$5100

[Piecey]

Several of the earlier posts suggested that the small amount per month would just get absorbed by regular spending when that is not alway the case.

If that is the only way a person can save, it is better than not saving at all, but I personally think it is absurd to loan extra money to the government that you have to wait to get back.

By the way, I use Turbo Tax and really like it. The various software products I used in public accounting really were not much different. I doubt the average person with a relatively simple return is going to benefit that much by using a CPA.

Yeah, I think they meant it would for them personally... I worked in a bank, I saw all sorts of people that had the intention of saving (i.e. they had automatic transfers set up on the days they got paid) but they'd always come in and take the money out before the next check. Some people just aren't savers. My BIL isn't a saver, we worry about him a lot and what he is going to do in 20 years.

There is no way I would have the patience to sit and do our taxes without TurboTax. My mom does theirs on paper and I think she is crazy!

 

[mefordis]

...don't even get me started.

 

[jekajekalynn]

Ehh...I'm still doin' my happy dance.

And guess what? As shocking as it may seem to some of you who think we must be struggling and stupid (keep in mind the tax adjustments was my cpa's advice, if you're bitter go ahead and talk to him ) ,we still have a real good credit score, pay our bills on time, and don't take out useless loans.. So whats with all the grief? Stress ball anyone?

 

[LoraJ]

And we save plenty enough. That extra money people *think* I should be saving is used to help stimulate the economy, you know, so the bitter people can keep their jobs.

 

[rockydek]

My husband and I make sure we owe at least 1000.00 every year.

My SIL who recieves a refund of 7000.00 .....feels sorry for us.

I tried to explain that we were using Uncle Sams money for free ....and that she was letting Uncle Sam use her money for free.

She looked at us like we were crazy.

She is not a very disciplined saver. Also...her credit cards are maxed out.

Too funny...Everyones different.

 

[mefordis]

Does she use the refund to pay on her credit cards? Just curious.

My husband and I make sure we owe at least 1000.00 every year.

My SIL who recieves a refund of 7000.00 .....feels sorry for us.

I tried to explain that we were using Uncle Sams money for free ....and that she was letting Uncle Sam use her money for free.

She looked at us like we were crazy.

She is not a very disciplined saver. Also...her credit cards are maxed out.

Too funny...Everyones different.

 

[ICF]

. Also...her credit cards are maxed out.

In her case, I would agree that she should adjust her withholdings to get her $$ back weekly/monthly and pay off the CC balances.

 

[DL55]

Although I'm in the camp of not letting Uncle Sam keep my money. I hope everyone who is getting large returns enjoys them. I admit I'm a bit envious
What other people do with their money isn't any of my business (although interesting). I also can't imagine going to WDW more than once a year (I usually don't go more than every 4 years). But those who do seem to enjoy it.. so good for them. I have enough problems keeping my own life in order. I don't need to worry about what other people are doing.

 

[Handbag Lady]

I'll say it. I am envious of those of you with refunds.

We claim 0 and have extra taken out of our paychecks each month and we still end up paying. We are married, both work, we don't own a home and we don't have kids. We're screwed.

Does anyone have links to the Making Work Pay thing? I had no idea it was giving people refunds.

 

[VickiVM]

I'll say it. I am envious of those of you with refunds.

We claim 0 and have extra taken out of our paychecks each month and we still end up paying. We are married, both work, we don't own a home and we don't have kids. We're screwed.

Does anyone have links to the Making Work Pay thing? I had no idea it was giving people refunds.

Don't be too envious...some of us who are getting a large refund is because of life circumstances that have caused a hardship throughout the year such as job loss or significant lowered income. I mentioned it earlier...I would rather have had more income coming in throughout the year than get a larger than usual refund.

 

[staley7580]

Don't be too envious...some of us who are getting a large refund is because of life circumstances that have caused a hardship throughout the year such as job loss or significant lowered income. I mentioned it earlier...I would rather have had more income coming in throughout the year than get a larger than usual refund.

I hear that. I would much rather my husband not lose such a huge chunk of his income then get a huge refund. What we are getting back isnt even a drop in the bucket to what we lost.

 

[purplegirl247]

Does anyone have links to the Making Work Pay thing? I had no idea it was giving people refunds.

I second that. I thought Making Work Pay was the extra amount that showed up in our paychecks around last April or so, so I assume we wouldn't get it all over again when we did our taxes (and that's what TaxAct said too). Did I maybe read it wrong?

ETA: Thanks to the magic of google, I found this http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=205922,00.html and this http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=204447,00.html So yes, if we got the money disbursed throughout the year, we wouldn't get it again through our taxes. Ta-da!

 

[Handbag Lady]

Don't be too envious...some of us who are getting a large refund is because of life circumstances that have caused a hardship throughout the year such as job loss or significant lowered income. I mentioned it earlier...I would rather have had more income coming in throughout the year than get a larger than usual refund.

I hear that. I would much rather my husband not lose such a huge chunk of his income then get a huge refund. What we are getting back isnt even a drop in the bucket to what we lost.

I am so sorry.

 

[Green Tea]

I'll say it. I am envious of those of you with refunds.

We claim 0 and have extra taken out of our paychecks each month and we still end up paying. We are married, both work, we don't own a home and we don't have kids. We're screwed.

Does anyone have links to the Making Work Pay thing? I had no idea it was giving people refunds.

Didn't you get a trip with LMT World for a Dollar? If I am thinking of the right poster, have you plugged everything in with the trip value? The value was higher than I expected. It made a difference. I knew it would, but me, ever hopeful....

 

[staley7580]

I am so sorry.

