budgetingdaily.com » income tax

What To Do With Your Stimulus

latoya — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:25:01 +0000

If you used direct deposit on your 2007 income tax, you probably got your tax rebate last week. Otherwise, you can expect to get your check in the mail by July. (See Who Gets Their Rebate First? to find out when you can expect to get your rebate). You probably have gotten anywhere from $300 to $1800. What should you do with all that extra money?

The government wants you to use it to stimulate the economy, i.e. blow it on clothes, electronics, etc. That may not be the smartest thing, especially if you have debt or no savings or both.

My suggestion: put at least 40% of it toward debt/bills, 30% of it in savings, donate 10%, and blow the last 20%. That way, you take care of your financial needs and wants. Of course, you can tweak the percentages if you need to, but you get the jist – put most of the money toward savings and debt.

Now, you know your financial situation better than I do, so if you need to put all the money toward your debt or all of it in savings (especially if you don’t have an emergency fund) do it. Or, if your debt’s already paid off, you have an emergency fund and a healthy savings, you’re in a better position to spend the money how you wish.

Who Gets Their Rebate First?

latoya — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:50:10 +0000

If you got your 2007 refund via direct deposit, you’ll get your rebate sooner than taxfilers who opted to receive a check in the mail, MSNBC reports. The lower the last two digits of your social security number, the sooner you’ll get your rebate. So if your social ends in ‘03 and you used direct deposit when you filed this year, you’ll likely get your rebate sometime in May.

Read the full article: Direct deposit users to get stimulus first

Desperate for a Tax Refund? Don’t Get Scammed

latoya — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 20:00:43 +0000

It’s tax season and id theives and crooks use this season, just as they do winter, summer, spring, and fall, to scam consumers out of money and personal information. Here’s an email I recently received from “service@irs.gov”.

After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of $129.72. Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 3-9 days in order to process it. A refund can be delayed for a variety of reasons. For example submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.

To access your tax refund, please click here.

Best Regards,
Tax Refund Deparment
Internal Revenue Service
© Copyright 2008, Internal Revenue Service U.S.A. All rights reserved.
TAX REFUND ID: IRS980221

This message contained all sorts of red flags. Most noticable, hovering over the link, you can see that it points to a URL that clearly does not belong to the IRS.

I clicked the link, just to see where it led. The page does strongly resemble the IRS’ “Where My Refund?” page, down to the scam warning “IRS never initiates emails.” (Ironic, since I arrived at the page by clicking on a email that was supposed to have been initiated by the IRS.)

Don’t click on links in emails that say they’re from the IRS. If you have questions about your tax refund, consult your tax preparer or visit the IRS website directly – www.irs.gov. Enter “where’s my refund” in the search box to be taken to an explanation about how to find your refund.

Keep your personal information safe. Look for the security lock in the bottom right corner of your web page before entering any information into a website. If you don’t see the lock, don’t enter your information.

See the IRS guidelines on protecting yourself from email scams.

Don’t Be Surprised By IRS Mail in the Coming Weeks

latoya — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 14:41:51 +0000

The IRS is probably the last business you want to get mail from. But, if you get a letter in the next few weeks, don’t be afraid to open it. MSNBC reports the IRS will be sending out notices about the tax rebate being sent out later this year.

The IRS mailing will be titled “Economic Stimulus Payment Notice” and it will alert people that they may be eligible for a one-time stimulus payment of up to $600 for individuals or $1,200 for a married couple filing jointly.
[...]
The IRS notices are informational and do not seek any financial information. The mailings will go to taxpayers who filed a tax return last year.

Read the full story: “A letter from the IRS? Don’t be alarmed“