# Should I be Filing a 1040? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 16, 2014, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632 "2014-09-16T05:51:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/1 "2014-09-16T05:51:50Z")
Situation: 65, disabled (really). Sole income that anyone can easily trace: SS Direct cash: 350/mo from room rental. I have very bad credit and poor decision-making, so I own a beat-up house and pay 12% interest on the mortgage - a bit over 40% of SS income. Obviously, I will not get any withholding back, but is there some benefit (single, white) meaning I should file? ---
**Author:** ![SandyHook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dec6dc/32.png) [@SandyHook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SandyHook)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/2 "2014-09-16T06:38:18Z")
Not a lawyer and all that, but, YES, you should be filing unless you have a letter from the IRS saying you don’t have to. If all you have coming is in SS and a dab of rent why are you having anything held out? They don’t withhold on SS unless you tell them to. If they have been withholding go file for the past 3 years and get it back. ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/3 "2014-09-16T07:13:20Z")
When I said I wouldn’t get w/h back, it is because I don’t have any w/h going out. I’m looking for some kind of credit or other intangible. If anybody knows of a way to get a refund without paying anything in, I’d REALLY like to hear that one. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/4 "2014-09-16T12:30:49Z")
You might be eligible for the [Earned Income Tax Credit](http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Do-I-Qualify-for-EITC%3F), which is a refundable tax credit that can actually result in certain low-income taxpayers getting more money back than was withheld. That said, if your earned income is as low as you say it is (I’m not even sure if rental income qualifies), it might not be worth very much. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/5 "2014-09-16T14:59:59Z")
If you are due a refund from any taxes withheld, of course you need to file to claim it. The last time I filed a return in a year when I had no tax liability, the IRS replied that I do not need to file in future years, unless I owe taxes. I have not filed a tax return since 1990, and nobody has said a thing to me about it. You can find out whether there are any benefits that you are entitled to, without filing a return. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/6 "2014-09-16T15:00:00Z")
Legal and financial advice is best suited to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2014, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/7 "2014-09-16T15:06:07Z")
12% on a mortgage? (ETA: [that seems like an awful lot](http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/09/11/mortgage-rates/15457491/).) Yes, you should file, and then try to refinance. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2014, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/8 "2014-09-17T03:45:52Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > 12% on a mortgage? (ETA: [that seems like an awful lot](http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2014/09/11/mortgage-rates/15457491/).) > > Yes, you should file, and then try to refinance. > > Regards, > Shodan You’ve never dealt with hard-money lenders, have you? Why should I file? Re-fi is hoped for in another 3 years - instead of a FICO of 500, they now say “not enough data to judge”. For some of us, that is a huge improvement (all of the very old, good data has rolled off and the bad was wiped out by Chap 7). ---
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2014, 7:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/should-i-be-filing-a-1040/698632/9 "2014-09-17T07:06:26Z")
The earned income credit is available to workers at least age 25 but under age 65 so you probably miss that by a year. You wouldn’t be able to qualify for it with your rental income because that’s considered passive, unearned income. My guess is you won’t be required to file since your income is mostly social security funds although you may want to run your income through a tax software program since it performs a calculation for you involving the amount of your social security income and other income.