I used to hate filing my taxes. Every year I would complain, procrastinate, make excuses, then finally on deadline day I would take a messy stack of forms to my tax guy and cry for last-minute help. It wasn’t fun at all. Then something changed. I grew up. I put a system in place. And lucky I did! Today, even though my tax situation is more complicated than most families’,
Taxes
How I Appealed My Ridiculous Property Taxes
Last week I got my property tax bill. $5,185. Booooooo. Many counties across Texas decided that 2020 was a good time to increase everyone’s assessed property value, raising bills by a whopping 10 - 20% for the tax year. It’s a kick in the groin... Because not only are many people under a financial squeeze this year, Texas was already ranked #3 for states with the highest
Tax Fun Facts! (But Are They True or False?)
Happy Monday, everyone! :) Thought it’d be fun to share some tax trivia -- some true facts 😇, and some false facts 😈 -- since we’re nearing the end of a super-long filing tax season here in the U.S. (Public service announcement: Taxes for 2019 are due THIS WEDNESDAY! That's July 15, 2020.) I’ve dug up (and made up) these weird tax facts for a little game
A cool way to use your tax refunds
Morning! Saw this comment come through and it reminded me to get my a$$ in gear and finally wrap up my own taxes ;) How are you doing with yours? Getting any refunds back? Here's an idea of what you could do with it if you are: Thanks to earned income I get a tax refund of anywhere from $4k to $7k per year. I use that tax return to pay all my bills for a year. I
Did you know you have to pay taxes on all winnings?!
It's true... Winnings are considered "income" and you can get in some serious doo-doo if you try to hide it. Though reputable places will at least remind you of it when they send you a nice tax doc at the end of the year informing you they're reporting it to the IRS :) And it's not only applicable to things like winning the lottery or hitting it big on slots either. Free
What are you doing with your tax refunds?
Saw this list come out on the best ways to use your refund money, and thought I'd use it as an opportunity to live vicariously through you guys since I'm getting squat this year ;) Though by no design of my own as I LOVE getting a nice chunk back every year and thinking about all the ways to power your goals! Even if it's your own money we're talking about! (And let me tell
4 Ways to File Your Taxes for Free
Morning, hustlers! Anyone already file their taxes and feeling good about it? Yeah, me neither ;) But I have started putting all the paperwork in one neat pile, if that counts for anything?! Haha... The good news though is that there are a handful of *free* places you can file your taxes this year, so before you get into it be sure to check 'em out and see if any
A Free Way to File Your Taxes This Year! (Federal + State)
I know I know, taxes - ugh. But I might have something for you that could save you hundreds of dollars this tax season, both in filing fees, as well as getting back the maximum refunds owed to you. It's a tool called MyFreeTaxes.com, and despite its somewhat spammy name I guarantee it's legit ;) Not only do I have a good friend who recently switched careers to work for
The Ultimate List of What Belongs in Your Net Worth (And What Doesn’t)
INSIDE: What does net worth include? Should it include pensions? Art? Insurance? Your house? What about cats, stock options, cars, jewelry, baseball cards? Here's what I do. Maybe it will help :) Do you include pensions in your net worth? How about art, insurance, homes, cats, baseball cards? These are some of the most popular questions I get asked, outside of "Is J.
My Top 7 Disagreements With Personal Finance Experts
[Hey guys! Have a feisty one for you today from fellow blogger ERN at EarlyRetirementNow.com. Some of these you may disagree with, as do I (no emergency fund? Blasphemy! ;)) BUT I always love hearing other peoples' perspectives, and Ern here can surely put up a convincing fight. Regardless of where you stand though, I hope you'll find some takeaways here to help you in your own
