When it comes to preparing your taxes, you want to be careful. It’s not just about avoiding a tax audit. In fact, you might need to overcome some assumptions when you are ready to file. And, whether you file yourself, or have a tax professional take care of it, there are a few things to keep in mind. Roni Deutch, “The Tax Lady” offers some insight into items that you might overlook when preparing your taxes. As you get your 2009 tax return together, and as you plan for taxes in 2010, consider The Tax Lady, and keep these 5 things in mind:

1. Changes to your family: Childbirth, college, having your parents move in, marriage and divorce can all affect the tax breaks you are eligible for.

2. Home changes: When you move, there are deductions associated with your situation. And don’t forget the homebuyer tax credit.

3. Job changes: All things related to the job search can affect your tax return, especially with rules for unemployment benefits.

4. Major purchases: If you made a large purchase, let your tax preparer know. It may be nothing, but it may also impact your situation.

5. Bankruptcy: Your taxes are filed differently, depending on the kind of the bankruptcy you have. Be sure to have someone knowledgeable help you this.

2010 is going to be an interesting year for taxes. There are a number of tax breaks available that haven’t been available before. Here are two home-related tax moves for you to consider in 2010:

1. Buy a Home

The first time home buyer tax credit has been expanded and extended so that you can get the $8,000 first time tax credit until the end of April. Additionally, if you already own, you can get up to $6,500 when you buy. If you are planning to buy in the next couple of years, this might be the year to do.

2. Green Home Improvements

If you are thinking of making your home more energy efficient, 2010 is your year. There are tax credits available for putting in solar home heating systems, replacing your windows, adding insulation, and more.

Plan out the year ahead so that you can do your best to reduce your tax liability. Figure out what you want, and then decide how you can make it work within your budget.

It’s tax time, and you probably know that you can deduct your mortgage interest on your taxes. However, it’s not just your mortgage interest. There are other deductions related to having a mortgage and having a home. Here are some of the deductions to avoid overlooking as you start getting into gear for tax season:

* Points paid this year for a home mortgage to reduce the interest rate.

* PMI.

* Property taxes.

* Green home improvements.

There are plenty of opportunities to reduce your tax liability. Think about what you have done with your home this year, and consider what might be eligible. If you have a question about what is eligible, and how you can take your tax deduction, you should contact a tax professional or the IRS.

Now that the year is drawing to a close, it’s time to consider your taxes. It’s always best to prepare as early in advance as you can. This way you’ll be less stressed. And one of the things to watch out for is the mortgage interest statement from your lender or loan servicer. Keep watch for all these items in the mail right after the first of the year, and file them away together.

Then consider whether or not you should take the mortgage interest deduction. Look at how much interest you paid on your home mortgage loan this year, and see whether, with other deductions, it exceeds the standard deduction. For most tax filers, you will have a standard deduction of $5,700 for single and $11,400 for married filing jointly.

You can itemize to see if you can exceed that amount. Add up your charitable donations, mortgage interest paid and other deductible items on Schedule A of Form 1040. If you end up with more than the standard deduction, you are ahead to itemize. Don’t settle for the standard deduction when you could very well get a bigger deduction.

One last fond look at tax season 2009. This is one of the great TurboTax commercials featuring our money come to life.

Happy Friday!

You can start taking advantage of the $8,000 tax credit with electronic filing now. If you are claiming a tax credit for a home purchased between January 1, 2009 and December 1, 2009, you can claim it on your electronic return. But what if you haven’t bought a house yet? Consumerism Commentary offers these options for those wishing to buy later, and still claim the credit this year:

Note that if you plan on buying a house later this year before December 1, you still qualify for the tax credit, but you cannot claim it yet. Either file for an extension or claim the $8,000 credit when you file your 2009 taxes. If you’re expecting a big refund this year and you don’t want to delay that refund by filing for an extension, you can file now and file an amended return later.

Between the tax incentives offered under economic stimulus measures, low interest rates and low home prices, now is a good time to buy. If you can get approved for a mortgage, you can get a screaming deal on a home.

It's been a busy weekend. And one of the more exciting things that has happened is that President-elect Barack Obama unveiled his economic stimulus plan. I kind of like some of the main points that he has:

At any rate, the Barack Obama economic stimulus, though expensive, is at least aimed at trying to help the middle class, rather than throwing the money at corporations and hoping for "trickle down." It's a step closer to just giving individuals an outright stimulus and letting that supercharge the economy.

One of the big issues of the presidential campaign was income taxes: Who would raise them on whom, and who would cut them for the middle class. However, one thing that wasn’t talked about is the fact that income taxes won’t be able to cover the cost of our government’s increasing obligations.

Something else needs to be done in terms of revenue.

One of the ideas that has yet to take hold, however, is the value-added tax (VAT). VAT is a tax that is charged at every step of production. It’s basically sales tax, but it is collected before the consumer gets the product. It is an efficient — and documented — way for governments to make money. It’s extremely popular in Europe.

The VAT is basically invisible, so people don’t get upset about it, like they do when income taxes are raised. Our government needs some revenue, and this may be the way it has to be done in the future.

Today is Tax Day, and many of us have waited until the last second. Most of us who wait are people who are expecting to pay, rather than to get anything back.

I’m one of them. My taxes are done. My envelopes are even addressed, but I still haven’t sent in my payment.

Make sure you get your taxes mailed by midnight. Many post offices will be open past midnight tonight in order to make sure that your taxes get stamped with today’s date. And, if you can’t get things in, head over to www.irs.gov and file an extension.

But remember: No "economic stimulus" tax rebate unless you file a return.

President Bush is expected to sign an economic stimulus package passed by Congress at the end of last week. The House ended up passing the Senate version of the economic stimulus package, which left out some of the incentives originally included in the bill. While the tax rebate news is among the main concern for many Americans, the Taipei Times reports on another provision, expanding mortgage loan financing, will affect others:

It also expands financing opportunities in the housing market by
allowing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two mortgage finance companies, to
purchase or guarantee mortgages larger than US$417,000 up to US$729,750.

This "quick fix" for the economy is unlikely to to a great deal in the long run, and with many Americans concerned about debt and a coming US recession, economic stimulus is likely to be minimal as the tax rebate is saved, or used to pay down debt.