Oh thank you! I have to admit though... It was kinda nice having him around to help with the kids! Newborn twins arent a ton of fun!

 

[VickiVM]

I am so sorry.

Thanks - I wasn't trying to make you feel bad. But the sentiment on this thread by some is that those of us who are getting large refunds made horrible choices and should be making sure that we at least owe taxes every year.

 

[KramBerries]

Wow. Very active thread over a very simple subject.

I'll be getting about $8K to $10K back this year. A few years ago, I owed a bit over $20K. While I was probably better off financially keeping the money throughout the year and paying the $20K, I have to admit that it is more emotionally satisfying to get a big check than it is to write one.

For all the people that are critical of others giving the government an interest free loan, I have to ask why you don't arrange it so that you owe the maximum possible amount without owing penalties. Aren't the principals the same? Couldn't you have been making use of all that money all that time? Why not get an interest free loan from the government?


As far as cash vs credit, I find that I spend cash much more freely. The way I do my accounting, once I take the cash out of the ATM, it is accounted for as spent. There is no longer a psychological hurdle to spending it. I don't carry much cash, but when I do, I find that I spend it more freely.

I will also freely admit that there are times when I spend more at places like McDonald's when I can use a credit card. Those are times when I don't have enough cash with me to get what I want. Being able to spend the extra money is a good thing because I already decided that the food was worth more to me than the money.

I also find the whole "pay 18% more" thing very misleading. It implies that credit card users are paying 18% more for the same thing. In reality, they are spending 18% more for 18% more goods and services. Is that really a bad thing? I suppose that it is if they later regret the decision, but that's a personal problem, not a credit card problem.

I much prefer to use a credit card because I don't have the risks of carrying cash, I get purchase protections, I get rewards, and it's much more convenient. If someone is willing to give me a substantial discount for paying cash, I'm always open to that too.

 

[golfgal]

Wow. Very active thread over a very simple subject.

I'll be getting about $8K to $10K back this year. A few years ago, I owed a bit over $20K. While I was probably better off financially keeping the money throughout the year and paying the $20K, I have to admit that it is more emotionally satisfying to get a big check than it is to write one.

For all the people that are critical of others giving the government an interest free loan, I have to ask why you don't arrange it so that you owe the maximum possible amount without owing penalties. Aren't the principals the same? Couldn't you have been making use of all that money all that time? Why not get an interest free loan from the government?


As far as cash vs credit, I find that I spend cash much more freely. The way I do my accounting, once I take the cash out of the ATM, it is accounted for as spent. There is no longer a psychological hurdle to spending it. I don't carry much cash, but when I do, I find that I spend it more freely.

I will also freely admit that there are times when I spend more at places like McDonald's when I can use a credit card. Those are times when I don't have enough cash with me to get what I want. Being able to spend the extra money is a good thing because I already decided that the food was worth more to me than the money.

I also find the whole "pay 18% more" thing very misleading. It implies that credit card users are paying 18% more for the same thing. In reality, they are spending 18% more for 18% more goods and services. Is that really a bad thing? I suppose that it is if they later regret the decision, but that's a personal problem, not a credit card problem.

I much prefer to use a credit card because I don't have the risks of carrying cash, I get purchase protections, I get rewards, and it's much more convenient. If someone is willing to give me a substantial discount for paying cash, I'm always open to that too.

Excellent point--if the people on this board that are so worried about those of us that get a refund then even getting close to zero is essentially the same thing--you are giving the government an interest free loan if you don't owe taxes on April 15th.

 

[wdwfan16]

Wow. Very active thread over a very simple subject.

I'll be getting about $8K to $10K back this year. A few years ago, I owed a bit over $20K. While I was probably better off financially keeping the money throughout the year and paying the $20K, I have to admit that it is more emotionally satisfying to get a big check than it is to write one.

For all the people that are critical of others giving the government an interest free loan, I have to ask why you don't arrange it so that you owe the maximum possible amount without owing penalties. Aren't the principals the same? Couldn't you have been making use of all that money all that time? Why not get an interest free loan from the government?

As far as cash vs credit, I find that I spend cash much more freely. The way I do my accounting, once I take the cash out of the ATM, it is accounted for as spent. There is no longer a psychological hurdle to spending it. I don't carry much cash, but when I do, I find that I spend it more freely.

I will also freely admit that there are times when I spend more at places like McDonald's when I can use a credit card. Those are times when I don't have enough cash with me to get what I want. Being able to spend the extra money is a good thing because I already decided that the food was worth more to me than the money.

I also find the whole "pay 18% more" thing very misleading. It implies that credit card users are paying 18% more for the same thing. In reality, they are spending 18% more for 18% more goods and services. Is that really a bad thing? I suppose that it is if they later regret the decision, but that's a personal problem, not a credit card problem.

I much prefer to use a credit card because I don't have the risks of carrying cash, I get purchase protections, I get rewards, and it's much more convenient. If someone is willing to give me a substantial discount for paying cash, I'm always open to that too.

This is what we do. The basic rule is you have to have paid 90% of your taxes.

 

[dejr_8]

Excellent point--if the people on this board that are so worried about those of us that get a refund then even getting close to zero is essentially the same thing--you are giving the government an interest free loan if you don't owe taxes on April 15th.

And that is exactly what we try to do (actually we target a zero balance). This year we owe $756 (which is below the $1000 limit for penalties).

Look at your taxes as a bill that you need to pay - just like going to the Doctor, buying a car, getting work done at your house. Under ANY situation can you imagine over-paying in any of these situations and then waiting a year to be re-paid? So then why do you find it acceptable to overpay your taxes and then wait?