I did everything you told me to do and my life has improved about 1000-fold. You are a wonderful person and an awesome doper. I will undoubtedly be singing your praises for the rest of my life (wow, that sounded creepy stalkerish :D).
Dealing with the IRS was not nearly as painful (or expensive) as I was expecting but I wouldn’t have had a clue where to start without your help. Knowing me the way I do, without clear-cut instructions, I probably would have delayed even longer, leading to even more penalties and interest. As it turns out, I owe far less than what I expected and I will be able to easily pay it off before the end of the month!
So, thank you more than I can possibly say. I could have said this in a PM but I wanted everyone else to know how awesome you are too.
I’ve heard of some strange kinks but tax preparation has go to be the strangest. However, I tend to expect people who deal with taxes to look like, well…accountants. Diosa totally doesn’t fit that particular stereotype.
Covered_In_Bees! - Oh my god yes. I spent 2 years wishing I had the money to pay what I owed and terrified that the IRS would come hunt me down (for $1200 :smack::p). The knowledge that I’d actually have the money to pay made me start panicking about how to go about doing what I had to do without screwing up. Hell, when I got the letter today, I even called the IRS to make sure it was right. The nice guy seemed pleased to have a happy person on the phone for once.
On a side note, did you know that the IRS plays Wagner for their hold music? It was awesome. The 5 minute first hold and 4 minute second hold were both so pleasant that I almost asked to be put back on hold. The IRS guy said someone actually complained about the music a few days ago. Who complains about Wagner?
Yeah, it’s pretty cool. . . until you hear it for about 7 hours a day. Not so cool then.
And sorry for not replying sooner- I just saw this thread! I’m happy I could be help someone with their IRS problem, since I know how helpless the situation can seem. It’s easy to get really overwhelmed, especially with all of their scary letters :p:D.
Probably the same guy who wrote a blistering letter to the editor in my local paper lambasting a senator for having the gall to use what he assumed was Mozart as her hold music instead of a patriotic American composer.
For the first time in my life, I actually owe taxes this year instead of getting a refund (well, at least according to my TaxSlayer forms, I think I will try TurboTax and see if I can get this down a bit…).
However, I have had to call the IRS twice in the past 8 years or so and both times they have been very friendly and helpful! I know, that is not the stereotype, but both times they were really nice and helped me a lot. There was some confusion on something and we straightened it out quickly (to my advantage) and I was glad I spoke with them.
So just my two cents, it really is worth calling them instead of waiting for some dreaded letter to show up. They really are decent people to deal with - at least in my experience. Then again, I too am very calm and nice when calling - so maybe they were relieved not to have some screaming idiot yelling at them from the first word. At any rate - call them, be pro-active and polite, and I bet you will find they are good people.
Dmark, the reason things are so easy for you when you call is because your file doesn’t start up flashing lights and air raid sirens when the IRS agent pulls it up. If you were anything like some of my clients, the IRS agents would be far less pleasant to you, trust :D.
Good point.
However, from about the late 80’s until the late 90’s, I would get insane letters claiming I owed $62 back taxes from 8 years ago, then the following year I would get a letter saying I owed $27 from 11 years ago, then the following year I would get one saying I owed $112 from 4 years ago…it was driving me crazy. Back in those days, I was using the basic EZ forms and there were no surprises as I filed them.
So, on my last call to the IRS, I asked for (and got) a letter saying that as of that time, I did not owe any back taxes from any prior year.
Since then, I have not once received a letter for some piddling amount from 1988 or whatever.
As long as I have your attention - does it make a difference if you use TaxSlayer or TurboTax or another software? Just wondering as I want to re-do my taxes and try to get it down to zero (or a small refund) instead of the current $250 TaxSlayer shows I owe. Granted, in the grand scheme of things $250 is not a lot, but this was a rough year, I had to take a pay cut and it seems odd that of all the years, this is the first year I owe taxes upon completion of the forms.
I honestly can’t speak one way or the other on any of those programs. I can say that I’ve had several friends use them (mostly Turbo Tax) and end up with completely messed up tax returns that I have to help them fix. I heard something about a class action against Turbo Tax last year because it was miscalculating stuff (literally adding it wrong).
Just be careful. The programs are good for simple returns, but if yours is even remotely complicated, you might not want to do it yourself.
DiosaBellissima, how do you suggest finding someone good who can prepare your return? Not for this year, as I’d imagine all the good folks are slammed at this point, but for next year?
I am not an accountant, cpa or anything related, nor have I ever played one on TV, however, I have used TaxAct online for years and it’s pretty darn good. My daughter had to file last year for the first time and decided to try it herself on TurboTax. I could not believe how difficult they made it for a 16yo to do the easiest of easy forms. I made her stop and switch to TaxAct and we whipped right through it. I would not recommend TurboTax to anyone.
:smack::p). The knowledge that I’d actually have the money to pay made me start panicking about how to go about doing what I had to do without screwing up. Hell, when I got the letter today, I even called the IRS to make sure it was right. The nice guy seemed pleased to have a happy person on the phone for once.