I’ve done the free e-file using H&R Block through the IRS website. Which has been all fine and good, as I was mostly a grad student and got all my taxes back with a quick and easy 1040EZ.
This year, in June I got a real full time job. In August I bought a house. My taxes are suddenly a lot more complicated (and the government might actually keep some of them. I don’t know how I’ll cope.)
Should I continue to e-file? Will H&R Block’s free dealie get me all the deductions I need (in a way I can understand - I tried to figure out the mortgage interest thing and I’m not sure where to even start with this - is the company who owns my mortgage going to send me a form? Three companies have owned my mortgage since August - do I need one from all of them? I’m not even sure how to do it if I’m not taking the standard deduction. I need something that will explain what I’m looking for in nice simple language.)
Should I go out and buy TaxCut or TaxWhatever? Didn’t I hear something last year or before that about nasty tax program spyware? I prefer to use a Mac, although I’d have no problem doing it by PC, I’d just have to skulk over to my parents’ house.
Do these things e-file or am I still sending envelopes?
Should I just hand everything over to a professional?
This is all a little scary to me - I always laughed at people who were surprised I wasn’t scared of doing my own taxes back then, but now I’m playing with the big boys and I’m afraid of screwing it up. I could really use some suggestions while I wait for my other W2s to filter in (and whatever other sundry forms might be landing in my mailbox).
We tried doing our ourselves for a few years, and it just makes me break out in hives. So we went to H&R Block. They’re thorough, but it’s very expensive in my opinion. I found a CPA in town who did it for half the price and exhibited a good knowledge of tax law. However, his office was a fucking mess, so we’re not going back to him, but there are other fish in the sea. We will find the right guy and get it cheaper than H&R.
You need TurboTax Deluxe or a competing package. Anyone can do moderately complicated taxes using it and it will make sure you get all the deductions. It isn’t worth it to get all cheap and then miss deductions because of it.
The mortage company will send you a form showing the interest you paid. You will also get things like property tax summaries and others. No big deal.
There isn’t anything to worry about. You paperwork will start to arrive a little later. Just hang onto it and you will be all set.
You typically file electronically with TurboTax and you get electronic receipts and can have the money put into your bank account automatically.
My mortgage company sold my mortgage to somebody else, who held on to it for, like, a month before they sold it to Wells Fargo. Will I get forms from all of these people, or will Wells Fargo send me one form that covers the whole mortgage for this year?
I’d recommend TaxCut software to prepare your taxes. I tend to prefer the interface over Turbo Tax, but either will get the job done for you. Plan on spending about an hour or so getting your Federal and State returns done. It’s not that bad–you can do it!
I used TurboTax last year after 8 years of using H&R Block. TurboTax cost me about $45 versus about $225 I spent at Block the year before. My tax situation is pretty simple, though.
I’ll echo the advice here. My wife is a freelance writer, so we used to go to an accountant. We switched to TurboTax, saved a ton of money, and paid no more in taxes than we used to.
I’d buy the package with the state taxes too. I used to do them myself, until I thought they were too high. I bought the state package, and discovered (before filing ) that I made a mistake and would have paid hundreds of bucks too much. The state taxes get done in literally seconds also.
We efile through Turbo Tax, if we are getting money back, but mail if we have to pay.
The hard part about doing taxes, I’ve found, is collecting the receipts. You have to do that for HR Block anyway. Filling in the forms with a package is the easy part.
If you’re leery of using software, try filing through the H&R Block website. You get stepped through both your federal and state returns, which are each e-filed. There’s a fee, but I don’t think I’ve ever paid more than $60. I’ve used their service for the past few years, and I feel like I’m always offered every deduction and form option under the sun: my taxes are simple, so I spend a lot of time clicking “no” boxes and buttons. They also have online consultants available, for a fee, if your taxes suddenly get nasty or you feel totally lost. When you’re all done, you get PDFs of your returns for your files. I like this service a lot.
I have never paid anyone to do my taxes, probably never will. It really isn’t all that hard to do; people are just intimidated by the forms.
In any case, use TaxAct. There is no appreciable difference in Tax prep software, so you buy by price, and TaxAct is cheapest (and even free, if you ignore their begging).
Go to the official IRS site. They have a very nice list of many E-filing providers and it states clearly which are free and which have a (much) lower fee than buying any software that is useless after you use it once.
I have a complicated tax return and used to go to H&R Block…then I tried E-Filing and I will NEVER go back to H&R block.
