Tag: credit

Despite earning more than $100,000 in household income, many people still feel like they're living month-to-month — that a job loss or sudden medical emergency could easily move them from upper-middle-class down to low income. It sounds a bit ridiculous at that income level, but it really comes down to…

The average American carries $6,715 in credit card debt, and average credit card APRs are running in the 20-25% range in 2026. At those rates, a $6,700 balance paying only the minimum can take years to clear and cost more in interest than the original purchases. Getting out of debt…

As adults, we've seen what a lack of financial knowledge does to managing our finances. That's why we need to teach our kids early on how to care for money, so they are less likely to make the financial mistakes that we did. If you don't talk about money, lessons…

The now passed GOP/Trump tax bill contains a little known but important $500 credit for non-child dependents - e.g elderly or disabled dependents or children over 17. This credit is to provide some relief to those families who will lose the now defunct personal exemption and are not eligible for the expanded Child Tax…

The average 30-year mortgage refinance rate is sitting around 6.8% as of early July 2026, per Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey. That's not the "lowest since the 1950s" environment this page used to describe — those sub-4% rates are long gone, and most homeowners today are locked into a…

Thanks to the accounting folks at BConnect Inc, here is a straight forward tax preparation checklist that will save you time when you file with your accountant or before you start using tax software for self-filing. Tax preparation is faster, easier and more stress-free if you take a little time…

If you owe the IRS or your state after filing, paying by card costs you a convenience fee of roughly 1.75% to 2.89%, depending on the processor and card type. That's the number that should drive this decision, not the rewards points. Cash flow gets tight for a lot of…

It is almost that time of year again....tax season! We have compiled a list of six tax breaks for the 2016-2017 tax season that will lower your taxes due and increase the amount of your refund.  The first topic is Earned Income Credit (EIC). The rules on this can be…

** See this article for the latest Earned Income Tax Credit adjustments released by the IRS ____________________________ [Updated following SOTU speech] Following President Obama's state of the union speech and in addition to the items below, he had some good news on expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)  for…

[Updated for 2013-2014 tax filing season] Thanks to the so called fiscal cliff deal reached last year there were a number of impacts to taxes in 2013 which you need to be aware of when filing your 2014 taxes. Changes were in the form of updated federal tax rates, new…

I recently received the following question from Brian on my post that detailed the many versions of the first time home buyer tax credit: I purchased a home in January 2009. This is my primary residence after having purchased my first home in March 2002. My CPA put me in…

Selecting your tax filing status is one of the first key steps in filing your federal tax return. Choosing the right status is extremely important because it can affect your filing requirements, standard deduction and eligibility for certain tax credits/deductions. In certain situations picking an incorrect filing status can make…

Teachers and other personnel at K-12 schools can take a tax deduction for classroom supplies that they buy out of their own pockets, whether they itemize or not. This deduction amount is adjusted on a semi-regular basis, with the latest amounts shown below. It has been raised for the 2023…