The Tax Preparation Blog

Posts Tagged ‘government’

All of the major lenders are really getting up to speed with the Making Home Affordable (MHA) loan modification program. This is essentially a “Cash for Clunkers” program for distressed homeowners. If you think that you may qualify to trade in that clunker subprime loan or perhaps are facing future interest rate adjustments on a prime loan then the time to act is now.

This is an incredibly generous government program that can help homeowners adjust their mortgage payments to their financial situation rather than market conditions. A new home buyer with perfect credit, a large down payment and plenty of income might qualify for 5.5% on a 30 year fixed mortgage whereas a current homeowner with terrible credit, no equity and reduced income can qualify for as low as 2%. Hey, no one said life is fair.

There are many people who can benefit for the MHA program. Have you experienced a reduction in income? Has your mortgage rate adjusted up? Have you gotten so far behind that you can’t catch up but could make future payments at a lower rate if your loan was reset? Are you just in a really lousy subprime loan and would like something better? It is possible to seek a loan modification on your own directly with your lender or through a government counseling center. That should be easier to do but the fact is that it isn’t.

Many of my clients have tried to do it on their own and were frustrated. By all means don’t even consider paying anyone a large upfront fee to seek a loan modification on your behalf however, I do recommend that you consider using a real estate attorney that requires only a small retainer and charges for obtaining loan modifications and not just for applying for them. You can get a free online evaluation at www.illinoismortgagemods.com Whichever route you choose, the lenders for Making Home Affordable all have the same guidelines and will need to review the same documents.

Gather your 2008 federal tax return, last 30 days paystubs, last two months bank statements, be able to express your hardship in continuing your current mortgage payments. If you are self employed then the 2007 tax return may also be needed and a year to date profit & loss.

The website referred to above has a H&R tax preparer registered with the IRS on staff (In addition to a Real Estate Attorney) so preparing past due returns and a current profit & loss can be done quickly.

St. Albans CEO has health reform message

W.Va. health insurance and median income chart at bottom of story This is part of an occasional series examining federal health care reform bills and their effect on West Virginians. …

Tea Party ACTION 04-15-2008 29PALMS YUCCA VALLEY PART 2

Question: Question about filing back state taxes…is there expiration date?

I know that with federal taxes, the time limit to file for 2005 taxes (if you are expecting a refund) was April 15th, 2009.

Does this same rule apply to state taxes? I have 2003-04 state taxes that haven’t been filed.

Thanks for the info.

Answer: There is no time limit to file. Even if you do not file by the date that you mention, you can still file later, but you will not receive the refund. You receive the refund only if you file by the date that you mention.

Each state makes its own rules for state taxes. They are usually similar to federal rules, but do vary somewhat.

You should re-ask your question with the name of your state. Its rules may not be the same as in other states.

Top Washington business stories of 2009

Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain “signatures” by someone other than the actual author will be removed.

Larry Zelenak: The Federal Retail Sales Tax That Wasnt: An Actual History and an Alternate History

A business plan does not have to be a monotonous, text-only document. In fact, your plan may be more successful if it is not. After reading many plans of this type, investors and lenders are always ready to see a plan which uses images, charts, and graphs to better tell its story, as long as these graphics fulfill their purpose. The following are a few suggestions of where images or graphic layouts can be used to good effect in a business plan, although they are by no means the only options.

Customers and Competitors

Since your customer groups and top competitors must be listed in the plan, why not use a chart to summarize this information? This can be a good method of showing the differences and similarities between customer target markets and competitors. To better illustrate how competitors will compare to your intended business, include your business as a row on such a chart as well. Furthermore, images or logos that better inform a reader about customers or competitors can be of use here and help to break up the monotony of research.

Industry Market Share

If you can find the information, it is always easier to communicate how market share for a given market is broken up between competitors using a pie chart. If you cannot find this precise information in your research, you may still be able to extrapolate such a chart through smart assumptions and the bits of information you can find.

Products and Services

If you are creating a new product or service, showing images can generally illustrate them better than the same space in text, even if they are just charts of the product or service delivery system prototype. If full diagrams of the design of a system are necessary, these may be better placed in the appendices of the plan and mentioned earlier on. However, if a picture can replace a great deal of text, it is highly recommended here.

JAY AMBROSE: The coming debt crisis

This past year has been one of runaway, crazed political recklessness, we now face extraordinary dangers as a country, and President Obama gives no sign of planning to apply the brakes. Sooner or later, get ready for a crash if he doesn’t.

Question: TAXES: What are the tax deduction rules when you bought a car?

Last September I bought an ’05 Jeep Cherokee in Illinois and I am making payments on it. Do I report that to my taxes? State or Federal?

Answer: I believe you can report the taxes paid involving the tax, title, license, etc.

If you are itemizing deductions you can claim the taxes paid on a new car.
What idiot gave me a thumbs down? I just did my taxes and remember this being one of the deductions!

District unveils new rules for monitoring tax-funded grants

The Fenty administration unveiled new rules Wednesday for how city agencies will monitor the estimated $2.5 billion in taxpayer-funded grants that are handed over annually to nonprofit and other private organizations.

Federal Reserve and IRS = private corporations!

Question: How much is my tax return for 2009?

Im Filing as Married – Joint, Made right around 31,000 in wages for 2008, live in oklahoma, spent 8,000 in tuition, bought a new house for $134,900 so i get that 7500 tax credit since i meet the qualifications. 2008 i spend 3300 on interest on my mortgage loan. Property taxes was around $1500 for 2008. I used the calculator on HR block it said im getting back like $10,900 i thought that was a little high. Oh yeah i already paid $4100 towards federal taxes.

Answer: First off, usual gripe, it’s REFUND, not return.

As for refund. One income:
31000
- 10900
- 7000
= 14000, tax 1400.
education credit could be 1400
tax = 0
so refund 4100 withheld, 7500 home loan, yeah, 10,900 is possible.

Province set to pinch our pocketbooks

It’s shaping up as the year to pay attention to your pocketbook in Ontario, with income tax cuts kicking in Jan. 1 to offset the controversial HST that starts July 1 and the justice system ready to crack down on bad drivers with dramatically higher fines.

Adam Bold – Back to Basics: Rebuilding Your Personal Wealth