With E-Filing, you can fill out everything, see your return (or how much you owe) and then stop before filing - and try a different on-line software if you want. I did that one year and went from a paltry return to a nice chunk of change!
E-Filing is really very, very easy…it takes you through each step, asks you lots of questions you would never have thought of, and then - once you are happy, you hit submit and within about 24 hours or less, the IRS sends a confirmation. I have my refund wired to my account and usually get it in five business days.
Seriously - I strongly recommend E-Filing! It is quick, it is accurate, it is very simple and even if there is a slight fee which I always wind up paying, it is far, far cheaper than H&R Block, and even cheaper than buying the software!
Try it! If you don’t hit the final “submit” button, it doesn’t cost you a penny!
I bet if you try it once, you will never go back to any other method again.
Second the vote for TaxAct. I’ve used the free software (you can also do it online for free at their site) for I think five years now, and have been very happy with it. It walks you through every step and double checks for various deductions, and the whole thing is easy as pie.
Unless your return is insanely complicated, I recommend going to the IRS site and downloading their fillable pdf files. This year you can even save them after filling them. Fill them, print them, sign them, send them in.
Where do you see that? The Individual e-file Providers page (Home > e-File (button) > e-file for Individual Taxpayers > e-file Filing Options > e-file Provider) allows you to enter a ZIP code and see a list of authorized e-file providers, but no prices are listed. All the site itself says is:
There is a Free File link/option, but there are guidelines regarding eligibility; namely, that “Participation in the 2006 Free File program is limited to taxpayers with an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $50,000 or less.” (As, on preview, gotpasswords notes.)
Unless I’ve missed something for taxpayers with an AGI above $50K, why bother doing a bunch of research when I’ll probably just wind up paying someone the same $40-60 (if not more) that I pay H&R Block?
If you go to this IRS Link they list many on-line services - some free for students, some free for over a certain age or under $50,000 or any number of options.
As I said in my original post, I usually wind up paying under $20 to use one of the services (I think I used TaxSlayer last couple of years) and they are authorized by the IRS, they e-file your return and again, it is easier and cheaper than buying the software.
But hey, if you want to schlep your paperwork and go wait and have someone else do it for ya for more money, by all means go for it.
The simple fact is this: while many people may be eligible for free e-filing, not everyone is. One significant criteria is that your AGI must be $50,000 or less. That’s all I’ve been trying to say/prove, because some folks seem to be under the impression that everyone can e-file for free. That’s misleading and inaccurate information, especially in a thread about e-filing vs. software.
Did you bother to actually look at that list? The services listed are all for people with an AGI of less than $50,000. At the very top of the page it says “If the amount is not specified, Free File services are limited to taxpayers with Adjusted Gross Income of $50,000 or less; or otherwise as noted.” Every listing that specifies an amount specifies $50K or less. What part of “free e-filing is limited to people with an AGI of $50K or less” don’t you understand?
If this is directed at me, you haven’t been paying attention: I’m not buying any software, I’m using H&R Block’s online service. I do my taxes, they do the e-filing.
Hey, if you want to keep posting the same information despite being told by two different posters that it doesn’t apply to everyone, apparently I can’t stand in your way.
I use TurboTax and like it because I’m familiar with the program and you can move around in it and change things. I’ve used online programs and they are not as flexible.
If all you have are earnings, interest income, investment income, and basic itemized deductions you can sail through a federal return. If you have something more complicated, like unreimbursed business expenses for your job, or own a rental, all is not lost. Just go on the IRS.gov website and send for the Publications that give all the details for specific subjects. And the instruction booklets for each form go line by line with explanations. They are written in plain language and with a little effort, once you understand the basics, it’s fairly simple. You can even buy programs that will calculate all your depreciation for you.
If you spent money in 2005 to find your job, e.g. a new resume, miles for interviews, moving expenses, miles to volunteer, miles for doctor’s appointments, don’t forget to deduct them.
As a single person, your itemized deductions are going to have to exceed $3200 to be better than just taking the standard deduction.
Make sure your parents do not plan on taking you as a dependent for 2005; just follow the instructions on the 1040 if this is the case.
I would only use a tax preparer or accountant for business entities e.g. partnership, corp. S-corp. or if you have a complicated sole proprietorship. some people with complicated investment transactions might find it tedious, but not difficult.
) that I made a mistake and would have paid hundreds of bucks too much. The state taxes get done in literally seconds also.
The