Tax Planning Start Tax Planning Early: 8 Great Year-End Tax Tips Read the Article Open Share Drawer Share this:Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)Click to print (Opens in new window) Written by Ginita Wall Published Nov 8, 2013 3 min read When you think of the holiday season, what comes to mind? Gift exchanges? Holiday parties? Home-baked pies? Taxes? I know you have a lot of other things to do this time of year, but the holiday season is a great time to make some last-minute tax moves before the year is over. Here are eight of my favorites: 1. Ask for a New Year’s Bonus Instead of a Christmas Bonus By delaying your bonus by only a week, you can push the payment of taxes on the income 15 months into the future — a year from next April. 2. Clean Out Your Closets and Donate to Charity You can clean out the old clothes, sporting goods, books, and other household goods that you no longer use and welcome the New Year with new space in your life, and get a quick tax deduction to boot. Document these donations by making a list of the items at the time you donate them. You can use TurboTax It’s Deductible to accurately value your donated goods. 3. Pay Donations by Credit Card Payments made by credit card are deductible in the year they are charged, not the year they are paid, so you can donate to your favorite charity by December 31 and not pay the bill until next year. 4. Contribute the Maximum to Your 401(k) or 403(b) Retirement Plans Some employers will allow you to catch up on contributions by increasing your deduction on your last paychecks of the year. If you are 50 or over, don’t forget that you can contribute an additional $5,500 “catch-up” contribution in addition to the regular 401(k) or 403(b) $17,500 limit for 2013. 5. Check the Balance in Your Flexible Spending Account A wonderful fringe benefit, these helpful plans allow you to set aside a portion of your salary before taxes for certain purposes, such as child care or health care expenses. These plans did work on the “use it or lose it” concept: any amount unused at the end of the year was lost, however the Treasury and IRS modified the rule and now employees may be allowed to carry over $500 of unused amounts for next year’s expenses. Your employer may also offer the existing plan option to use unused amounts for up to two and half months following year end. 6. Bunch your Medical Bills Medical expenses are only deductible when they exceed 10% of your adjusted gross income (still 7.5% if you are over 65). If your income is low this year or your medical expenses are high, speed up your deductions accordingly. If you want to take the deductions this year, pay any outstanding medical bills before year-end, stock up on prescriptions, get new glasses, and pay your health insurance premiums before the end of the year. 7. Estimate Your Taxes You can use TurboTax TaxCaster to estimate your taxes and see if you need to make any last minute tax moves. The IRS treats income taxes withheld from your paycheck as if they were paid in equal amounts throughout the year. So if your calculations show you’ll owe money, you can increase the withholding on your last paychecks of the year to make up the difference. You can also try the new TurboTax MyTaxGuru to see what you can do to get a bigger tax refund when you file your taxes. 8. Don’t Forget to Gather Your Receipts You can deduct union dues, legal and professional fees relating to tax and investment advice, and unreimbursed employee business expenses of mileage, equipment, education, and supplies, among other things. If you pay a lot of expenses for your job or your investments, gather up the receipts and cancelled checks so you can save more money when you file your 2013 taxes. Previous Post Options for Taxpayers Who Can’t Pay Their Tax Liability Next Post Four Tax Tips for Armed Forces Personnel Written by Ginita Wall More from Ginita Wall 214 responses to “Start Tax Planning Early: 8 Great Year-End Tax Tips” I had teeth extracted and implant set in November. Since I’ve reached the threshold for medical/dental itemized deductions I would like to include the rest of the process including dentures as a writeoff on this years taxes. Even though I won’t be receiving the denture until March of next year if I pre-pay by Dec 31 can I write it off this year? Reply I would like to respond to Sunna’s question and comment about Flexible Spending. I have never experienced what you did with Flexible Spending. Something does not sound quite right, but you have until March of the following year to spend the money and then October of that year to actually file your claim for the money. e.i. 2013 claims can be filed until October 2014. You have until March 2014 to spend the money and the same for previous years, 2012 you have until 2013. I always fax my paperwork over. Only once did I have an issue they didn’t receive one of the papers and after some time past I called and then re-submitted. They can’t keep your money if you filed in a timely manner. I would try to re-submit with a letter stating when you first submitted the original one and those there after. I am sure you will get your money. Flexible Spending is a win win I wouldn’t stop using it because of this incident. It lowers your taxable income and you’ve got money set aside during the year to pay those out of pocket medical expenses. Good Luck! Reply Our daughter is a single mom. We pay for her home, car, insurances, HOA, the grandson’s pre-school, clothing, groceries, etc. We let her claim him as her dependent. Can we claim anything on either of them? Thanks so much, D Reply Dee, You are very generous. If your daughter’s home is in your name, you can deduct the interest and property taxes you pay. If it is in your daughter’s name, neither of you can claim the deduction – she can’t because she didn’t pay it, and you can’t because you didn’t own it. You would only be entitled to the medical insurance deduction or child care expenses if you claim them as dependents. HOA, car, clothing, groceries, etc are personal expenses, not deductible expenses for any taxpayer. Mary Ellen Reply I just got married in April 2013. I am a teacher and pay my student loans based on my AGI. I heard that there is a penalty for filing married but separate is that true??? And if so what is amount of the penalty? By filing jointly will it affect by AGI for paying my student loans? Reply Frank, You will need to weigh the increased income tax against the possible increased loan payment. You can prepare your tax return in TurboTax as two married filing separate returns and as a joint return to see what the tax expense is. If your loan repayment plan is impacted by your AGI, and your spouse does not have student loans, you could see an increase in your payment. You would need to discuss this with your lender. Mary Ellen Reply In 2013 we had to foreclose on a piece of property that we were the private lender on since 2007. We have claimed interest earned over the years. My question is: we have had to put a lot of expense into getting the property and house into saleable shape. When we sell the property this year can we deduct all the expenses we had to pay and also write off the mileage incurred for this property? Reply I forgot to ask on my previous question about the property taxes we had to pay in 2013. Will we be able to deduct those in 2013 since we received the property back thru a Sheriffs Deed? Our owner ship started on May 18 for the Manufactured Home and final deed for the land on Dec 18 (Idaho requires a 6 month right of redemption for land, the house was not considered real property at the time of foreclosure, we have since turned it into real property with the land) Reply Jill, IRS publication 537 address repossessed property originally sold on an installment sale. You will need to report the gain or loss on the repossession. Based on that calculation, you will have a new basis in the property and the costs you incur to fix up the property for sale will be added to that basis and affect your gain or loss on the new sale. In general, you can deduct only taxes imposed on you. Since you did not own the property at the time of the payment, you cannot deduct the taxes as an itemized deduction for 2013. The property taxes you paid on the property can be added to the basis as a cost of the repossession. Mary Ellen Reply My son whom is 19 pays child support for his daughter. Can he claim this on his taxes? The child is living with the mom who is stil in high school and lives with her parents. She is on social services. Can her mom claim the child? Reply SU, Child support is not a deductible expense. Mary Ellen Reply Thank you. Can he claim earned income credit with or without saughter? There are many things to consider when determining if someone can claim the EITC. I do not have enough information available to me to make that determination. However, the IRS does have an interactive guide to help you determine who qualifies. You can find it at http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/EITC-Home-Page–It%E2%80%99s-easier-than-ever-to-find-out-if-you-qualify-for-EITC Mary Ellen Reply I believe I missed deducting my post-tax health insurance premiums paid a few years ago. Since that was paid post-tax, can I deduct that along with doctor co-pays? If so, what info do I need for documentation? Also, how many years back can taxes be amended? Thank you! Reply RDP, Post-tax health insurance premiums are deductible as well as doctor co-pays. You should keep a copy of your insurance statement and the bills from the doctor for documentation. You can amend your personal tax returns for 3 years based on the later of the date filed or the original date due. If you filed your 2010 return by 4/15/2011, you must amend it before 4/15/2014 to claim a refund. Mary Ellen Reply I paid my daughter’s college tuition in January of 2013. She graduated from college in May of 2013 at the age of 22. She lived with me in all of 2013 while working a part time job. In November 2013, she got a full time job but remained at home. Can I claim her as a dependant on my 2013 taxes? Also can I claim the tuition expense as I have in previous years if she is no longer considered a dependant? Thank you. Reply Robert, If you can claim your daughter as a dependent, based on age, income, student status, etc, you can claim the tuition expense deduction or credit. If not, your daughter can claim it on her tax return. Mary Ellen Reply I have a daughter who is a first year college student. At the end of 2013 she is 18 yrs old. she works part time and I believe she has made around $7500 for the year, if she files taxes can I still claim her as a dependent since I am paying for all of her college tuition and books, fees etc. What can I claim toward these expenses. I’m assuming with that amount that she does have to pay. I usually do my own taxes but am wondering if I can now that this is in the mix, my taxes are typically straight forward the whole education thing is confusing. Thank you in advance for any help you can provide. Reply Irma, Don’t be afraid to use TurboTax to file your tax return. We will ask all the required questions about your daughter’s education expenses and claim the allowed amounts. As long as your daughter is a full-time student under the age of 23, you can claim her as a dependent regardless of her income. If you are claiming her as a dependent, she may not claim herself. She will have a small amount of tax to pay on $7500 of income. Reply Mary Ellen, Thank you so much for your answer, I will certainly give it a try with turbo tax as I do not have money to pay someone to do them for me. And I really hope when you say small amount of tax, that it is small. 🙂 Thank you again for your help. Hi Mary Ellen, could you please tell me where I report the information from form 1098T on my 1040 taxes. Is it possible to file form 8917 and 8863 I find them both very confusing. Thanks in advance for your help. We sold our house in October of 2013. We are currently in the process of building a house. The money we received from the house sale will be used at closing on the new house loan in 2014. Will we be taxed on the money we made from the house sale since it will be going to the new loan? Reply Connie, If you did not make a profit of more than $250,000 on the sale of your residence ($500,000 if you are filing a joint tax return), and you lived in the house as your primary residence for 2 out of the last 5 years, the profit on the sale of the house is not taxable. Mary Ellen Reply Wonderful. Thank you for your help. i purchased a home in march of 2013 I live alone and work for a company from home they supply what I need but I pay for the internet . will I just file as I did when I lived in an apartment…? Reply I added my domestic partner to my health benefits starting in January which will increase my payments by over $200 month, will this lower my taxes per paycheck and if so, by how much? Reply Hi, If your employer deducts the medical insurance premiums before calculating your withholding (this is very common), then you will see a decrease in your withholding. Your FICA and MediCare taxes will decrease by a bit over $15 each month. Calculating your income tax withholding requires information about your filing status, the number of exemptions you claim, how often you are paid, and how much money you make, so it would not be possible to calculate that in this forum. The closest estimate is to multiply your tax rate by the premium amount. That should get you in the ballpark. Mary Ellen Mary Ellen Reply My son is 19 years old, and lives with me. He earned appx $29k in 2013. In Dec. 2013 he enrolled into college as a full time student. I paid his tuition > $2,000.00. Because of his earnings for 2013, he will have to file taxes separately as independent. Because he will be filing taxes as independent, but since I paid his tuition – am I allowed to claim the tuition expense as a deduction on my tax return – or is it just lost? Thank you. Reply He can claim it on his return even thought you paid it. Reply Hi PC, The tuition deduction is only allowed for those people on the tax return, yourself, your spouse and your dependents. Since your son is not your dependent, you are not able to tax a deduction or a credit for his education expenses, however, you son may qualify for the deduction or credit on his own tax return, even though you paid the tuition. Mary Ellen Reply I had a new roof and siding put on my house this year is it deductible Reply Can you deduct the insurance premiums that are taken directly out of your check along with the out of pocket expenses incurred if you are planning to itemize your medical expenses this year because of an expensive surgery? Reply Hi Amy, If premiums are deducted from your paycheck pre-tax then you would not be able to deduct them, because the amount deducted is not included in your taxable income. Your unreimbursed out of pocket expenses, however would be deductible. