Garbage In, Garbage Out: The Problem With Tax Preparation Software

February 18, 2015

A couple of weeks ago, I received a desperate email from Alex who was using tax preparation software to help him prepare his tax return. It seems he thought he could avoid taxation on his 401(k) from his prior employer by rolling it directly into a Roth IRA.  While it’s true he could directly roll funds from his 401(k) to a Roth IRA, it is NOT true that this will avoid taxation. Only after-tax money may be deposited into a Roth IRA, therefore the amount rolled over—a sum of nearly $20,000—would be treated as taxable income for the year. Continue reading “Garbage In, Garbage Out: The Problem With Tax Preparation Software”

When To Hire a Tax Preparer

February 11, 2015

It’s February, and that usually means that you are ready for winter to be over, you are thinking about what to get that special someone for Valentine’s Day, and you can’t decide whether to do your own taxes or to let someone do your taxes for you. For years, taxpayers have been baffled by the federal income tax system and for good reason. The number of pages in the Wolters Kluher CCH Standard Tax Reporter reached 73,954 in 2013!  However, there’s probably only a handful of those pages that actually apply to the average taxpayer, while the rest of those pages are technical jargon, legalese, and other stuff that’s most irrelevant to you and me.  Continue reading “When To Hire a Tax Preparer”

How Should You Do Your Taxes?

January 29, 2015

I recently opened my mail and found my first tax documents for 2015. You know what that means…it’s the start of tax season! If you’re wondering if there’s an easier and/or cheaper way of accurately doing your taxes, here are some options: Continue reading “How Should You Do Your Taxes?”

Be Careful Before You Use Groupon

January 28, 2015

My boss is a big fan of Groupon.For those of you not familiar with Groupon, it falls into a category of online commerce sometimes called “deal-of-the-day” websites. There are several of these out there, including LivingSocial and Woot, and they all pretty much offer deep discounts on a variety of goods and services.  My brother was the first person I actually knew who used Groupon to buy $25 worth of food at a local restaurant for $15.  Knowing how careful my brother is before he tries things, if he’s used it and it worked, then it must be legitimate. Continue reading “Be Careful Before You Use Groupon”

All I Wanted For Christmas Was… a Flu Shot?

January 07, 2015

For years my friends and colleagues have been telling me to get a flu shot at the onset of flu season and for years I’ve been ignoring them, reluctant to do so for fear of somehow reducing my immunity to the virus or worse yet contracting the flu from the shot itself.  Now before you start sending me nasty emails telling me I’m wrong, let me just say that the Center for Disease Control has beat you to it. The truth is our family has been relatively healthy throughout the years, and my wife and I figured that all the hubbub over the flu shot was to create demand for something I really didn’t think most people needed.  In fact, the only reason I received my first flu shot last year was to appease my loving neighbor who insisted I get one prior to flying out for business. Continue reading “All I Wanted For Christmas Was… a Flu Shot?”

An Unusual Place to Shop This Time of Year

December 24, 2014

Merry Christmas Eve everyone!  Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house, not a creature was stirring…except my wife who found herself making an unexpected, last-minute shopping trip because someone forgot to tell her that they needed formal wear for a Christmas concert the next day. While this may cause the average person to recoil in frustration, read on to see how my wife responded under these less-than-ideal circumstances. What she has to say may just be the little Christmas miracle you’ve been looking for this year. Continue reading “An Unusual Place to Shop This Time of Year”

Finding Some Extra Jingle, Jingle For the Holidays

December 23, 2014

As I pulled into the unmanned toll booth on 90W in Chicago recently, I was glad to find I had quite a bit of change in the bottom of my purse since the toll was $1.90 and took coins only.  That got me thinking about all the loose change many people have in their pockets or car cup holders and all the extra coins sitting around in coffee cans, piggy banks, and like in my house – a huge plastic pretzel jar.  The average household has about $58 in loose change based on the typical amount of coins cashed in at Coinstar. Continue reading “Finding Some Extra Jingle, Jingle For the Holidays”

Out With The Old

December 16, 2014

As the cold weather settles in for the winter here in the northeast, out come all the wool sweaters and turtlenecks from the back of the closet.  This is also the time of year I do a once over of my wardrobe to prepare for my yearly donation to Goodwill. Now, I don’t have any sweaters that could win in the contest for the ugly Christmas sweater party, but there are a few that I accidentally washed and shrunk that no longer fit. So these shrunken sweaters, along with out-of-fashion cowl neck and peplum tops, need to go. Even the long, flowing waterfall sweaters that I stocked up on last year are no longer fashionable, according to whowhatwear.com. Continue reading “Out With The Old”

Which Credit Cards Are the Most Rewarding?

