The Tax Rebate Thread of 2008...
01-28-08, 11:47 PM
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The Tax Rebate Thread of 2008...
You don't have to look at any of the other crazy threads that are in there, but I started a poll and thread in the Difference of Opinion board on what were you planning to do with your 'tax rebate' money if you fall into the category of Americans slated to receive it...there was also a question at the very beginning yet to be answered, even by our own economy guy the PhD-wielding tcb100...please partake of the festivities in the DoO board...
Does Anybody Know...?
Mario III
Does Anybody Know...?
Mario III
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01-30-08, 11:24 AM
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Wow...I didn't know they had 'hidden' the DoO again...I'll see if a mod will unlock this thread long enough for me to post the poll I used over there...sorry about that guys n' gals...
01-31-08, 01:43 PM
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Yes, there is a law and amendment...the Urban Myth is that there isn't a direct line calling for the IRS or the federal income tax, but it's there in black and white....the same Urban Myth claims that you can file papers to become an 'island'...a sovereign citizen of the USA itself and not beholden to any state or their laws...
02-09-08, 08:39 PM
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bump....So you don't have to go to the link (...but please do if you haven't voted in the poll yet...
...) to see this bit of good news I finally found regarding just how "free" this money is...I know, I know, technically, it's not free since we pay taxes, but since they're cutting out the wealthy folks, it's like they're being forced to pay us money against their will....take that, Robber Baron tcb100 !! If the poll is any indication, though, I'm thinking a lot of folks on the Hill are in for a disappointing surprise.
The answer fell onto my lawn Friday! Here's the article and since it's passed both houses, that's $1800 TAX FREE coming into our household this June! Kids are great, I tell ya!
The Savvy Consumer: Don't confuse 'tax rebates' with tax returns
By Teresa McUsic, Special to the Star-Telegram, Fri, Feb. 08, 2008
-- Congress is calling them "tax rebates," but don't let that confuse you into thinking that the checks the government will be sending most Americans this summer is any part of your annual federal tax filing.
Local accountants say they are already getting calls from confused taxpayers.
The rebate check has nothing to do with your tax refund if you overpaid your 2007 taxes. And don't look for the rebate to offset any taxes owed this April 15.
"You won't get your rebate until after your '07 return is already in," said Lacey Riley, a CPA with Pickens Snodgrass Koch in Arlington.
The good news is that rebate checks aren't considered taxable income, so unlike other "found" money like gas-well bonus checks, you don't have to set aside part of your rebate for taxes or remember to report it on your 2008 taxes.
Here are five other points to remember when filing your 2007 taxes:
Mortgages and foreclosures
Mortgage debt forgiven after a foreclosure or restructured loan is no longer taxable. If your house was foreclosed upon last year, or some of your mortgage debt was canceled in a restructuring of your loan, you will not owe taxes on that amount, said Robert Opitz, a CPA with Rylander, Clay and Opitz in Fort Worth.
For example, if you had a $200,000 mortgage debt and your home was foreclosed upon, then the lender sold the house for $180,000, you would be sent a tax document showing a $20,000 debt discharge holding. By the same token, if your loan amount was discounted in a restructuring, you also would have forgiven-debt income.
In past years, that amount would have been considered taxable income, unless you went through bankruptcy or proved your insolvency in another way, Opitz said. Starting in 2007, that debt is not considered taxable.
This tax-law change came with the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Act passed in December and is effective from 2007 through 2009. It applies only to qualified principal residents and has up to a $2 million cap for those taxpayers who are married, filing jointly.
Mortgage insurance
Private mortgage insurance is now deductible. Mortgage-insurance premiums paid in 2007 are deductible from federal taxes. The MFD Act extended that deduction through 2010. But the deduction is phased out for those single or married filing jointly with incomes of $100,000 or more.
Mileage
The mileage rate has increased. Taxpayers who used their vehicles for job-related purposes in 2007 can deduct 48.5 cents a mile for business mileage, up 4 cents from 2006. The rate for medical and moving expenses mileage is up 2 cents from 2006 to 20 cents a mile, while volunteer mileage continues to plug along at 14 cents a mile, the same rate it has been since 1997.
Charitable contributions
Keep records for all those charitable contributions. There are new requirements when claiming deductions for monetary donations to a charity in 2007. Even for contributions less than $250, taxpayers must now have a bank record or receipt from the organization that clearly shows the date, organization name and amount of each donation.
More scrutiny
Tax preparers will be looking hard at tax returns. A law passed last year with an Iraq funding bill requires the preparer who signs your return to give closer oversight to your records and the thought process behind your return.
"Instead of a client/advocate role, it puts us in a watchdog or auditor position," Opitz said.
The IRS Code already had a specific rule governing the role of tax preparers over individual returns they oversee, but the new law requires more scrutiny and penalties will be placed on the preparer as well if the agency finds fault with the return.
So be sure to be prepared to back up those tax deductions before you see your tax preparer.
For taxpayers who earn less than $50,000 a year, a new no-cost Web site sponsored by the Texas Legal Services Center, www.icanefile.org, will automatically calculate and file their tax returns with the IRS.
IRS customer service hotline, 800-829-1040, or go to the agency's Web site at www.irs.gov.
