Taxes | Pad Patter 2.4

[IntenseMagic]

I have spent this weekend working taxes, FAFSA, and a bunch of other paperwork UGH. Chance also had his first job last year, so I was showing him how to do his. I have always done my own taxes, since my very first job...way back in the days of doing them on paper and mailing them in. These days I use TurboTax and have for years. I am super familiar with it, so I can usually get them done pretty quickly. We don't have a lot to report other than just our incomes and now college tuition, so it's a fairly simple process.

While we doing them it got me wondering... Do you file your own taxes? Do you have someone that does them for you? I'm also super curious about how it all works in other countries.

 

[umyesh]

I’m impressed you’ve always done your own! My dad did mine growing up and now my husband does them with TurboTax.

 

[scribler]

I've always done my own. Even helped out friends in college who were worried. Used to do my mom's as well. I originally used TaxCut but they were purchased by H&R Block. So now I used the H&R Block website to do my own taxes.

 

[ScrappyHappy82]

I come from a long line of income tax preparers. My grandma and mom both owned their own businesses, 2 aunties were preparers working for them and the remaining auntie was the secretary. I got my own certification a long time ago too because my mom said it would always pay for itself, and it has, but things have changed too much for me to ever want to do it professionally! All my life, I'd just take my stuff down to my Grandma's tax office (or send it in when we grew up and moved away) and never paid a dollar for it. Grandma sold the business about 10 years ago so the aunties went to other offices and my mom retired 2 years ago. Guess who had to resort to Turbo Tax? You don't really know what you have until it's gone right? Turbo Tax is great (mostly - it has some troubles with taxable and non-taxable incomes during combat deployment years) and it's still free for active duty military so I'm still grateful for that at least!

 

[HavaDrPepper]

In the 90's I worked at a CPA firm and did taxes but thankfully, the CPA owner always double checked the work of the staff. I never could figure out the tax exempt portion of some investments. I grew to hate doing taxes because all of our clients were complicated returns. Give me an easy return with just income and some interest income and I'm good.

I did mine up until my dad died since I only had my W-2 income and interest income. I inherited some investments that have portions that are tax exempt. I also had some complicated investments in the beginning (thankfully my financial advisor got rid of those after a couple of years) so I started taking them to the local H&R Block office which happens to be owned by one of the CPA's I worked for in the 90's.

Friday I pulled together the information I have and put it on my spreadsheet. I still need one 1099-R that should be available by the 15th of this month. Then I'll make my appointment to give it to Joe.

 

[Angela Toucan]

In the UK most people have their tax done via the paycheck/salary check. It's the PAYE - Pay as You Earn system. The self employed and people earning above the higher tax rate threshold have to file a self assessment tax form each year. Our tax year starts on the 1st April. My husband pays tax via PAYE. I'm an unpaid carer.
We have something called tax credits which is our benefit system for low income families and families with disabilities. I do our tax credits renewals each year - it's a right pain as they pick me for the "random" compliance/fraud check every single year. I've got another compliance interview on Friday - this time they want me to bring proof that my son is still in full-time non-university further education. They can leave school at 16 here and either go back into further education collage/6th form or get an apprenticeship or unskilled work. Further education means they still class as dependants for the tax credits systems, otherwise they are on their own. University students don't qualify for tax credits purposes.
Oh, and they are changing the tax credits system so I will need to apply for the new one at the end of March and learn all the new rules and form requirements.

 

[Karen]

I used to always to do my own taxes and then I also did our taxes once we got married too. I used to always to the paper version and fill them out and mail them in, even after turbo tax was a thing because I didn't want to pay money to file my taxes. Then one year I finally told my hubby that he needed to learn how to do the taxes too, so I taught him that year and then he's been doing them every year since then. Yay! A couple years ago we started having to go through the boys filing their taxes too since they had jobs, but thankfully theirs are free to file since they don't make a ton of money with their summer jobs.

@IntenseMagic I just did the stupid FAFSA last week too and I'm still waiting for them to process my youngest son's application. We have done the FAFSA for my older son for 2 years already, so his went through right away this year, at least that's what I think made his go through right away and gave us his SAI number right after I clicked submit, but the younger one's said they couldn't calculate his SAI until it was processes of something. It's all so confusing and of course they changed everything this year, so I don't know what I'm doing again. Lol.

 

[Rachel Jefferies]

I'm Self Employed so always file my own taxes each year, I don't hire a tax advisor or accountant I do my own book-keeping and I file mine Online, our tax deadline was 31st Jan for filing self assessments for the prior tax year so I have recently got all mine up to date and paid up everything I owe

 

[bonnenuit]

My husband does our taxes using TurboTax. In fact, they're done and filed already as well as the taxes for his mother's estate.

 

[Memaw2Wm]

I do my own, my daughter's, and my grandkids. I used to do fiduciary tax returns at work, but we have closed most of the estates we were handling and the executors, or their accountants, are handling those returns.

I started with Personal Tax Edge tax software back in the mid-1990's ... they merged with Turbo Tax years ago, so I that's what I currently use. I did try another software program a few years ago, but it drove me nuts and I asked for a refund, which I then used to buy Turbo Tax.

My tax return is a bit complicated b/c I still work full time, receive social security benefits and have some investments. Thankfully my daughter's and the GK's returns are easy-peasy, although both boys did work three different jobs each in 2023, so I need to make sure I have all of their W-2s.

