Carnival of Taxes #16: The Home Stretch

Welcome to the 16th Carnival of Taxes. We're in the home stretch, folks, with a clear tax road ahead in this final week until our returns are due. Our Carnival has lots of positive signs to help you maneuver your way to timely filing and bigger savings. So let's hit the tax road.

We kick off the Carnival with some good news. Moneywalks of the blog of the same name got a tax refund. But, now the not so good news: "I'm back and I'm still in debt."

If you're in a similar financial tight spot and could use a nice tax refund, maybe you should turn to a pro. Teri at Personal Finance Advice says yes, there are times when it pays to pay someone to do your taxes and details the reasons in When Should You Opt For A Professional Tax Preparer?

Be careful, though. Sometimes the help hurts. Like in the item from Tracy, who helms FRAUDfiles, on the fraud charges filed against an owner of several Jackson Hewitt franchises.

To avoid similar problems, tc offers five essential tips to know before hiring a tax pro, posted at Investments & Loans.

Considering tax software instead? FIRE Getters presents Do Your Taxes For FREE!
with gratis TaxCut, posted at FIRE Finance.

If you use that software to do your taxes on a mobile device, Ben offers info on Keeping Your Tax Return Safe at Money Smart Life.

Whichever route you take to finish your 1040, Steve of Debt Blog has a few last-minute tax deductions.

So does Silicon Valley Blogger, who presents Seven Tips for claiming business tax deductions and charitable contributions over at The Digerati Life.

Super Saver has the scoop at My Wealth Builder on another tax break provided by children when your hire your own. Don't get too excited; it's gotta be real work, not just doing their chores. But it could help out both the kids and small business owners.

And for our business readers, John takes a look at Limited Liability Companies and Taxes over at OhCash.com. "Over the last 30 years, limited liability companies have become a very popular choice as a business entity among small businesses," says John. "While the entity is a good choice, there are some tax issues that must be considered."

But as we make that last turn on the tax circuit, we all have one question and it's posed by David of Worldwide Success, who asks, Are You Free From Taxes Yet?

We have another question and an answer from Matthew at Getting Green: Tired of Being Taxed to Death? Be Generous.

Giving is just one part of an overall tax and financial strategy. Allison, in her regular Money Mondays feature, explores some other components in Investments, Retirement & Estate Planning. It's just Part 1, so watch for the sequel at Queercents.

And nickel, who's fast becoming the Tax Carnival's retirement guru, presents Roth IRA Income Limits for 2007 over at fivecentnickel.

Our Carnival also explores some larger tax issues.

Take Aspeth's item on America's Love Affair With Deadbeats. It's posted at what's got to be one of the most intriguing blog names I've seen in a while, Twelve Years Of Being Annoyed By Chloe Sevigny. Aspeth is not content to rile Chloe; she's going to get tongues wagging and fingers clicking on keyboards with her post on who bears what tax burdens and the subsequent question, "How many days will you have to work this year just to cover taxes? And how much of that will you actually recoup?"

And for those asking who is Chloe Sevigny, click here.

FMF of Free Money Finance also has some news sure to generate discussion. He asks, "Ever wonder what your real tax rate is?" and then tells us that Your Tax Rate is 40%. Yikes! That exclamation is from me as well as FMF. I'm sure he meant your taxes, not mine. I hope!

Does it seem like the Carnival is getting a tad too serious? Relax. It's tax time, the perfect laugh-through-your-tears situation. So the 16th Tax Carnival presents Madeleine's Form 1040 Blues, posted at Mad Kane's Humor Blog.

And we close with Arun, who announces a "newfound love of tax returns" in The Tax Man Saves The Day, for your consideration over at Your Daily Remedy.

With that we pull the taxmobile into the garage to recharge for the final Carnival drive to the IRS. Thanks to all who contributed and to all y'all for reading.

We'll be back here next Monday, the day before the filing deadline, with the next Tax Carnival. So mark April 16 on your calendar. And make sure your tax tip is included by clicking the above button.

And I'll try to get it up a bit earlier in the day!

Comments

[FIRE Finance]

Wow this was a wonderful carnival! More so since the deadline for filing the taxes are near.

Thanks a lot for including us as:
"Considering tax software instead? FIRE Getters presents Do Your Taxes For FREE! with gratis TaxCut, posted at FIRE Finance."

Keep up the great job!
Cheers,
FIRE Finance

[Andy]

Thanks for hosting!

[aspeth]

Thank you so much for including my commentary "America's Love Affair With Deadbeats." And for the kudos on the blog name ;-)

There are a lot of great bloggers included in this Carnival, and I'm looking forward to reading all of their posts. Thank you for all of your work in compiling these pieces!