Is it really worth the 100 dollars to go with this company to file a 1040EZ? I use to do my own taxes with turbo tax, and wanted to see if I would see a different return if I went with one of these Firms.
Yes, I agree. If it's a 1040-EZ you should be able to complete this on your own. If It's a 1040-A and you have a computer, depending on how many deductibles you have, then perhaps someting like Tubo Tax will do. I did my taxes for 20 years until I retired and my wife started a business on the side. Then things got a little bit more complicated and we hired an accountant. It cost us $500/year, which gets all written off. Sounds like a lot, but as an example, when Turbo Tax was telling to pay $20K in taxes and she was telling me to keep $12K in a SEP-IRA and only pay $8K,you tell me if $500 are not worth it.
my brother is a CPA who currently works for walmart, however he worked for H/R block financials and has intimate knowledge of the program their "tax professionals" use. It's basically a glorified version of taxcut software.
you can get the same results with taxcut and H/R block. If you have a ton of deductions as mentioned above then see a CPA. but since you mentioned an EZ form then you probably dont need to see HR block.
Originally posted by Hectorcaliente: Is it really worth the 100 dollars to go with this company to file a 1040EZ? I use to do my own taxes with turbo tax, and wanted to see if I would see a different return if I went with one of these Firms.
Go to irs.gov and click on the free tax websites. There is a link for H&R Block online. You can file free federal if you meet their taxable income bracket (I believe it's $54K and below).
I've been using the H&R Block free online for the last 6 years. What's nice is the program will store your information such as you're employers ID and your digital verification signature for the following year.
I have nothing but good things to say about the online H&R Block. Best of all, it's free if you only have to file federal taxes.
I checked with HR Block. They told me $199.00 to do my taxes. Just me and the wife not much to do at all. I told them I would rather pay a fine to the govt for doing them wrong than paying them 199 for 10 minutes of work. Pissed them off pretty good!
Originally posted by CgShipmate: Go to irs.gov and click on the free tax websites. There is a link for H&R Block online. You can file free federal if you meet their taxable income bracket (I believe it's $54K and below).
I know for a fact if you are Active duty, tax slayer will do it for free not matter if you make more than 55K. With the wife cleared 66 and tax slayer did it for free.
I am not endorsing them but ever since I came to VA in 2003 I have been using Jackson Hewitt and they only charge me around 30-40 dollars. They actually have a trailer right on base. So it is easy for me. No problems at all with them.
Originally posted by bmwcc: I use taxslayer.com. It is easy and FREE! I have been using these guys for years now and they have always done the job for free to military members.
I also use taxslayer.com (about 5 yrs now). I recommend it for all military members. It is free for AD, you can upgrade for 10-50 bucks for the better software, but I would only do that if you have tons of investments or you own your own buisness/
Just to let everyone know, I went to H + R block and found that I was accidentally paying VA tax when I am a FL resident. They gave me advice and a phone number to get it resolved so I could get my state tax completely refunded. I am unafamiliar with the tax software people use, but if it is just plugging in numbers from the W-2, I would have payed VA tax and not gotten it refunded. I'm not saying to go to them, I just know I'm not good at taxes and they saved me ALOT of money. Just something to consider.
Hector, not sure where you got the $100 quote from? I've used H&R Block online for 5-6 years now. This year the cost was $24.99 for a federal return including any schedules, worksheets etc. and $19.99 to file my state including any additional forms. I filled on 1Feb08 at around 11pm, had both refunds in the bank by COB of 6Feb08. Very simple program to use and includes audit support should the man come knockin' on your door! -Jeff
when Turbo Tax was telling to pay $20K in taxes and she was telling me to keep $12K in a SEP-IRA and only pay $8K,you tell me if $500 are not worth it.
keko, that should have pretty much been a no-brainer. Reading the 1040 form lne item by line item you may have noticed that you pay less taxes if you have an IRA or a 401K plan. Try to max out each year the amount you can contribute. Clue - it's age related, and IRAs are generally less allowed than 401k plans. For instance. over 50 yoa I can deduct $5000 in income if I put that much away into an IRA. However, I can reduce my income by about $15,500 if I put that away into a 401k plan. Remember, reducing your income is just a phrase - you still have all the money, it's just that the IRA or 401k plans is not taxed (its deferred). 'nother clue - you can do only ONE plan each year, not both both. Before, I used to do IRAs, now that I have a higher income, I use a 401k plan from work.
Badge, a SEP-IRA is not as straight forward as you might think. It is way different than a 401-K. It's not just up to 40% of your business income. There are many other issues that affect this % which are based on your business expenses. For example, in my wife's case, she also works for the State of VA's Health Department. So as you can imagine, she is also covered by their retirement plan. That affects how much she can contribute towards her SEP-IRA. The same goes for her health insurance. Some of these restrictions, which most people don't know unless they are intimately familiar w/ the tax code, are not easily accessible w/ TurboTax or Tax Cut. Besides, when you are talking of thousands of dollars, why take the chance of doing it wrong for a few hundred dollars that you can write off?