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply Matt If someone say that they have put a lien on my social security number (or reported my s/s number to the IRS) what does that mean. The reason was a “cash loan store”. Not true, but just curious as to how that works. The loan was paid off. Reply Matt, I don’t think I have ever heard the term “put a lien on my social security number”. Is it possible they mean to report the cash loan store to the credit bureaus? Mary Ellen Reply No. They just said that they reported my name and my social security number to the IRS. Is there any reason a business can report for a lose to the IRS. I know that men that does not pay child support can enter the system with there pay being deducted, or not paying your own Tax. Thanks for the response. IS THERE GOING TO BE A TAX REFUND FROM LAST YEAR? AN WHEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO FILE DATE THIS YEAR. WAS TOLD TOOK TO MUCH LAST YEAR. AN WILL B GETTING LETTERS N MAIL.? Reply Terrianne, IRS should start accepting individual returns no later than February 4. TurboTax will be transmitting returns to IRS as soon as allowed. If you have more taxes withheld than you owe, you should receive a refund. I don’t understand your question about getting letters in the mail. Mary Ellen Reply I want to give as a gift approximately $ 14,000.00 of GE stock to my granddaughter.( 2 years old) Do I have to pay taxes on the profit of the equity when I transfer the account to her name? How do I report that to the IRS? Thank you Reply J.P., You do not have to pay taxes on the profit before you transfer stock to your granddaughter. She will own the stock with the same basis you have before the transfer. If she sells the stock, she will have to pay tax on the profit at that time. You can transfer up to $14,000 per recipient per year starting 1/1/13 without the need to file a gift tax return. Reply Hi…I will be 62 in 2015 & will be retiring. If Social Security will be my only source of income (estimated $1050.00 month), will I have to file taxes? will I have to pay taxes? Thank You. Reply Linda, Under current tax rules, if your only income is social security, and your income does not exceed $25,000 if you are single, $32,000 if you are filing a joint tax return, you will not owe income tax and do not need to file a tax return. Reply If I am assisting my adult children by paying some of their monthly bills (phone, electricity, auto insurance, etc.), can I claim this on my taxes – as a gift or otherwise – without having to actually claim them as a dependent? They simply do not make enough money to pay all of their bills and rather than apply for government assistance, I help them. Thank you. Reply I received 20,000.00 from my grandma when she passed. Do I have to pay taxes on that? Reply No – amounts that are inherited are not taxed to the person receiving them. Reply we bought a premier step in tub. The salesman told us we could claim it on our taxes. Reply Loretta, If your doctor prescribed the tub for medical reasons, you can deduct the cost of the tub plus installation minus any increase in the fair market value of your home due to the tub and installation. For example, if the tub and installation cost $3,000, and the fair market value of your home increased $1,000, you could deduct $2,000 as a medical expense, provided that you have a prescription for the tub. If you do not have a prescription for the tub, you will have an increase in the cost of your home to deduct from the sales price of your home when you sell it in the future. Reply How do you determine the fair market value of your home after projects like that? Dawn, You can talk with a realtor, or if you have spent a lot of money, you could get a appraisal. Mary Ellen Reply we bought a premier step in tub this year. The salesman told us it would be tax deductible. Reply This week my son’s furnace stopped working. He will now have to purchase a new furnace – high efficiency. Will he be able to deduct the cost on his turbo tax? The estimate is approximately $3,000. I had heard there could possibly be an $850 tax credit. Reply William, Some furnaces will qualify for the energy credit, so be sure you have the manufacturer’s credit certification statement. It is usually available on the manufacturer’s website or with the product’s packaging. The amount of the credit varies with the type of equipment installed.The lifetime credit for Nonbusiness Energy Property such as the high-efficiency furnace cannot exceed $500 from 2006 to 2013. Reply Are the co-pays that we pay for medical care deductible? We are both over 65. Reply Copays that are not paid by a pre-tax medical spending account or flex-spending account are medical expenses and can be included as medical expenses in your itemized deductions. Reply If I take the standard deductions for medical, will I be still able to add the co-pays as additional medical expenses? Doloris, The standard deduction is for all deductible expenses, not just medical. If you itemize deductions, you can add medical copays as part of the medical expense, but they will be reduced by 10% of adjusted gross income (7.5% if you or your spouse are 65 or older). They will not be an addition to the standard deduction. The standard deduction for a married filing joint return with both taxpayer ans spouse over 65 is $14,600. I received about$10,000 in a 3rd party settlement of a lawsuit that stemmed from a work injury. Do I claim it and if so how? They did not take taxes out of it. I am in new jersey Reply Cyndi, Damages for personal physical injuries and physical sickness are tax-free. Damages for emotional distress are taxed unless the emotional distress is triggered by the physical injury. If your settlement includes both physical and emotional injury, the part attributable to the emotional injury will be taxable. Also, because the settlement was for a work injury, some of the settlement may be considered wages and would be taxable. You should receive a W-2 and/or a 1099 for any taxable settlement. Reply My grandparents have passed away some years ago and I have been paying the proprty taxes, could this deductible? I do not live in the home. Reply Property taxes paid on property you own are deductible, even if the property is not your primary residence. Reply If My girlfriend lives with Me and started school Aug 26, 2013 in california and i pay for everything such as gas to and from school and supplies ect. Am i able to claim it on my taxes Reply No. Why would you think a gf is tax deductible? Reply My 20 year old son moved back home after losing two jobs and being unable to pay his bills. For months I subsidized his living expenses and am now paying off his credit card debt. Is there any write off available for this or can I claim him as a dependent even though he worked for about half the year? So far I’m out about $8,500. Thanks in advance for any advice! Reply Michael, If your son is not a full-time student, and earned more than $3,900, or provided more than half of his own support, you will not be able to claim him as a dependent. There is no tax deduction available for paying off someones bills, or subsidizing living expenses. Reply My husband passed away in April & was on Social Security. I had retired last year but was not drawing Social Security until he passed away. Our only other income is from interest on checking accounts & some dividends earned on stocks that were in our IRA’s. He generally did our taxes. He passed away without a will & I filed a Small Estate Administration. What do you recommend for me to do this year for my tax preparation? Reply Carolyn, I would suggest that you consult a tax professional for this year, to make sure the taxes are done correctly. A professional should be able to answer any questions you have about what income is taxable and what is not. In the future, you could prepare the returns yourself, using TurboTax, and following the professionally prepared return as a guide. Reply I am caring for two elderly married adults in my home. I receive VA disability payments for the male but nothing for the female. He doesn’t have to file income tax, but I think I’m suppose to. I will appreciate any and all advice, including reading materials that you may suggest. Do I claim the disability income as personal income for me? Is there anything else I should consider claiming? Thank you, Reply Hi Georgia, You should probably talk to a local tax professional about your situation to make sure you get everything set up correctly. I think that any advice given here would only cause you to have more questions. I will say that if you are taking the VA Disability to pay for the board and care of your couple, it is taxable income to you, but the expense of caring for them is deductible. You can look at IRS.gov for publications on business income and expense. Mary Ellen Reply VA Disability is considered compensation and not income (therefore not taxed). But I don’t know if that changes when the recipient is not the vet. I would contact your local CVSO (County Veterans Service Officer) to answer that one. They should know the tax benefits or consequences of the veterans benefits. Reply I was in a horse racing partnership for about 5K, The horse developed cancer (can u believe that?) and had to be put down before ever running a race. May i deduct any or all of my investment as long term capital gain? I do get a K1 form but hard to find that it Turbo Tax and it doesnt seem to change tax ata lll.Thanks Charli Reply Hi Charlie, Losses from partnerships may not be deductible in the year you sustain the loss if you do not actively participate in the business. If the partnership is dissolving this year, due to the loss of your horse, you can claim the deferred losses (TurboTax should have tracked that for you). Any remaining investment would be long term capital loss, reported like a stock sale. You should find the K-1 entry in Business Items. Mary Ellen Reply I am self employed. I work from home. I use my vehicle. Due to a new business venture, my home office had to relocate. Also, for a short time I had another vehicle on a day lease contract. That venture was a total loss. How do I deduct all of this loss? I am even loosing the house, because I am not making enough to pay all of the rent. I am a widow, head of house hold, and I have a minor child. Reply Hi, You are busy. The expense for the day lease is fully deductible as business expense (rent). You will have to calculate your business use of your personal vehicle based on business miles and total miles driven. Home office expense is only deductible if the office area is use exclusively for business (you don’t pay your personal bills, or help your kids with their homework in that area). Any expenses for supplies, advertising, development and the like are deducted on Schedule C, Business income and expense. TurboTax Home and Business has all the necessary forms, and asks all the questions about having a business and will be the best choice for preparing your 2013 tax return. Mary Ellen Reply My adult unmarried child died this year. Do I sign the return for her refund on federal and state? I know I have to file Form 1310 for federal, but what for state? Reply Hi Mia, I am sorry for your loss. Yes, you should sign her tax returns as the executor, or appointed representative. If you complete the 1310 for the IRS, TurboTax will include the appropriate forms with the state income tax return. Mary Ellen Reply I pay a 1% annual fee to an investment banker (FTJ fund Choice) on my 401K that I rolled over to an IRA, I am 72 years old. Reply Hi Hugh, If you are asking if you can deduct the 1% fee on your IRA, the answer is yes. The fee is a miscellaneous itemized deduction, reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income. Age is not a factor in determining this deduction. Mary Ellen Reply Last year I made a Qualified Charitable Deduction from my IRA and got a letter from the IRS demanding additional taxes. It took a while to straighten it out because there was no field in TurboTax to state that some of the money I took from my IRA went directly to charity. Is TurboTax for 2013 filing going to include such a field? Reply Bob, The provision allowing the Qualified Charitable Deduction for contributions made directly from your IRA distribution expired at the end of 2012. Mary Ellen Reply My tax advisor says the Qualified Charitable Deduction was extended through 2013. I made a contribution through my investment company and they know about it — I’m surprised you don’t know that. Please advise. Hi Shirley, Yes, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended the qualified charitable distribution provision through 2013 allowing you to still make a tax-free distribution directly from your IRA if you are 70-1/2 or older. For more information please see http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Charitable-Donations-from-IRAs-for-2012-and-2013 This tax provision will be included in TurboTax 2013. As with any tax law change, TurboTax is always up to date. