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  • There’s Free Filing Help for Seniors
    Free, but not necessarily perfect
    The Internal Revenue Service sponsors a Tax Counseling for the Elderly program during the filing season. A key participant in this nationwide program is the American Association of Retired Persons, which offers AARP Tax-Aide, a tax assistance and preparation program, at approximately 6,500 sites.
  • Take the Standard Deduction or Itemize?
    There are some add-ons to the standard deduction, but they come with plenty of stipulations
    Many who are about to file returns for 2009 want advice on whether to claim the standard deduction or to itemize outlays like mortgage interest and charitable contributions. Itemizing pays off only when total itemized deductions surpass the standard deduction.
  • Help from the IRS
    Informal IRS publications aren’t authoritative
    Although the IRS guide Your Federal Income Tax can be invaluable, keep in mind that the agency can legally disclaim all responsibility for inaccurate information that its employees give, whether as responses to telephone or walk-in inquiries or that it prints in its publications.
  • Going Green Trims Taxes
    Tips for tax season
    Installing energy-efficient home improvements like windows and doors in your principal residence will qualify you for a tax credit. The credit equals 30% of the cost, capped at a maximum of $1,500. There’s another credit of 30% of the cost of installing renewable-energy improvements like solar water heaters and solar panels.
  • Marriage and Divorce: Savvy Ways for Persons Marrying, Married or Divorcing to Trim Their Taxes to the Legal Minimum
    Help has arrived
    Reading about taxes can be just about as unpleasant as paying them. Marriage and Divorce is a welcome exception. In fact, the New York Times says it’s “One of the best tax books, an excellent source of information. . . . Julian Block writes in such a lively clear style that a reader might never guess that he is a tax lawyer.”
  • Estimated Taxes: Another Deadline Coming Up
    January 15 is a key date for many taxpayers
    Make sure to stay on top of the deadlines for filing federal tax returns and the due dates for making payments. Miss just one, and the IRS might exact a sizable penalty.
  • Year-End Deductible Payments
    The postmark’s the thing
    Contrary to what people scrambling for last-minute breaks prefer to believe, dating your checks "Dec. 31" does not automatically entitle you to claim the expenses for 2009, rather than 2010.
  • Tax-Timing Redemptions of EE Bonds
    Their interest is exempt from state taxes
    Even people with the best-laid plans may overlook perfectly legal ways to diminish, defer, or deep-six taxes. For instance, individuals who buy Series EE savings bonds get to postpone reporting the interest income until cashing in the bonds or the bonds mature.
  • Court Allows Exotic Dancer to Deduct Breast Implants
    Cynthia’s cups runneth over
    Typically, the law categorizes what you spend to improve your appearance, general health, or sense of well-being as nondeductible personal expenses. It should come as no surprise, then, that lots of business-versus-personal disputes wind up in the courts.
  • Divorce, IRS Style
    A few real-life examples
    Most states have eased their divorce laws, but it’s not uncommon for a court of one state to invalidate a divorce obtained in another, further complicating your life—and perhaps raising troublesome tax issues.
  • Some Strategies for Home Sellers
    Keep meticulous records that track your home’s cost basis
    A profit on the sale of your house or condominium qualifies for an “exclusion” from taxes of up to $250,000 in profit on home sales for single filers and up to $500,000 for married couples filing jointly. Make more, and you'll be stuck with taxes on the excess.
  • What’s Ahead for Tax Rates on Capital Gains?
    Amid the thorns, an occasional rose
    Losses—including those from 2008 and earlier—will become more valuable if the top rates for long-term gains and ordinary income go up.
  • Calling for Tax Advice the Inexpensive Way
    Tax code changes averaged one per day over the past eight years
    How do Americans keep abreast of the hundreds of tax code modifications made each year? Fortunately, pricey tax professionals are not the only source of help for those worried about their financial futures and retirement prospects.
  • Tax Planning Under a New President
    Political horse-trading will bring important changes
    There’s lots of uncertainty about who will be helped and who will be hurt by the tax packages that President Barack Obama will send to a Democratic-controlled House and Senate.
  • Rebate Deadline Fast Approaching
    Mark the date: October 15, 2008
    A lot of retirees and veterans qualify to get an economic stimulus payment from the IRS but didn’t file tax returns and so haven’t gotten their money. If you’re one of those folks, you only have until October 15, 2008, to file.
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