December 04, 2014

One of my favorite things this time of year is being able to use credit card reward points to cover most or even all of my holiday shopping. While it obviously doesn’t make sense to buy things just to earn rewards (especially if you can’t pay the card off in full), why not get as much as you can from purchases you’re going to make anyway? In deciding which cards to use, there are a few rules of thumb I like to follow: Continue reading “Which Credit Cards Are the Most Rewarding?”

10 End-of-Year Tax Tips

December 03, 2014

Are you worried about paying too much in taxes this year? If you wait until you file next year, it will be too late to do much about it. As the 2014 year winds down, you’ll want to note some simple things you can do to reduce the amount of income tax you owe Uncle Sam this year, while planning for the year to come.  Continue reading “10 End-of-Year Tax Tips”

Happy Holidays Now and in January

December 01, 2014

The holiday season is officially here and I can honestly say that it may take me a few days to fully recover from Thanksgiving dinner (and a few rounds of leftovers). Despite spending about 20 hours in a car, it was fun setting some time aside to do nothing but eat, watch football, and express a little gratitude. In our household, the peaceful tradition of starting an Advent calendar on December 1st is usually countered by the hectic activity of trying to coordinate family logistics for the next month. Continue reading “Happy Holidays Now and in January”

Shave Your Budget, Not Your Moustache

November 12, 2014

A recent Wells Fargo study found that 31% of survey respondents do not think they will have enough money to “survive” on in retirement, yet more than half say they plan to save later for retirement in order to “make up for not saving enough now.” If we have learned anything from Aesop’s fable regarding the ant and the grasshopper, it’s that waiting until later is NOT a good strategy. This is especially true when it comes to saving for retirement. Continue reading “Shave Your Budget, Not Your Moustache”

Think Long Term For The Holidays

November 11, 2014

So the weather is cooling down and immediately we start thinking about all of the yummy holiday food and spending time with our loved ones. After we start basking in the glow of chocolate chip cookies and family, it slowly starts to sink in that this time of the year is expensive. Between traveling, Thanksgiving Day meals, and presents, you and your wallet are exhausted by New Year’s. So what is a gift-giving person to do? Continue reading “Think Long Term For The Holidays”

The Season of Generosity

November 10, 2014

One of my favorite pre-holiday meetings involves gathering the kids together to discuss our holiday plans. In our household, it’s inevitable that kids will find that perfect moment of cute childhood brilliance to break out their Christmas wish list at a moment when they are polite and well-behaved. In the spirit of giving to others, my wife and I encourage them to also create a wish list for things they would like to give to others in need. Before you start donating online or breaking out those checkbooks, let’s review the basics of why, when, who and how. Continue reading “The Season of Generosity”

A 5k Vacation

October 28, 2014

One of my favorite commercials is from Mastercard with all the kids begging their parents to “take one more day” of their unused vacation and they present Mom and Dad some pretty compelling reasons why taking at least one more day is priceless.  For those that do decide to take a family vacation, there IS a price, and it’s usually not cheap.  In fact, a recent Forbes article puts the average cost for a family of four at almost $5k after tallying up the cost of airfare, hotel, food, and taxes.  Continue reading “A 5k Vacation”

Is Bigger Better?

October 21, 2014

JLo and I have something in common regarding our rear ends – our recent car accidents, that is. We both walked away unhurt and with minimal damage to our SUVs after being rear-ended at a stoplight. Not so lucky was the  young driver of the Honda Civic who hit me from behind since his entire front end was crushed like an accordion.  JLo’s accident was due to a drunk driver so he is probably even more unlucky. Continue reading “Is Bigger Better?”

Should You Have an Anti-Budget?

October 16, 2014

A friend of mine recently sent me this blog post called “How the Anti-Budget Can Save Your Wallet.” The basic premise is that a traditional budget isn’t realistic for most people because they just don’t stick to it and it isn’t even necessary to have one. Instead, it suggests simply setting aside your savings first (at least 20% of your income) and just spending the rest without having to categorize each of your expenses. Continue reading “Should You Have an Anti-Budget?”

Repair or Replace?

October 07, 2014

After being towed to the auto repair shop, my stepson got the bad news last week that his beloved 2005 sporty Monte Carlo needs a new transmission.  He can pay $2,600 for a new one or $1,800 for a rebuilt transmission, but either way, the cost of the repair is almost what the car is worth, according to Kelly Blue Book.  No matter how much he loves his car, he’s come to the realization that it doesn’t make sense to dump any more money into a clunker car with over 160,000 miles.  He’s seen a lot of good times in the Monte Carlo, but now as a new dad of a toddler, having a two-door sports car has become a drag.  Continue reading “Repair or Replace?”

iMistake?

October 03, 2014

I read this article about Apple selling 10 Million iPhone 6’s on the first week of sales and it made me think about the number of people I see in coaching sessions who have the newest version of cool technology.  Having the latest iPhone or Galaxy or iPad or whatever the technology might be is seen as being on the leading edge.  There’s a bit of a “cool factor” involved.  Continue reading “iMistake?”