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Hi Bob, The American Taxpayer Relief Act 2012 did extend the qualified charitable distribution deduction through 2013 as long as you were 70-1/2 and over and the distribution went directly from your IRA to the charity so I’m not sure why you had a problem, but I’m glad it was straightened out. As with any tax law changes TurboTax is always up to date and TurboTax 2013 will handle qualified charitable distributions. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply My question is how do you file your union dues on your taxes i would like to know hows it’s done Reply Hi Kelly, If you are using TurboTax to prepare your tax return, you will find union dues under Deductions & Credits, Job related expenses. Answer no to Job related expenses, then yes to Other types of expenses. Mary Ellen Reply Is there a federal tax on property sales now? Reply Hi Lynne, If you sell property at a profit, the profit is taxable. This is true if it is real estate, business property, or personal property. The only exception is your principal residence. There is an exclusion of $250,000 in profit if you meet certain ownership and use conditions. Mary Ellen Reply If I purchased a rainbow vaccum cleaner for the allergies and to help with smell of renal failure patient can I claim it in my taxes Reply Hi Tina, If your doctor has prescribed the vaccuum cleaner, you can deduct it as a medical device. Without a prescription, it is not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply Is Turbo Tax going to have a payment plan for states (Florida) that only file federal tax ? Every year I have to pay for state and federal tax usage even thought I do not use the state part? Reply I had some property that was condemned for sale to the state. Is there a special way to treat condemned property other than listing it on Schedule D as a capital gain? Reply Hi Ken, What you have is an involuntary conversion. If the amount you received was more than you paid for the property you have a taxable gain (unless the property was your principal residence). Gain from an involuntary conversion may be postponed to the extent that the taxpayer purchases replacement property that is similar to the old property or related in service or use (or like-kind in the case of condemned real estate). The replacement period is generally two years after gain is realized with certain exceptions, such as a principal residence in a federally-declared disaster area. Mary Ellen Reply We have custody, via the Colorado Court, of our grandchild and need to know if a special form is needed for the IRS in order to use a deduction for him. Reply Being over 70, our retirement money is in a regular IRA with investment management expenses. May the IRA investment expenses be deducted versus money taken out? Reply Hi Bill, The IRA management fees are a miscellaneous itemized deduction, reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income. Mary Ellen Reply We have Court ordered “Parental Responsibility” of our grandson and are allowed to take him as a dependent on our federal and state (Colorado) taxes. What type of forms do we need to show the taxing authorities that we have the authority for him. Reply Hi Janet, In the event of an audit, or a conflict because your child filed a return claiming your grandchild, you will need a copy of the court-order, and well as proof that the child lives with you (school records should suffice). Mary Ellen Reply Hi, I got tax credits last year for buying an energy efficient water heater for my house. I’d like to possibly upgrade another appliance to energy-efficient, will I still get credits for that this year? Reply Hi, There are still credits for solar and wind energy improvements, but not for energy efficient appliances. Mary Ellen Reply Thanks! My family wants to help our Mother lower her estate value. What is the maximum amount a person can gift, to say there children, and not have the receiving end incur a tax burden? And, is there any limit on the amount of gifts a person can receive in one year? Reply Hi Robert, Estate and gift taxes are intertwined. Your best source for that information is an estate attorney. In general, though, gifts are never taxable to the recipient. They are applied to the estate and gift tax exclusion amount of the giver. The lifetime estate an gift tax exclusion is currently $5,250,000. In addition, any one person can give $14,000 to any other person each year without using any of their lifetime exclusion. So if there are three children, each with a spouse and 2 grandchildren, there are 12 people who can receive $14,000 each year without any reduction in the lifetime exclusion. Mary Ellen Reply If I am assisting my adult children by paying some of their monthly bills (phone, electricity, auto insurance, etc.), can I claim this on my taxes – as a gift or otherwise – without having to actually claim them as a dependent? They simply do not make enough money to pay all of their bills and rather than apply for government assistance, I help them. Thank you. My pay checks and states taxes have a garnishment by ors for medical bills can that be tax deductable under medical? Reply Hi Mike, The amount you are paying through the garnishment for medical bills and for state income taxes (but not interest or penalties) is deductible. Mary Ellen Reply Hi Mary Ellen, Could you please pass my last question to the tech folks if that is more appropriate. Reply Hi Robert, Gifts to friends and family are not tax deductible Penalties on 529 plans are for withdrawals not used by the designated beneficiary for their qualified higher education expense. Reply I had a long term settlement check for 34,500 and I only got 24,500 after attorney fees.Can I deduct his fees for this on taxes. Reply Hi Tammy, If the income you received is taxable income, you can deduct the legal fees you paid to collect that income. The legal fees will be Miscellaneous Itemized Deduction subject to a reduction of 2% of your adjusted gross income. If your settlement is for unlawful discrimination (age or gender for example) the legal fees are deducted directly from the settlement amount. Mary Ellen If you do not have to pay tax on the income, the legal fees are not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply I volunteer 2 days a week at the Sheriffs Dept., about 7 hours each day. Is any of this tax deductible , such as mileage ? Reply Hi Joe, Yes, your mileage is deductible, and if you had to pay for a uniform or other supplies, you can deduct those as well. Mary Ellen Reply I volunteer twice a week a the Sheriffs Dept. , about 7 hrs a day. is any of this tax deductible such as my mileage ? Reply Is there a way to determine whether or not to take the standard deduction over itemized prior to spending the time it takes to enter all of the expense/deduction data into the program? As you know, a raw total of deductible expenses can be larger than the standard figure but less after the program applies all of the IRS’ fuzzy math to it. Reply Stu, There is no really simple calculation for itemizing deductions. If you know your approximate income amount you can decrease your medical expense by 10% of that amount, add the rest of your deductions and see if they are more than your standard deduction. 2013 Standard deduction is 6,100 if you are filing as single or married filing separately, 8,950 for Head of household, and 12,200 for married filing jointly and qualifying widow/widower. Mary Ellen Reply Hi Mary Ellen, Do you reply to posts selectively? Cause I asked a question before and never received a reply from you but people who asked questions much later got their replies. 🙂 I’d appreciate it if you could reply to my question as well. Thanks for your kind help. Reply Hi Amir, Thanks for asking. I am somewhat selective in the questions I answer. Some are too complex or too specific to answer in this forum. However, I did get to your question a short time ago. I hope you find the answer helpful. Mary Ellen Reply I had to install a stair lift this year so my wife could get up and down the stairs. Is the cost of that deductable? Reply Hi Herbert, When you make improvements to your house for medical purposes, you need a doctor’s prescription for the improvement to deduct the cost. The deduction is reduced by any increase in the fair market value of your house. The balance is a medical deduction which is further reduced by 10% of your adjusted gross income (7.5% if you or your spouse is 65 or older). Mary Ellen Reply If my wife and I bought a home with owner finance and no interest of finance charges just the down payment and monthly payments, can we deduct the money we spent on repairs, its a fixer u home. Reply Hi Glen, You cannot deduct expenses for acquiring, maintaining or improving your personal residence, except for interest and taxes. Mary Ellen Reply I read that you cannot claim fixing up your own house. We stuccoed and repainted the outside and inside. And we redid the bathroom. I just want to be sure before I bring in the receipts from the stores. my job requires me to buy many tools I have saved all my receipts and it adds up to almost 3000 will I get all that back on my taxes this year Reply Hi Tanya, If you itemize deductions on your tax return, you can include your tools expense as an employee business expense. You will not get a deduction for the entire $3,000. Your savings will be your tax rate times the amount you are able to deduct. Tax rates vary from 10% to almost 40% for 2013. Mary Ellen Mary Ellen Reply I have a question, I been paying to someone to take my son to his school, I wonder if I can file that on my tax as a child care or not?? Reply Hi Filbertha, I do not believe that will qualify as child care. Mary Ellen Reply Is there a way to determine if extra payments on my mortgage principal benefits me more than having the larger interest as a deductible on my tax return? Does it depend on the rate of interest I would get keeping the money invested (and paying interest on whatever the investment produces)? My mortgage int. is 4.75% and I owe $84,000. Reply Paying down your mortgage decreases the interest you pay since the extra payments are 100% principle, 0% interest. So it will actually increase your taxes. I would seriously consider just keeping the money invested. Reply Have union dues always been tax deductible? I have never claimed them before on Turbo Tax. Reply Yes. I was in a union at the Kennedy Space Center and always deducted my dues Reply Yes, they have always been deductible, and you typically get them all back. Reply Hi Sue, Union dues have been deductible as a miscellaneous itemized deduction for many years. Miscellaneous itemized deductions must be reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income before they offer a tax benefit. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply Question on medical payments, I pay my own premiums, high deductible, and am not yet 65. my husband and I are both retired and he is 66 and I, 62, very limited income, how does that work on my taxes? I had a lot of trouble last year and am not sure I did it right. Reply Hi Trish, If you are using TurboTax, you would enter your insurance premiums, deductibles and other out-of-pocked medical expenses in the Medical Expense portion of the Deductions section. TurboTax will take care of all the calculations from there. When one of the taxpayers of a couple are age 65 or older for 2013 taxes, you will still receive the 7.5% reduction instead of the new, higher reduction of 10% of AGI. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply I am confused on medical I understand the 10%, but what are all the special forms and do you both have to be over 65, and what if you are paying your premiums and deductible, how does that work? Reply Hi Trish, Only one of you needs to be 65 or older to get the lower reduction. The only forms you need are 1040 and Schedule A. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply I paid $2800 attorney fees to set up a Trust..Is that amount deductible??? Reply Hi Herbert, Setting up a trust is not a tax deductible expense. If there was tax planning involved, ask to attorney to bill that separately, and you can deduct that portion of the legal fees. