Tax Carnival Ecstasy – January 22, 2013

Welcome to the January 22, 2013 edition of tax carnival ecstasy. In this edition we start off with an article from Bill Smith on the IRS delay in tax filing acceptance until the end of January, a delay caused by the late tax law changes passed by congress. There is also an article from John Schmoll who looks at 4 Helpful Free Investment Tools that you can use. Hope you like all the articles, tweet our carnival on Twitter, share with your friends, bookmark and come back next time.

Brian McKay presents Mortgage Debt Cancellation Relief Extended Until December 31, 2013 posted at Bank CD Rates, Mortgage Rates, Savings Rates, Banking Reviews, saying, “Homeowners facing a foreclosure, a short sale or reduced loan principal by their lender after December 31, 2012, faced owing taxes on any mortgage debt that was forgiven by the mortgage lien holder. Home owners had rushed to complete short sales or debt reduction before the end of the 2013 because it looked like the fiscal cliff tax issues wouldn’t be worked out in Washington.”

Taxes
Taxes (Photo credit: Tax Credits)

swapnil presents Share Market: Tax Structure in India posted at Share Market.

filing

Bill Smith presents Free Tax Filing for 2011 Taxes posted at 2011 Tax, saying, “Each year, thousands of taxpayers fail to file their federal income taxes. Some individuals willingly forgo this action while others run into special circumstances.”

Bill Smith presents Processing of Tax Returns to Begin on January 30 posted at 2012 Tax – Free Tax Filing Options, saying, “Earlier this week, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that electronic filing of tax payments for the year 2013 will commence on January 30.”

retirement

John Schmoll presents 4 Helpful Free Investment Tools posted at Frugal Rules, saying, “Investing in the stock market can be a challenge for the seasoned investor, much less a newbie investor. By using some free investment tools you can make more informed investment decisions that will benefit your portfolio.”

taxes

Bill Smith presents Eliminating State Income Taxes Could Spur Economic Growth posted at 2012 Taxes – Free Tax Filing Options, saying, “While Washington continues to struggle with attempts at major changes to the federal tax system, individual states have no such problem.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of tax carnival ecstasy using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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Essential Tax Tips for Freelance Writers

The career of a freelance writer can be very rewarding. However, the career can quickly lose its appeal when tax time arrives and you owe several thousand dollars. Thankfully, there are things you can do to reduce your tax bill and prevent owing such a large sum at once. The following are just five essential tax tips for freelance writers.

Pay Your Estimated Taxes

This cannot be stressed enough. Freelance writers need to pay estimated taxes in April, June, September and January of the following year. These payments will ensure that you don’t get penalized for paying your taxes late and will help ensure you don’t have a large tax bill come April. There are a number of easy to use resources online that will help you determine the amount of your estimated taxes.

Setup a Home Office

If you’re working from home, you should be able to deduct part of your rent/mortgage and utilities. However, when setting up a home office, it needs to be an area that you use solely for the purpose of your business. This does not have to be an entire room. It may even be a small corner of your home. The biggest thing to remember is to save this area for work.

Understand Your Deduction Rights

As a freelance writer, you can deduct many different things. It may be books you purchased to help teach you how to write a novel or even office supplies. Take the time to find out what you can deduct and how much of a deduction you can take. For example, you may be able to deduct part of your internet costs as long as you have proof of the percentage of time that the internet was used for work purposes.

Keep Each and Every Receipt

It doesn’t do you any good to purchase books, pens and other office items if you don’t keep the receipts. Without these receipts, if you get audited, you will be in big trouble. You need to be able to account for each and every item you count as a business expense. You should also start a filing system that keeps the receipts in order based on the type of expense.

Take Advantage of Deductions

Being self-employed means that you can deduct items that most people might not be able to deduct. For example, you can deduct the cost of health insurance. You can also setup an IRA and deduct up to $5,000 a year. Do your homework and see which items can get you the biggest deductions.

It can be hard to pay your taxes when you’re self-employed, but the good news is you may not have to pay as much as you originally thought. Follow these tips and you’ll have an easier time staying on top of the taxes and getting the biggest return.

About the Author: Wendi Ginter is an accountant who offers tax support to a wide variety of freelancers and small business owners. Make sure you talk to your accountant about any and all deductions you wish to make to ensure you’re listing them legally and properly.