TERESA McUSIC'S COLUMN APPEARS FRIDAYS. SHE CAN BE REACHED AT tmcusic@savvyconsumer.net
See, the newspaper is still a great way to get news!
...) to see this bit of good news I finally found regarding just how "free" this money is...I know, I know, technically, it's not free since we pay taxes, but since they're cutting out the wealthy folks, it's like they're being forced to pay us money against their will....take that, Robber Baron tcb100 !! If the poll is any indication, though, I'm thinking a lot of folks on the Hill are in for a disappointing surprise.
The Question originally posed by mar3
(Does Anybody Know)...if the so-called 'tax rebate', right now at $600 per eligible taxpayer, is for real?
Anybody remember the "Child Credit" from a couple of years ago (...or was that last year?) and how that scam played out? You got the credit and a check from Bush Jr to make everything fair during the "marriage penalty" days, supposedly offsetting the extra tax being paid at that time. But then when tax time rolled around the following year, you were asked if you got that thar check. If you said, "yes", your taxable income was adjusted accordingly and you basically got nothing for "free"....is this the same scam?
(Does Anybody Know)...if the so-called 'tax rebate', right now at $600 per eligible taxpayer, is for real?
Anybody remember the "Child Credit" from a couple of years ago (...or was that last year?) and how that scam played out? You got the credit and a check from Bush Jr to make everything fair during the "marriage penalty" days, supposedly offsetting the extra tax being paid at that time. But then when tax time rolled around the following year, you were asked if you got that thar check. If you said, "yes", your taxable income was adjusted accordingly and you basically got nothing for "free"....is this the same scam?
The Savvy Consumer: Don't confuse 'tax rebates' with tax returns
By Teresa McUsic, Special to the Star-Telegram, Fri, Feb. 08, 2008
-- Congress is calling them "tax rebates," but don't let that confuse you into thinking that the checks the government will be sending most Americans this summer is any part of your annual federal tax filing.
Local accountants say they are already getting calls from confused taxpayers.
The rebate check has nothing to do with your tax refund if you overpaid your 2007 taxes. And don't look for the rebate to offset any taxes owed this April 15.
"You won't get your rebate until after your '07 return is already in," said Lacey Riley, a CPA with Pickens Snodgrass Koch in Arlington.
The good news is that rebate checks aren't considered taxable income, so unlike other "found" money like gas-well bonus checks, you don't have to set aside part of your rebate for taxes or remember to report it on your 2008 taxes.
Here are five other points to remember when filing your 2007 taxes:
Mortgages and foreclosures
Mortgage debt forgiven after a foreclosure or restructured loan is no longer taxable. If your house was foreclosed upon last year, or some of your mortgage debt was canceled in a restructuring of your loan, you will not owe taxes on that amount, said Robert Opitz, a CPA with Rylander, Clay and Opitz in Fort Worth.
For example, if you had a $200,000 mortgage debt and your home was foreclosed upon, then the lender sold the house for $180,000, you would be sent a tax document showing a $20,000 debt discharge holding. By the same token, if your loan amount was discounted in a restructuring, you also would have forgiven-debt income.
In past years, that amount would have been considered taxable income, unless you went through bankruptcy or proved your insolvency in another way, Opitz said. Starting in 2007, that debt is not considered taxable.
This tax-law change came with the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Act passed in December and is effective from 2007 through 2009. It applies only to qualified principal residents and has up to a $2 million cap for those taxpayers who are married, filing jointly.
Mortgage insurance
Private mortgage insurance is now deductible. Mortgage-insurance premiums paid in 2007 are deductible from federal taxes. The MFD Act extended that deduction through 2010. But the deduction is phased out for those single or married filing jointly with incomes of $100,000 or more.
Mileage
The mileage rate has increased. Taxpayers who used their vehicles for job-related purposes in 2007 can deduct 48.5 cents a mile for business mileage, up 4 cents from 2006. The rate for medical and moving expenses mileage is up 2 cents from 2006 to 20 cents a mile, while volunteer mileage continues to plug along at 14 cents a mile, the same rate it has been since 1997.
Charitable contributions
Keep records for all those charitable contributions. There are new requirements when claiming deductions for monetary donations to a charity in 2007. Even for contributions less than $250, taxpayers must now have a bank record or receipt from the organization that clearly shows the date, organization name and amount of each donation.
More scrutiny
Tax preparers will be looking hard at tax returns. A law passed last year with an Iraq funding bill requires the preparer who signs your return to give closer oversight to your records and the thought process behind your return.
"Instead of a client/advocate role, it puts us in a watchdog or auditor position," Opitz said.
The IRS Code already had a specific rule governing the role of tax preparers over individual returns they oversee, but the new law requires more scrutiny and penalties will be placed on the preparer as well if the agency finds fault with the return.
So be sure to be prepared to back up those tax deductions before you see your tax preparer.
For taxpayers who earn less than $50,000 a year, a new no-cost Web site sponsored by the Texas Legal Services Center, www.icanefile.org, will automatically calculate and file their tax returns with the IRS.
IRS customer service hotline, 800-829-1040, or go to the agency's Web site at www.irs.gov.
TERESA McUSIC'S COLUMN APPEARS FRIDAYS. SHE CAN BE REACHED AT tmcusic@savvyconsumer.net
See, the newspaper is still a great way to get news!