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply Question just submitted by about direct charitable contribution; I didn’t check the box under “submit”. before hitting submit button. Please respond. Reply Every year that I’ve had a Flexible Spending Account I’ve mailed in my receipts during the first wk of March to get the remaining balance from my account. It usually takes a wk to 10 days to get my refund. This yr I mailed it in as usual. After not receiving anything by the end of March I called the company through which my FSA is processed (WAGE WORKS). They told me they had not received any such request & therefore I had a zero balance & would not be receiving anything. This was extremely irritating to me to say the least. I talked to some higher up person & they told me the same thing, & then I went to an even higher person & again told the same thing. I even faxed it to them 2-3 times a wk for a month but still to no avail & with no response from the company. The $585 that was still in my account was never returned to me. I think the “uppers” that be decided to go have a “party” with all the remaining monies from my acct as well as anyone else’s. When did the Treasury & IRS change the “use it or lose it rule”? The gov’t keeps enough of my pyck as it is. I still want my $585 back. This yr I’ve decided to “bank” it myself each payday & earn interest on it. Has anyone else had this problem with their FSA company? Reply Hi Sunna, The IRS sets the rules for when you can submit expenses for reimbursement in Flexible Spending Accounts. You employer and WageWorks are only following the law. If you have proof that you submitted the claim before the deadline, you could try pursuing that angle. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply RE: Instead of taking the Required Minimum Distribution on two 403b accounts (in annuities) in 1013, I’d like for the monies to be sent to a 401(c) charity. I’ve talked with the two companies; both said I will receive a “regular” 1099R. Listing the gift under “donations” will not give me the benefit of having the monies bypass me–as though I never received that RMD amount. Help. Reply Hi Hazel, The Qualified Charitable Distributions were only available for 2012. Your 403b companies gave you the correct information for 2013. Mary Ellen Reply I got divorced in February an my wife just left. I took 39 bags of clothes,shoes,toys,kitchenware,photoframes,games,i-pods,video-games,etc to Goodwill to get rid of the history and memories. I received signed invoices from Goodwill on each delivery.I figured the total amount of donation to about $30 000. With such a hugh amount of donation, will i attract attention to be audited? Reply yes keep your receipts so you have proof Reply Hi, For contributions over $5,000 of similar items like all the clothing, all the electronics, and all the furniture, you have to have a written appraisal. Your deduction is limited to the fair market value (or the amount the Goodwill will get when they sell the items). If you have the appropriate paperwork, you can take the deduction on Form 8283, then Schedule A of your 1040. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply You can claim up to $500.00 in contributions without an audit. Anything pass that amount will probably be an eye for audit purposes. Ask Goodwill staff to give you a receipt because your estimated total may not be the total of your items donated. I would just attach the outline receipt with my tax forms. Also, taking pictures would help if IRS want to see what you donated. Reply I purchased a Avalon Hybrid a couple months ago. Do we still get tax credits? Reply Hi Robert, The Hybrid credit expired at the end of 2011. Mary Ellen Reply Is student loan interest fully deductible? Reply Yes, you should get a tax form from your lender,a 1098, which will state how much interest you paid. It has to be more than $600. Reply Good morning Tony, Student loan interest is tax deductible as long as it is paid before the end of the year! There is a special section you fill out on the 1040. Reply Hi Tony, Student loan interest, up to $2,500, is deductible with some limitations. You cannot use the Married Filing Separately filing status, and there are income limitations (for a single individual, the phase out doesn’t start until income exceeds $60,000 (this amount increases each year). Mary Ellen Reply if your business was fined for having a truck on the road that did not pass an inspection can i deduct those fines as an expense? Reply Hi Jackie, Penalties and traffic fines are not deductible business expenses. Mary Ellen Reply I am retired. Do I have to file taxes? I was told by other retirees that I do not have to. Reply Hi JayPee,. Filing requirements are more income based than age based. For 2013, a taxpayer over the age of 64 with income of more than approximately $11,000 must file a return. Mary Ellen Reply I bought a vehicle with the alternative fuel, in West Virginia there is a alternative fuel vehicle (AFV) Tax Credit West Virginia Code 11-6D will I be able to get this deduction if i do my taxes for 2013 with the turbo tax, software or will i need to go to a CPA? Reply Hi DIana, TurboTax does not include the form for preparing the credit (Form AFTC-1). You can prepare the form yourself and enter the credit in TurboTax, but TurboTax will not calculate the credit for you. Mary Ellen Reply I have been using Turbo Tax and Its Deductible for several years now and it makes doing my own taxes a breeze…I enter tax deductions every couple of months and at the end of the year, they’re all there in one place…thanks for the site! Reply Does Turbo Tax have the ability to work with income from an LLC I am a member of? Reply Hi Tom, If you are a single member LLC, you can prepare the required Schedule C in TurboTax. You may need to prepare the LLC return for your state using TurboTax Small Business (not Home and Business). If you receive a K-1 from a multi-member LLC, you can report that income using TurboTax. If you need to prepare a return for the multi_member LLC, you will need TurboTax Small Business. Mary Ellen Reply Is it beneficial to get married at the end of the year or wait until after the new year? Reply It depends. My wife and I both paid higher taxes after getting married at the end of the year, so don’t assume that being married is better! Reply Hi Kathy, If you both take the standard deduction and personal exemption ($10,000 in 2013), you will pay slightly higher taxes if you are married. If you are both able to itemize deductions as single individuals, you may see a slight reduction in your taxes. Mary Ellen Reply I was told that if I get married this late in the year I can file married but desperate on next years taxes and still claim head of household since I wasn’t married for the 12 months. Is this true? Kathy, If you are married on December 31, and you live with your spouse any time during the last six months of the year, you cannot file as Head of Household. Mary Ellen When I got married both my husband and I changed our status from Single Zero to Married witholding at single higher rate – that year we wound up owing over 7K in taxes. I would recommend not changing your status until you do the appropriate worksheets. Reply What if you pay taxed on gas and all other taxables like. Gas for the car and shopping and buying pre-made food. And any other stuff that is taxable. Reply Hi Dave, Sales taxes are deductible if they are greater than your state income taxes. Pre-made food, even if it is a special diet prescribed by a doctor, is not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply What if your state has no income taxes? Is any amount of sales taxes deductible? Vilma, You can use the tables provided by the IRS or your own records to determine the amount of sales tax you paid during the year. There is no limit on the amount you can deduct Very useful article – has inspired me to go donate more 🙂 Time to go through the closet Reply Dental work for my child would be deductible ? Reply Hi Maria, Dental and other medical expenses paid for your dependents are deductible. Mary Ellen Reply My question is my son is going through getting braces and we pay $153.00/month is this deductible? Also what about having teeth pulled? Hi I bought a house from a builder and they paid part of the closing costs as an incentive. Is it like only the part I paid directly is deductible or the whole amount for closing costs is tax deductible even if paid by the builder? Thanks, Reply Only the part you pay is deductible, unless you pay it via your mortgage over time. Reply Hi Amir, Closing costs for purchasing a home are not deductible with the exception of points paid for the loan and property taxes prorated to you for the period between purchase date and the next assessment date. Amounts of taxes being held in an impound account are not deductible. The rules are different if the house was purchased for rental or business. You do not need to consider how much the seller paid on your behalf when determining your deductions. Mary Ellen Reply My wife had to take a job that is away from home. It is a two hour drive, thus too far to commute. We had to rent an apartment for her to stay in during the week, and then on weekends she comes home. Would any of these expenses, rent, utilities, driving, etc. count as business deductions? Reply Jim, Commuting expenses and the apartment expenses are not deductible, even though it is a two hour commute. Mary Ellen Reply I have a couple of questions. 1. Am I allowed to deduct for miles and expenses for looking for a new job? 2. Am I allowed to deducted mandatory union fees? Reply Hi Melissa, Job hunting expenses and union dues are miscellaneous itemized deductions on Schedule A. Mary Ellen Reply I work as a consultant and work from home so I have a lot of little office expenses I’ve racked up (notebooks, computer mouse, folders, etc.) so do I need the receipts from every single one of those? I have kept track of the amount of each purchase, and saved the receipts for the bigger items, but not all small items. Reply Hi Kristin, You should keep receipts for all of your business expenses. You need to be able to prove that you paid for something (credit card slip or cancelled checks) and what that something was (receipt) in an audit. Mary Ellen Reply I just retired and am paying for my medicare and a medicare supplement plus Part D for prescriptions. How are these handled when filling out my tax return. Does it reduce the taxable income or are they considered medical deductions? Reply Hi Gary Your insurance premiums for Medicare and supplement are considered medical expenses and are deducted as part of your itemized deductions on Schedule A. Mary Ellen Reply Thank you, Turbo Tax! I appreciate this information now before I get crazy in late December! Reply I have made charitable donations through Western Union of over $10,000. Is this deductable? If so, what percentage? Reply Charitable deductions should be deductible however you paid they, but you do want some sort of records that document what you gave! Reply not sure if 1 & 3 are “good” advice…. “delay your payment of taxes this year for next year” eventually you have to pay it. Reply Thanks Reply I would like to know if the annual expenses paid to get an account open with a stock broker or the annual credit card fee is tax deductible. Reply Hi Mark, You broker fees are deductible a miscellaneous itemized deductions. Credit card fees are not generally deductible, however, if the card is used exclusively for business by a self-employed individual, the fee can be deducted on Schedule C. If you use the card for both business and personal expenses, you can prorate the expense, but I would recommend not deducting it at all in that situation. Reply YOUR STOCK BROKER FEES ARE DEDUCTIBLE BUT CREDIT CARD FEES ARE NOT. THE ONLY INTEREST OR FEES THAT ARE DECARE ONES CONNECTED TO A MORTGAGE OR 2ND MOTGAGE. Reply This is not completely true. Interest associated with investments is deductible as an investment expense. Margin interest is an example, but it is also true for credit card advances that you invest. What are the parameters for deducting expenses for a lease vehicle for business purposes? Reply Hi Stan, Vehicle expenses, whether a lease or a purchased vehicle, require you to log your miles, and prorate your expenses based on business vs. personal miles. Commuting from home to work is considered personal miles. Lease payments have a “lease inclusion amount” that reduces the amount of deduction. Employees would deduct this expense using form 2106, and it will go on Schedule A, Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions. You can find more information about deducting vehicle expenses at IRS.gov, in publication 463. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply Is sales tax on autos deductable on income taxes? I made a mistake on buying one car and tradeed back with in three days on another car. Both were new cars. I live in Fla. Reply Hi Ronald, According to the IRS website – “The deduction is limited to the taxes and fees paid on up to $49,500 of the purchase price of an eligible vehicle. The deduction is reduced for joint filers with modified adjusted gross incomes (MAGI) between $250,000 and $260,000 and other taxpayers with MAGI between $125,000 and $135,000. Taxpayers with higher incomes do not qualify.” Reply Is sales tax on autos deductable on income taxes? I made a mistake on buying one car and tradeed back with in three days on another car. Both were new cars. Reply Is vehicle registration considered a deductible? Reply The tax portion of the fee, based on the value of the vehicle is deductible. Only some states have a deductible tax – Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Washington and Wyoming. Mary Ellen Reply will i be able to withdraw direct charitable contributions from my IRA for tax year 2014 in 2014 and not count it as income? Reply In other words, will that provision be extended for 2014? or will it expire at the end of 2013? Reply It expires end of 2013 Hi Carol, The provision to make a direct charitable contribution from your IRA and exclude the withdrawal from income is expiring at the end of 2013. Mary Ellen Reply Will the direct qualified charitable contribution be included in Turbo Tax for 2013? this was asked earlier when you said it expired in 2012. I’d like to know if this will be obvious when using Turbo Tax. I have used turbo tax for past several years. Last month I had credit fraud on 2 credit cards, which both companies took care of it. My question how can I make sure my info with turbo tax hasn’t been taken? Couldn’t find any phone number to call you Reply Are Gifts to grand children deductable? Are withdraws from educational 529 accounts still pentalized if you are 76 years old? Reply Gifts to friends and family are not deductible. 