Do you exaggerate your taxes?

[tiggerlover]

I was talking with a few people today and I was very surprised to learn that so many people exaggerate on their income tax returns. A couple of the people said that everyone does and that their accountants fudge a little bit too. My response was, not everyone does and how could you live with yourself knowing you cheated. They don't feel bad at all. So that got me wondering if I am in the minority. I am posting a poll so it can be annoymous, but I am really curious at the truth behind income tax cheating.

 

[HelenePA]

ummm how do you cheat? I could use some hints I think, because we dont cheat! Dont know how!

 

[Crankyshank]

Definitely not. We're at risk for audit as it is with DH's employers wacky tax practices.

 

[CheshireVal]

I don't know how, either! I suppose it could be easy if you itemize, but I'd be too afraid of getting audited to try it.

 

[Fitswimmer]

Oh, Lord no-too much Catholic guilt!

 

[MAKmom]

I think the only way you can cheat is claiming you gave more to charity than you did. We underestimate that. We don't claim clothing & things we donate.

 

[gardenhoe]

In my financial background, 2+2 has always equaled 4. I don't know how to make it equal 5.

 

[AllyandJack]

Exaggerate what? I'd like some tips, too.

We can't pretend we have more kids. We can't lie about things like property taxes or mortgage interest.

OK....I actually did something not 100% once. Part of my student loans are from grad school (law school). When I went to file my MA state return, it took my interest and turned it into INCOME! I tried to be honest because my loans were consolidated and there was no way to tell what was what. I divided the interest amount in half - half for undergrad, half for grad. That ended up causing me to OWE. No, thanks! So, I omitted the other half and just claimed the undergrad.

But, that's all I've done. It got me a whole refund of $79.

 

[HelenePA]

I actually opted out of one of the credits I was owed this year, for a new door we bought but we would have had to wait til feb 11th to file, that 50$ wasn't worth waiting for, I had mine back way before the 11th.

 

[NMAmy]

We don't really have anything fancy to exaggerate. It's a fairly simple return so there's not that much room to exaggerate.

 

[froglady]

I think the only way you can cheat is claiming you gave more to charity than you did. We underestimate that. We don't claim clothing & things we donate.

I'm the same way. I only list the cash gifts, so I have proof. We were audited once, but my CPA handled it.

 

[mmcguire]

Heck no!

My Dad's an accountant, and I witnessed a 4+ week audit of one of his business clients firsthand. If you fudge on your taxes, pray you never get audited. It's not pretty, and you will have to produce proof of everything you claim.

 

[mefordis]

Exaggerate what? I'd like some tips, too.

We can't pretend we have more kids. We can't lie about things like property taxes or mortgage interest.

OK....I actually did something not 100% once. Part of my student loans are from grad school (law school). When I went to file my MA state return, it took my interest and turned it into INCOME! I tried to be honest because my loans were consolidated and there was no way to tell what was what. I divided the interest amount in half - half for undergrad, half for grad. That ended up causing me to OWE. No, thanks! So, I omitted the other half and just claimed the undergrad.

But, that's all I've done. It got me a whole refund of $79.

I think the only way to really fudge your taxes is if you are either self-employed or own a business.

 

[budbeerlady]

I wouldnt cheat:
- I would feel guilty about it being wrong
- I wouldnt know how
- I would get caught somehow, I have the worst luck.


My poor CPA, I gave her a heck of a stack the other day. I have everything documented and then some for our taxes!

 

[ICF]

you mean that bag of stained and used baby clothes taken to goodwill real shouldn't have been valued at $200??!?!?!?!

 

[debknight]

I thought the OP meant do you exaggerate how much tax you pay, like when talking to others. That is, making yourself seem more well-off than you really are!

 

[mickeyfan2]

I don't cheat or fudge on my taxes. There is no way I want to face myself each day after doing this or the IRS when they find my fudge and comes after me.

 

[mickeyfan2]

Oh, Lord no-too much Catholic guilt!

Now I know why DH and I can't do it. It is that Catholic upbringing!!!

 

[bsnyder]

That's kind of what I thought to, when I read the thread title.

Like others, I'm not sure how an individual would cheat (businesses are more complicated, with write offs that are worth more against the taxes owed).

But no, we're on the straight and narrow here. For business and personal.

And I still live in fear of the IRS. Because I know they can make life miserable, even if you haven't cheated or done anything wrong.

 

[ammo]

Overstating deductions is a common way that people commit tax fraud. Another form of cheating is not reporting income that should be reported. Here are some examples:

- Money earned on cash jobs (I know of a union electrician who works every Saturday for cash on side jobs and never reports a penny).

- Gambling winnings (a lot of winnings are not reported because they would call attention to illegal gambling).

- Profits from illegal activities in general.

And that is probably just the tip of the iceberg.