529 accounts have withdrawal penalties if the funds are not used for eligible higher education expenses by the beneficiary. Reply My wife and I volunteered to chaperone 25 youth to Germany this past summer. The organization is a 501c. Is any of the airline fare deductible as charity as we were not reimbursed for those fares? Reply Hi Robert, Your out-of-pocket expenses ncluding airfare that were not reimbursed, is deductible as a charitable contribution. Be sure to get a letter from the charity acknowledging your participation in their program. Mary Ellen Reply Is commuting to and from work mileage considered an unreimbursed employee business expense? I travel 52 miles one way to work. Reply Hi Ida, Commuting between home and work is not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply I. Love doing my own taxes! Reply Leave a ReplyCancel reply Browse Related Articles Tax Forms IRS Form 1040: A Quick Guide to Filing Your Tax Return Tax Forms What is a W-2 Form? 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I had teeth extracted and implant set in November. Since I’ve reached the threshold for medical/dental itemized deductions I would like to include the rest of the process including dentures as a writeoff on this years taxes. Even though I won’t be receiving the denture until March of next year if I pre-pay by Dec 31 can I write it off this year? Reply
I would like to respond to Sunna’s question and comment about Flexible Spending. I have never experienced what you did with Flexible Spending. Something does not sound quite right, but you have until March of the following year to spend the money and then October of that year to actually file your claim for the money. e.i. 2013 claims can be filed until October 2014. You have until March 2014 to spend the money and the same for previous years, 2012 you have until 2013. I always fax my paperwork over. Only once did I have an issue they didn’t receive one of the papers and after some time past I called and then re-submitted. They can’t keep your money if you filed in a timely manner. I would try to re-submit with a letter stating when you first submitted the original one and those there after. I am sure you will get your money. Flexible Spending is a win win I wouldn’t stop using it because of this incident. It lowers your taxable income and you’ve got money set aside during the year to pay those out of pocket medical expenses. Good Luck! Reply
Our daughter is a single mom. We pay for her home, car, insurances, HOA, the grandson’s pre-school, clothing, groceries, etc. We let her claim him as her dependent. Can we claim anything on either of them? Thanks so much, D Reply
Dee, You are very generous. If your daughter’s home is in your name, you can deduct the interest and property taxes you pay. If it is in your daughter’s name, neither of you can claim the deduction – she can’t because she didn’t pay it, and you can’t because you didn’t own it. You would only be entitled to the medical insurance deduction or child care expenses if you claim them as dependents. HOA, car, clothing, groceries, etc are personal expenses, not deductible expenses for any taxpayer. Mary Ellen Reply
I just got married in April 2013. I am a teacher and pay my student loans based on my AGI. I heard that there is a penalty for filing married but separate is that true??? And if so what is amount of the penalty? By filing jointly will it affect by AGI for paying my student loans? Reply
Frank, You will need to weigh the increased income tax against the possible increased loan payment. You can prepare your tax return in TurboTax as two married filing separate returns and as a joint return to see what the tax expense is. If your loan repayment plan is impacted by your AGI, and your spouse does not have student loans, you could see an increase in your payment. You would need to discuss this with your lender. Mary Ellen Reply
In 2013 we had to foreclose on a piece of property that we were the private lender on since 2007. We have claimed interest earned over the years. My question is: we have had to put a lot of expense into getting the property and house into saleable shape. When we sell the property this year can we deduct all the expenses we had to pay and also write off the mileage incurred for this property? Reply
I forgot to ask on my previous question about the property taxes we had to pay in 2013. Will we be able to deduct those in 2013 since we received the property back thru a Sheriffs Deed? Our owner ship started on May 18 for the Manufactured Home and final deed for the land on Dec 18 (Idaho requires a 6 month right of redemption for land, the house was not considered real property at the time of foreclosure, we have since turned it into real property with the land) Reply
Jill, IRS publication 537 address repossessed property originally sold on an installment sale. You will need to report the gain or loss on the repossession. Based on that calculation, you will have a new basis in the property and the costs you incur to fix up the property for sale will be added to that basis and affect your gain or loss on the new sale. In general, you can deduct only taxes imposed on you. Since you did not own the property at the time of the payment, you cannot deduct the taxes as an itemized deduction for 2013. The property taxes you paid on the property can be added to the basis as a cost of the repossession. Mary Ellen Reply
My son whom is 19 pays child support for his daughter. Can he claim this on his taxes? The child is living with the mom who is stil in high school and lives with her parents. She is on social services. Can her mom claim the child? Reply
There are many things to consider when determining if someone can claim the EITC. I do not have enough information available to me to make that determination. However, the IRS does have an interactive guide to help you determine who qualifies. You can find it at http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/EITC-Home-Page–It%E2%80%99s-easier-than-ever-to-find-out-if-you-qualify-for-EITC Mary Ellen Reply
I believe I missed deducting my post-tax health insurance premiums paid a few years ago. Since that was paid post-tax, can I deduct that along with doctor co-pays? If so, what info do I need for documentation? Also, how many years back can taxes be amended? Thank you! Reply
RDP, Post-tax health insurance premiums are deductible as well as doctor co-pays. You should keep a copy of your insurance statement and the bills from the doctor for documentation. You can amend your personal tax returns for 3 years based on the later of the date filed or the original date due. If you filed your 2010 return by 4/15/2011, you must amend it before 4/15/2014 to claim a refund. Mary Ellen Reply
I paid my daughter’s college tuition in January of 2013. She graduated from college in May of 2013 at the age of 22. She lived with me in all of 2013 while working a part time job. In November 2013, she got a full time job but remained at home. Can I claim her as a dependant on my 2013 taxes? Also can I claim the tuition expense as I have in previous years if she is no longer considered a dependant? Thank you. Reply
Robert, If you can claim your daughter as a dependent, based on age, income, student status, etc, you can claim the tuition expense deduction or credit. If not, your daughter can claim it on her tax return. Mary Ellen Reply
I have a daughter who is a first year college student. At the end of 2013 she is 18 yrs old. she works part time and I believe she has made around $7500 for the year, if she files taxes can I still claim her as a dependent since I am paying for all of her college tuition and books, fees etc. What can I claim toward these expenses. I’m assuming with that amount that she does have to pay. I usually do my own taxes but am wondering if I can now that this is in the mix, my taxes are typically straight forward the whole education thing is confusing. Thank you in advance for any help you can provide. Reply
Irma, Don’t be afraid to use TurboTax to file your tax return. We will ask all the required questions about your daughter’s education expenses and claim the allowed amounts. As long as your daughter is a full-time student under the age of 23, you can claim her as a dependent regardless of her income. If you are claiming her as a dependent, she may not claim herself. She will have a small amount of tax to pay on $7500 of income. Reply
Mary Ellen, Thank you so much for your answer, I will certainly give it a try with turbo tax as I do not have money to pay someone to do them for me. And I really hope when you say small amount of tax, that it is small. 🙂 Thank you again for your help.
Hi Mary Ellen, could you please tell me where I report the information from form 1098T on my 1040 taxes. Is it possible to file form 8917 and 8863 I find them both very confusing. Thanks in advance for your help.
We sold our house in October of 2013. We are currently in the process of building a house. The money we received from the house sale will be used at closing on the new house loan in 2014. Will we be taxed on the money we made from the house sale since it will be going to the new loan? Reply
Connie, If you did not make a profit of more than $250,000 on the sale of your residence ($500,000 if you are filing a joint tax return), and you lived in the house as your primary residence for 2 out of the last 5 years, the profit on the sale of the house is not taxable. Mary Ellen Reply
i purchased a home in march of 2013 I live alone and work for a company from home they supply what I need but I pay for the internet . will I just file as I did when I lived in an apartment…? Reply
I added my domestic partner to my health benefits starting in January which will increase my payments by over $200 month, will this lower my taxes per paycheck and if so, by how much? Reply
Hi, If your employer deducts the medical insurance premiums before calculating your withholding (this is very common), then you will see a decrease in your withholding. Your FICA and MediCare taxes will decrease by a bit over $15 each month. Calculating your income tax withholding requires information about your filing status, the number of exemptions you claim, how often you are paid, and how much money you make, so it would not be possible to calculate that in this forum. The closest estimate is to multiply your tax rate by the premium amount. That should get you in the ballpark. Mary Ellen Mary Ellen Reply
My son is 19 years old, and lives with me. He earned appx $29k in 2013. In Dec. 2013 he enrolled into college as a full time student. I paid his tuition > $2,000.00. Because of his earnings for 2013, he will have to file taxes separately as independent. Because he will be filing taxes as independent, but since I paid his tuition – am I allowed to claim the tuition expense as a deduction on my tax return – or is it just lost? Thank you. Reply
Hi PC, The tuition deduction is only allowed for those people on the tax return, yourself, your spouse and your dependents. Since your son is not your dependent, you are not able to tax a deduction or a credit for his education expenses, however, you son may qualify for the deduction or credit on his own tax return, even though you paid the tuition. Mary Ellen Reply
Can you deduct the insurance premiums that are taken directly out of your check along with the out of pocket expenses incurred if you are planning to itemize your medical expenses this year because of an expensive surgery? Reply
Hi Amy, If premiums are deducted from your paycheck pre-tax then you would not be able to deduct them, because the amount deducted is not included in your taxable income. Your unreimbursed out of pocket expenses, however would be deductible. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply
Matt If someone say that they have put a lien on my social security number (or reported my s/s number to the IRS) what does that mean. The reason was a “cash loan store”. Not true, but just curious as to how that works. The loan was paid off. Reply
Matt, I don’t think I have ever heard the term “put a lien on my social security number”. Is it possible they mean to report the cash loan store to the credit bureaus? Mary Ellen Reply
No. They just said that they reported my name and my social security number to the IRS. Is there any reason a business can report for a lose to the IRS. I know that men that does not pay child support can enter the system with there pay being deducted, or not paying your own Tax. Thanks for the response.
IS THERE GOING TO BE A TAX REFUND FROM LAST YEAR? AN WHEN WILL WE BE ABLE TO FILE DATE THIS YEAR. WAS TOLD TOOK TO MUCH LAST YEAR. AN WILL B GETTING LETTERS N MAIL.? Reply
Terrianne, IRS should start accepting individual returns no later than February 4. TurboTax will be transmitting returns to IRS as soon as allowed. If you have more taxes withheld than you owe, you should receive a refund. I don’t understand your question about getting letters in the mail. Mary Ellen Reply
I want to give as a gift approximately $ 14,000.00 of GE stock to my granddaughter.( 2 years old) Do I have to pay taxes on the profit of the equity when I transfer the account to her name? How do I report that to the IRS? Thank you Reply
J.P., You do not have to pay taxes on the profit before you transfer stock to your granddaughter. She will own the stock with the same basis you have before the transfer. If she sells the stock, she will have to pay tax on the profit at that time. You can transfer up to $14,000 per recipient per year starting 1/1/13 without the need to file a gift tax return. Reply
Hi…I will be 62 in 2015 & will be retiring. If Social Security will be my only source of income (estimated $1050.00 month), will I have to file taxes? will I have to pay taxes? Thank You. Reply
Linda, Under current tax rules, if your only income is social security, and your income does not exceed $25,000 if you are single, $32,000 if you are filing a joint tax return, you will not owe income tax and do not need to file a tax return. Reply
If I am assisting my adult children by paying some of their monthly bills (phone, electricity, auto insurance, etc.), can I claim this on my taxes – as a gift or otherwise – without having to actually claim them as a dependent? They simply do not make enough money to pay all of their bills and rather than apply for government assistance, I help them. Thank you. Reply
Loretta, If your doctor prescribed the tub for medical reasons, you can deduct the cost of the tub plus installation minus any increase in the fair market value of your home due to the tub and installation. For example, if the tub and installation cost $3,000, and the fair market value of your home increased $1,000, you could deduct $2,000 as a medical expense, provided that you have a prescription for the tub. If you do not have a prescription for the tub, you will have an increase in the cost of your home to deduct from the sales price of your home when you sell it in the future. Reply
Dawn, You can talk with a realtor, or if you have spent a lot of money, you could get a appraisal. Mary Ellen Reply
This week my son’s furnace stopped working. He will now have to purchase a new furnace – high efficiency. Will he be able to deduct the cost on his turbo tax? The estimate is approximately $3,000. I had heard there could possibly be an $850 tax credit. Reply
William, Some furnaces will qualify for the energy credit, so be sure you have the manufacturer’s credit certification statement. It is usually available on the manufacturer’s website or with the product’s packaging. The amount of the credit varies with the type of equipment installed.The lifetime credit for Nonbusiness Energy Property such as the high-efficiency furnace cannot exceed $500 from 2006 to 2013. Reply
Copays that are not paid by a pre-tax medical spending account or flex-spending account are medical expenses and can be included as medical expenses in your itemized deductions. Reply
If I take the standard deductions for medical, will I be still able to add the co-pays as additional medical expenses?
Doloris, The standard deduction is for all deductible expenses, not just medical. If you itemize deductions, you can add medical copays as part of the medical expense, but they will be reduced by 10% of adjusted gross income (7.5% if you or your spouse are 65 or older). They will not be an addition to the standard deduction. The standard deduction for a married filing joint return with both taxpayer ans spouse over 65 is $14,600.
I received about$10,000 in a 3rd party settlement of a lawsuit that stemmed from a work injury. Do I claim it and if so how? They did not take taxes out of it. I am in new jersey Reply
Cyndi, Damages for personal physical injuries and physical sickness are tax-free. Damages for emotional distress are taxed unless the emotional distress is triggered by the physical injury. If your settlement includes both physical and emotional injury, the part attributable to the emotional injury will be taxable. Also, because the settlement was for a work injury, some of the settlement may be considered wages and would be taxable. You should receive a W-2 and/or a 1099 for any taxable settlement. Reply
My grandparents have passed away some years ago and I have been paying the proprty taxes, could this deductible? I do not live in the home. Reply
Property taxes paid on property you own are deductible, even if the property is not your primary residence. Reply
If My girlfriend lives with Me and started school Aug 26, 2013 in california and i pay for everything such as gas to and from school and supplies ect. Am i able to claim it on my taxes Reply
My 20 year old son moved back home after losing two jobs and being unable to pay his bills. For months I subsidized his living expenses and am now paying off his credit card debt. Is there any write off available for this or can I claim him as a dependent even though he worked for about half the year? So far I’m out about $8,500. Thanks in advance for any advice! Reply
Michael, If your son is not a full-time student, and earned more than $3,900, or provided more than half of his own support, you will not be able to claim him as a dependent. There is no tax deduction available for paying off someones bills, or subsidizing living expenses. Reply
My husband passed away in April & was on Social Security. I had retired last year but was not drawing Social Security until he passed away. Our only other income is from interest on checking accounts & some dividends earned on stocks that were in our IRA’s. He generally did our taxes. He passed away without a will & I filed a Small Estate Administration. What do you recommend for me to do this year for my tax preparation? Reply
Carolyn, I would suggest that you consult a tax professional for this year, to make sure the taxes are done correctly. A professional should be able to answer any questions you have about what income is taxable and what is not. In the future, you could prepare the returns yourself, using TurboTax, and following the professionally prepared return as a guide. Reply
I am caring for two elderly married adults in my home. I receive VA disability payments for the male but nothing for the female. He doesn’t have to file income tax, but I think I’m suppose to. I will appreciate any and all advice, including reading materials that you may suggest. Do I claim the disability income as personal income for me? Is there anything else I should consider claiming? Thank you, Reply
Hi Georgia, You should probably talk to a local tax professional about your situation to make sure you get everything set up correctly. I think that any advice given here would only cause you to have more questions. I will say that if you are taking the VA Disability to pay for the board and care of your couple, it is taxable income to you, but the expense of caring for them is deductible. You can look at IRS.gov for publications on business income and expense. Mary Ellen Reply
VA Disability is considered compensation and not income (therefore not taxed). But I don’t know if that changes when the recipient is not the vet. I would contact your local CVSO (County Veterans Service Officer) to answer that one. They should know the tax benefits or consequences of the veterans benefits. Reply
I was in a horse racing partnership for about 5K, The horse developed cancer (can u believe that?) and had to be put down before ever running a race. May i deduct any or all of my investment as long term capital gain? I do get a K1 form but hard to find that it Turbo Tax and it doesnt seem to change tax ata lll.Thanks Charli Reply
Hi Charlie, Losses from partnerships may not be deductible in the year you sustain the loss if you do not actively participate in the business. If the partnership is dissolving this year, due to the loss of your horse, you can claim the deferred losses (TurboTax should have tracked that for you). Any remaining investment would be long term capital loss, reported like a stock sale. You should find the K-1 entry in Business Items. Mary Ellen Reply
I am self employed. I work from home. I use my vehicle. Due to a new business venture, my home office had to relocate. Also, for a short time I had another vehicle on a day lease contract. That venture was a total loss. How do I deduct all of this loss? I am even loosing the house, because I am not making enough to pay all of the rent. I am a widow, head of house hold, and I have a minor child. Reply
Hi, You are busy. The expense for the day lease is fully deductible as business expense (rent). You will have to calculate your business use of your personal vehicle based on business miles and total miles driven. Home office expense is only deductible if the office area is use exclusively for business (you don’t pay your personal bills, or help your kids with their homework in that area). Any expenses for supplies, advertising, development and the like are deducted on Schedule C, Business income and expense. TurboTax Home and Business has all the necessary forms, and asks all the questions about having a business and will be the best choice for preparing your 2013 tax return. Mary Ellen Reply
My adult unmarried child died this year. Do I sign the return for her refund on federal and state? I know I have to file Form 1310 for federal, but what for state? Reply
Hi Mia, I am sorry for your loss. Yes, you should sign her tax returns as the executor, or appointed representative. If you complete the 1310 for the IRS, TurboTax will include the appropriate forms with the state income tax return. Mary Ellen Reply
I pay a 1% annual fee to an investment banker (FTJ fund Choice) on my 401K that I rolled over to an IRA, I am 72 years old. Reply
Hi Hugh, If you are asking if you can deduct the 1% fee on your IRA, the answer is yes. The fee is a miscellaneous itemized deduction, reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income. Age is not a factor in determining this deduction. Mary Ellen Reply
Last year I made a Qualified Charitable Deduction from my IRA and got a letter from the IRS demanding additional taxes. It took a while to straighten it out because there was no field in TurboTax to state that some of the money I took from my IRA went directly to charity. Is TurboTax for 2013 filing going to include such a field? Reply
Bob, The provision allowing the Qualified Charitable Deduction for contributions made directly from your IRA distribution expired at the end of 2012. Mary Ellen Reply
My tax advisor says the Qualified Charitable Deduction was extended through 2013. I made a contribution through my investment company and they know about it — I’m surprised you don’t know that. Please advise.
Hi Shirley, Yes, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 extended the qualified charitable distribution provision through 2013 allowing you to still make a tax-free distribution directly from your IRA if you are 70-1/2 or older. For more information please see http://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Charitable-Donations-from-IRAs-for-2012-and-2013 This tax provision will be included in TurboTax 2013. As with any tax law change, TurboTax is always up to date. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis
Hi Bob, The American Taxpayer Relief Act 2012 did extend the qualified charitable distribution deduction through 2013 as long as you were 70-1/2 and over and the distribution went directly from your IRA to the charity so I’m not sure why you had a problem, but I’m glad it was straightened out. As with any tax law changes TurboTax is always up to date and TurboTax 2013 will handle qualified charitable distributions. Thank you, Lisa Greene-Lewis Reply
My question is how do you file your union dues on your taxes i would like to know hows it’s done Reply
Hi Kelly, If you are using TurboTax to prepare your tax return, you will find union dues under Deductions & Credits, Job related expenses. Answer no to Job related expenses, then yes to Other types of expenses. Mary Ellen Reply
Hi Lynne, If you sell property at a profit, the profit is taxable. This is true if it is real estate, business property, or personal property. The only exception is your principal residence. There is an exclusion of $250,000 in profit if you meet certain ownership and use conditions. Mary Ellen Reply
If I purchased a rainbow vaccum cleaner for the allergies and to help with smell of renal failure patient can I claim it in my taxes Reply
Hi Tina, If your doctor has prescribed the vaccuum cleaner, you can deduct it as a medical device. Without a prescription, it is not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply
Is Turbo Tax going to have a payment plan for states (Florida) that only file federal tax ? Every year I have to pay for state and federal tax usage even thought I do not use the state part? Reply
I had some property that was condemned for sale to the state. Is there a special way to treat condemned property other than listing it on Schedule D as a capital gain? Reply
Hi Ken, What you have is an involuntary conversion. If the amount you received was more than you paid for the property you have a taxable gain (unless the property was your principal residence). Gain from an involuntary conversion may be postponed to the extent that the taxpayer purchases replacement property that is similar to the old property or related in service or use (or like-kind in the case of condemned real estate). The replacement period is generally two years after gain is realized with certain exceptions, such as a principal residence in a federally-declared disaster area. Mary Ellen Reply
We have custody, via the Colorado Court, of our grandchild and need to know if a special form is needed for the IRS in order to use a deduction for him. Reply
Being over 70, our retirement money is in a regular IRA with investment management expenses. May the IRA investment expenses be deducted versus money taken out? Reply
Hi Bill, The IRA management fees are a miscellaneous itemized deduction, reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income. Mary Ellen Reply
We have Court ordered “Parental Responsibility” of our grandson and are allowed to take him as a dependent on our federal and state (Colorado) taxes. What type of forms do we need to show the taxing authorities that we have the authority for him. Reply
Hi Janet, In the event of an audit, or a conflict because your child filed a return claiming your grandchild, you will need a copy of the court-order, and well as proof that the child lives with you (school records should suffice). Mary Ellen Reply
Hi, I got tax credits last year for buying an energy efficient water heater for my house. I’d like to possibly upgrade another appliance to energy-efficient, will I still get credits for that this year? Reply
Hi, There are still credits for solar and wind energy improvements, but not for energy efficient appliances. Mary Ellen Reply
My family wants to help our Mother lower her estate value. What is the maximum amount a person can gift, to say there children, and not have the receiving end incur a tax burden? And, is there any limit on the amount of gifts a person can receive in one year? Reply
Hi Robert, Estate and gift taxes are intertwined. Your best source for that information is an estate attorney. In general, though, gifts are never taxable to the recipient. They are applied to the estate and gift tax exclusion amount of the giver. The lifetime estate an gift tax exclusion is currently $5,250,000. In addition, any one person can give $14,000 to any other person each year without using any of their lifetime exclusion. So if there are three children, each with a spouse and 2 grandchildren, there are 12 people who can receive $14,000 each year without any reduction in the lifetime exclusion. Mary Ellen Reply
If I am assisting my adult children by paying some of their monthly bills (phone, electricity, auto insurance, etc.), can I claim this on my taxes – as a gift or otherwise – without having to actually claim them as a dependent? They simply do not make enough money to pay all of their bills and rather than apply for government assistance, I help them. Thank you.
My pay checks and states taxes have a garnishment by ors for medical bills can that be tax deductable under medical? Reply
Hi Mike, The amount you are paying through the garnishment for medical bills and for state income taxes (but not interest or penalties) is deductible. Mary Ellen Reply
Hi Mary Ellen, Could you please pass my last question to the tech folks if that is more appropriate. Reply
Hi Robert, Gifts to friends and family are not tax deductible Penalties on 529 plans are for withdrawals not used by the designated beneficiary for their qualified higher education expense. Reply
I had a long term settlement check for 34,500 and I only got 24,500 after attorney fees.Can I deduct his fees for this on taxes. Reply
Hi Tammy, If the income you received is taxable income, you can deduct the legal fees you paid to collect that income. The legal fees will be Miscellaneous Itemized Deduction subject to a reduction of 2% of your adjusted gross income. If your settlement is for unlawful discrimination (age or gender for example) the legal fees are deducted directly from the settlement amount. Mary Ellen If you do not have to pay tax on the income, the legal fees are not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply
I volunteer 2 days a week at the Sheriffs Dept., about 7 hours each day. Is any of this tax deductible , such as mileage ? Reply
Hi Joe, Yes, your mileage is deductible, and if you had to pay for a uniform or other supplies, you can deduct those as well. Mary Ellen Reply
I volunteer twice a week a the Sheriffs Dept. , about 7 hrs a day. is any of this tax deductible such as my mileage ? Reply
Is there a way to determine whether or not to take the standard deduction over itemized prior to spending the time it takes to enter all of the expense/deduction data into the program? As you know, a raw total of deductible expenses can be larger than the standard figure but less after the program applies all of the IRS’ fuzzy math to it. Reply
Stu, There is no really simple calculation for itemizing deductions. If you know your approximate income amount you can decrease your medical expense by 10% of that amount, add the rest of your deductions and see if they are more than your standard deduction. 2013 Standard deduction is 6,100 if you are filing as single or married filing separately, 8,950 for Head of household, and 12,200 for married filing jointly and qualifying widow/widower. Mary Ellen Reply
Hi Mary Ellen, Do you reply to posts selectively? Cause I asked a question before and never received a reply from you but people who asked questions much later got their replies. 🙂 I’d appreciate it if you could reply to my question as well. Thanks for your kind help. Reply
Hi Amir, Thanks for asking. I am somewhat selective in the questions I answer. Some are too complex or too specific to answer in this forum. However, I did get to your question a short time ago. I hope you find the answer helpful. Mary Ellen Reply
I had to install a stair lift this year so my wife could get up and down the stairs. Is the cost of that deductable? Reply
Hi Herbert, When you make improvements to your house for medical purposes, you need a doctor’s prescription for the improvement to deduct the cost. The deduction is reduced by any increase in the fair market value of your house. The balance is a medical deduction which is further reduced by 10% of your adjusted gross income (7.5% if you or your spouse is 65 or older). Mary Ellen Reply
If my wife and I bought a home with owner finance and no interest of finance charges just the down payment and monthly payments, can we deduct the money we spent on repairs, its a fixer u home. Reply
Hi Glen, You cannot deduct expenses for acquiring, maintaining or improving your personal residence, except for interest and taxes. Mary Ellen Reply
I read that you cannot claim fixing up your own house. We stuccoed and repainted the outside and inside. And we redid the bathroom. I just want to be sure before I bring in the receipts from the stores.
my job requires me to buy many tools I have saved all my receipts and it adds up to almost 3000 will I get all that back on my taxes this year Reply
Hi Tanya, If you itemize deductions on your tax return, you can include your tools expense as an employee business expense. You will not get a deduction for the entire $3,000. Your savings will be your tax rate times the amount you are able to deduct. Tax rates vary from 10% to almost 40% for 2013. Mary Ellen Mary Ellen Reply
I have a question, I been paying to someone to take my son to his school, I wonder if I can file that on my tax as a child care or not?? Reply
Is there a way to determine if extra payments on my mortgage principal benefits me more than having the larger interest as a deductible on my tax return? Does it depend on the rate of interest I would get keeping the money invested (and paying interest on whatever the investment produces)? My mortgage int. is 4.75% and I owe $84,000. Reply
Paying down your mortgage decreases the interest you pay since the extra payments are 100% principle, 0% interest. So it will actually increase your taxes. I would seriously consider just keeping the money invested. Reply
Hi Sue, Union dues have been deductible as a miscellaneous itemized deduction for many years. Miscellaneous itemized deductions must be reduced by 2% of your adjusted gross income before they offer a tax benefit. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
Question on medical payments, I pay my own premiums, high deductible, and am not yet 65. my husband and I are both retired and he is 66 and I, 62, very limited income, how does that work on my taxes? I had a lot of trouble last year and am not sure I did it right. Reply
Hi Trish, If you are using TurboTax, you would enter your insurance premiums, deductibles and other out-of-pocked medical expenses in the Medical Expense portion of the Deductions section. TurboTax will take care of all the calculations from there. When one of the taxpayers of a couple are age 65 or older for 2013 taxes, you will still receive the 7.5% reduction instead of the new, higher reduction of 10% of AGI. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
I am confused on medical I understand the 10%, but what are all the special forms and do you both have to be over 65, and what if you are paying your premiums and deductible, how does that work? Reply
Hi Trish, Only one of you needs to be 65 or older to get the lower reduction. The only forms you need are 1040 and Schedule A. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
Hi Herbert, Setting up a trust is not a tax deductible expense. If there was tax planning involved, ask to attorney to bill that separately, and you can deduct that portion of the legal fees. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
Question just submitted by about direct charitable contribution; I didn’t check the box under “submit”. before hitting submit button. Please respond. Reply
Every year that I’ve had a Flexible Spending Account I’ve mailed in my receipts during the first wk of March to get the remaining balance from my account. It usually takes a wk to 10 days to get my refund. This yr I mailed it in as usual. After not receiving anything by the end of March I called the company through which my FSA is processed (WAGE WORKS). They told me they had not received any such request & therefore I had a zero balance & would not be receiving anything. This was extremely irritating to me to say the least. I talked to some higher up person & they told me the same thing, & then I went to an even higher person & again told the same thing. I even faxed it to them 2-3 times a wk for a month but still to no avail & with no response from the company. The $585 that was still in my account was never returned to me. I think the “uppers” that be decided to go have a “party” with all the remaining monies from my acct as well as anyone else’s. When did the Treasury & IRS change the “use it or lose it rule”? The gov’t keeps enough of my pyck as it is. I still want my $585 back. This yr I’ve decided to “bank” it myself each payday & earn interest on it. Has anyone else had this problem with their FSA company? Reply
Hi Sunna, The IRS sets the rules for when you can submit expenses for reimbursement in Flexible Spending Accounts. You employer and WageWorks are only following the law. If you have proof that you submitted the claim before the deadline, you could try pursuing that angle. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
RE: Instead of taking the Required Minimum Distribution on two 403b accounts (in annuities) in 1013, I’d like for the monies to be sent to a 401(c) charity. I’ve talked with the two companies; both said I will receive a “regular” 1099R. Listing the gift under “donations” will not give me the benefit of having the monies bypass me–as though I never received that RMD amount. Help. Reply
Hi Hazel, The Qualified Charitable Distributions were only available for 2012. Your 403b companies gave you the correct information for 2013. Mary Ellen Reply
I got divorced in February an my wife just left. I took 39 bags of clothes,shoes,toys,kitchenware,photoframes,games,i-pods,video-games,etc to Goodwill to get rid of the history and memories. I received signed invoices from Goodwill on each delivery.I figured the total amount of donation to about $30 000. With such a hugh amount of donation, will i attract attention to be audited? Reply
Hi, For contributions over $5,000 of similar items like all the clothing, all the electronics, and all the furniture, you have to have a written appraisal. Your deduction is limited to the fair market value (or the amount the Goodwill will get when they sell the items). If you have the appropriate paperwork, you can take the deduction on Form 8283, then Schedule A of your 1040. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
You can claim up to $500.00 in contributions without an audit. Anything pass that amount will probably be an eye for audit purposes. Ask Goodwill staff to give you a receipt because your estimated total may not be the total of your items donated. I would just attach the outline receipt with my tax forms. Also, taking pictures would help if IRS want to see what you donated. Reply
Yes, you should get a tax form from your lender,a 1098, which will state how much interest you paid. It has to be more than $600. Reply
Good morning Tony, Student loan interest is tax deductible as long as it is paid before the end of the year! There is a special section you fill out on the 1040. Reply
Hi Tony, Student loan interest, up to $2,500, is deductible with some limitations. You cannot use the Married Filing Separately filing status, and there are income limitations (for a single individual, the phase out doesn’t start until income exceeds $60,000 (this amount increases each year). Mary Ellen Reply
if your business was fined for having a truck on the road that did not pass an inspection can i deduct those fines as an expense? Reply
Hi JayPee,. Filing requirements are more income based than age based. For 2013, a taxpayer over the age of 64 with income of more than approximately $11,000 must file a return. Mary Ellen Reply
I bought a vehicle with the alternative fuel, in West Virginia there is a alternative fuel vehicle (AFV) Tax Credit West Virginia Code 11-6D will I be able to get this deduction if i do my taxes for 2013 with the turbo tax, software or will i need to go to a CPA? Reply
Hi DIana, TurboTax does not include the form for preparing the credit (Form AFTC-1). You can prepare the form yourself and enter the credit in TurboTax, but TurboTax will not calculate the credit for you. Mary Ellen Reply
I have been using Turbo Tax and Its Deductible for several years now and it makes doing my own taxes a breeze…I enter tax deductions every couple of months and at the end of the year, they’re all there in one place…thanks for the site! Reply
Hi Tom, If you are a single member LLC, you can prepare the required Schedule C in TurboTax. You may need to prepare the LLC return for your state using TurboTax Small Business (not Home and Business). If you receive a K-1 from a multi-member LLC, you can report that income using TurboTax. If you need to prepare a return for the multi_member LLC, you will need TurboTax Small Business. Mary Ellen Reply
It depends. My wife and I both paid higher taxes after getting married at the end of the year, so don’t assume that being married is better! Reply
Hi Kathy, If you both take the standard deduction and personal exemption ($10,000 in 2013), you will pay slightly higher taxes if you are married. If you are both able to itemize deductions as single individuals, you may see a slight reduction in your taxes. Mary Ellen Reply
I was told that if I get married this late in the year I can file married but desperate on next years taxes and still claim head of household since I wasn’t married for the 12 months. Is this true?
Kathy, If you are married on December 31, and you live with your spouse any time during the last six months of the year, you cannot file as Head of Household. Mary Ellen
When I got married both my husband and I changed our status from Single Zero to Married witholding at single higher rate – that year we wound up owing over 7K in taxes. I would recommend not changing your status until you do the appropriate worksheets. Reply
What if you pay taxed on gas and all other taxables like. Gas for the car and shopping and buying pre-made food. And any other stuff that is taxable. Reply
Hi Dave, Sales taxes are deductible if they are greater than your state income taxes. Pre-made food, even if it is a special diet prescribed by a doctor, is not deductible. Mary Ellen Reply
Vilma, You can use the tables provided by the IRS or your own records to determine the amount of sales tax you paid during the year. There is no limit on the amount you can deduct
Hi Maria, Dental and other medical expenses paid for your dependents are deductible. Mary Ellen Reply
My question is my son is going through getting braces and we pay $153.00/month is this deductible? Also what about having teeth pulled?
Hi I bought a house from a builder and they paid part of the closing costs as an incentive. Is it like only the part I paid directly is deductible or the whole amount for closing costs is tax deductible even if paid by the builder? Thanks, Reply
Hi Amir, Closing costs for purchasing a home are not deductible with the exception of points paid for the loan and property taxes prorated to you for the period between purchase date and the next assessment date. Amounts of taxes being held in an impound account are not deductible. The rules are different if the house was purchased for rental or business. You do not need to consider how much the seller paid on your behalf when determining your deductions. Mary Ellen Reply
My wife had to take a job that is away from home. It is a two hour drive, thus too far to commute. We had to rent an apartment for her to stay in during the week, and then on weekends she comes home. Would any of these expenses, rent, utilities, driving, etc. count as business deductions? Reply
Jim, Commuting expenses and the apartment expenses are not deductible, even though it is a two hour commute. Mary Ellen Reply
I have a couple of questions. 1. Am I allowed to deduct for miles and expenses for looking for a new job? 2. Am I allowed to deducted mandatory union fees? Reply
Hi Melissa, Job hunting expenses and union dues are miscellaneous itemized deductions on Schedule A. Mary Ellen Reply
I work as a consultant and work from home so I have a lot of little office expenses I’ve racked up (notebooks, computer mouse, folders, etc.) so do I need the receipts from every single one of those? I have kept track of the amount of each purchase, and saved the receipts for the bigger items, but not all small items. Reply
Hi Kristin, You should keep receipts for all of your business expenses. You need to be able to prove that you paid for something (credit card slip or cancelled checks) and what that something was (receipt) in an audit. Mary Ellen Reply
I just retired and am paying for my medicare and a medicare supplement plus Part D for prescriptions. How are these handled when filling out my tax return. Does it reduce the taxable income or are they considered medical deductions? Reply
Hi Gary Your insurance premiums for Medicare and supplement are considered medical expenses and are deducted as part of your itemized deductions on Schedule A. Mary Ellen Reply
I have made charitable donations through Western Union of over $10,000. Is this deductable? If so, what percentage? Reply
Charitable deductions should be deductible however you paid they, but you do want some sort of records that document what you gave! Reply
not sure if 1 & 3 are “good” advice…. “delay your payment of taxes this year for next year” eventually you have to pay it. Reply
I would like to know if the annual expenses paid to get an account open with a stock broker or the annual credit card fee is tax deductible. Reply
Hi Mark, You broker fees are deductible a miscellaneous itemized deductions. Credit card fees are not generally deductible, however, if the card is used exclusively for business by a self-employed individual, the fee can be deducted on Schedule C. If you use the card for both business and personal expenses, you can prorate the expense, but I would recommend not deducting it at all in that situation. Reply
YOUR STOCK BROKER FEES ARE DEDUCTIBLE BUT CREDIT CARD FEES ARE NOT. THE ONLY INTEREST OR FEES THAT ARE DECARE ONES CONNECTED TO A MORTGAGE OR 2ND MOTGAGE. Reply
This is not completely true. Interest associated with investments is deductible as an investment expense. Margin interest is an example, but it is also true for credit card advances that you invest.
Hi Stan, Vehicle expenses, whether a lease or a purchased vehicle, require you to log your miles, and prorate your expenses based on business vs. personal miles. Commuting from home to work is considered personal miles. Lease payments have a “lease inclusion amount” that reduces the amount of deduction. Employees would deduct this expense using form 2106, and it will go on Schedule A, Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions. You can find more information about deducting vehicle expenses at IRS.gov, in publication 463. Thank you, Mary Ellen Reply
Is sales tax on autos deductable on income taxes? I made a mistake on buying one car and tradeed back with in three days on another car. Both were new cars. I live in Fla. Reply
Hi Ronald, According to the IRS website – “The deduction is limited to the taxes and fees paid on up to $49,500 of the purchase price of an eligible vehicle. The deduction is reduced for joint filers with modified adjusted gross incomes (MAGI) between $250,000 and $260,000 and other taxpayers with MAGI between $125,000 and $135,000. Taxpayers with higher incomes do not qualify.” Reply
Is sales tax on autos deductable on income taxes? I made a mistake on buying one car and tradeed back with in three days on another car. Both were new cars. Reply
The tax portion of the fee, based on the value of the vehicle is deductible. Only some states have a deductible tax – Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Carolina, Washington and Wyoming. Mary Ellen Reply
will i be able to withdraw direct charitable contributions from my IRA for tax year 2014 in 2014 and not count it as income? Reply
In other words, will that provision be extended for 2014? or will it expire at the end of 2013? Reply
Hi Carol, The provision to make a direct charitable contribution from your IRA and exclude the withdrawal from income is expiring at the end of 2013. Mary Ellen Reply
Will the direct qualified charitable contribution be included in Turbo Tax for 2013? this was asked earlier when you said it expired in 2012. I’d like to know if this will be obvious when using Turbo Tax.
I have used turbo tax for past several years. Last month I had credit fraud on 2 credit cards, which both companies took care of it. My question how can I make sure my info with turbo tax hasn’t been taken? Couldn’t find any phone number to call you Reply
Are Gifts to grand children deductable? Are withdraws from educational 529 accounts still pentalized if you are 76 years old? Reply
Gifts to friends and family are not deductible. 529 accounts have withdrawal penalties if the funds are not used for eligible higher education expenses by the beneficiary. Reply
My wife and I volunteered to chaperone 25 youth to Germany this past summer. The organization is a 501c. Is any of the airline fare deductible as charity as we were not reimbursed for those fares? Reply
Hi Robert, Your out-of-pocket expenses ncluding airfare that were not reimbursed, is deductible as a charitable contribution. Be sure to get a letter from the charity acknowledging your participation in their program. Mary Ellen Reply
Is commuting to and from work mileage considered an unreimbursed employee business expense? I travel 52 miles one way to work. Reply