 

[janedee]

I used to work in an accounting office, so I have always filed our tax returns. I switched to Turbo Tax as soon as it was available so I’m pretty familiar with it now. I haven’t really started working on them yet though as we won’t have all our forms until the end of March.

 

[littlekiwi]

most people have their tax done via the paycheck/salary check. It's the PAYE - Pay as You Earn system. The self employed and people earning above the higher tax rate threshold have to file a self assessment tax form each year. Our tax year starts on the 1st April.

Pretty much this in New Zealand as well

 

[IntenseMagic]

I’m impressed you’ve always done your own! My dad did mine growing up and now my husband does them with TurboTax.

It's the fact that I'm a control freak

I've always done my own. Even helped out friends in college who were worried. Used to do my mom's as well. I originally used TaxCut but they were purchased by H&R Block. So now I used the H&R Block website to do my own taxes.

I used to help out my friends as well. I made sure to teach all my kids how to do it also.

I come from a long line of income tax preparers. My grandma and mom both owned their own businesses, 2 aunties were preparers working for them and the remaining auntie was the secretary. I got my own certification a long time ago too because my mom said it would always pay for itself, and it has, but things have changed too much for me to ever want to do it professionally! All my life, I'd just take my stuff down to my Grandma's tax office (or send it in when we grew up and moved away) and never paid a dollar for it. Grandma sold the business about 10 years ago so the aunties went to other offices and my mom retired 2 years ago. Guess who had to resort to Turbo Tax? You don't really know what you have until it's gone right? Turbo Tax is great (mostly - it has some troubles with taxable and non-taxable incomes during combat deployment years) and it's still free for active duty military so I'm still grateful for that at least!

I totally get not ever want to do it professionally...I would not be comfortable messing with someone else's money lol
So cool that you've had all those tax people in your life. My son is also active duty military and uses Turbo Tax. He never said if he had any issues during deployment. I'm going to ask him.

In the 90's I worked at a CPA firm and did taxes but thankfully, the CPA owner always double checked the work of the staff. I never could figure out the tax exempt portion of some investments. I grew to hate doing taxes because all of our clients were complicated returns. Give me an easy return with just income and some interest income and I'm good.

I did mine up until my dad died since I only had my W-2 income and interest income. I inherited some investments that have portions that are tax exempt. I also had some complicated investments in the beginning (thankfully my financial advisor got rid of those after a couple of years) so I started taking them to the local H&R Block office which happens to be owned by one of the CPA's I worked for in the 90's.

Friday I pulled together the information I have and put it on my spreadsheet. I still need one 1099-R that should be available by the 15th of this month. Then I'll make my appointment to give it to Joe.

I feel sure I probably wouldn't be real comfortable doing it if I had a bunch of investments and things.

In the UK most people have their tax done via the paycheck/salary check. It's the PAYE - Pay as You Earn system. The self employed and people earning above the higher tax rate threshold have to file a self assessment tax form each year. Our tax year starts on the 1st April. My husband pays tax via PAYE. I'm an unpaid carer.
We have something called tax credits which is our benefit system for low income families and families with disabilities. I do our tax credits renewals each year - it's a right pain as they pick me for the "random" compliance/fraud check every single year. I've got another compliance interview on Friday - this time they want me to bring proof that my son is still in full-time non-university further education. They can leave school at 16 here and either go back into further education collage/6th form or get an apprenticeship or unskilled work. Further education means they still class as dependants for the tax credits systems, otherwise they are on their own. University students don't qualify for tax credits purposes.
Oh, and they are changing the tax credits system so I will need to apply for the new one at the end of March and learn all the new rules and form requirements.

I think you need a break from the "random" checks! Good luck with the new system. I hope it's a change for the better!!

 

[IntenseMagic]

I used to always to do my own taxes and then I also did our taxes once we got married too. I used to always to the paper version and fill them out and mail them in, even after turbo tax was a thing because I didn't want to pay money to file my taxes. Then one year I finally told my hubby that he needed to learn how to do the taxes too, so I taught him that year and then he's been doing them every year since then. Yay! A couple years ago we started having to go through the boys filing their taxes too since they had jobs, but thankfully theirs are free to file since they don't make a ton of money with their summer jobs.

@IntenseMagic I just did the stupid FAFSA last week too and I'm still waiting for them to process my youngest son's application. We have done the FAFSA for my older son for 2 years already, so his went through right away this year, at least that's what I think made his go through right away and gave us his SAI number right after I clicked submit, but the younger one's said they couldn't calculate his SAI until it was processes of something. It's all so confusing and of course they changed everything this year, so I don't know what I'm doing again. Lol.

I did the paper for awhile after TurboTax for the same reason. I hate the fees to file. It sincerely frightens me to even think about my hubby doing them. I'm too much of a control freak lol.
Stupid FAFSA

I'm Self Employed so always file my own taxes each year, I don't hire a tax advisor or accountant I do my own book-keeping and I file mine Online, our tax deadline was 31st Jan for filing self assessments for the prior tax year so I have recently got all mine up to date and paid up everything I owe

You are a rockstar!! That's awesome that you do all your own bookkeeping! We had to do self-employment one year and it completely stressed me out lol

My husband does our taxes using TurboTax. In fact, they're done and filed already as well as the taxes for his mother's estate.

Yay for them being done!! Mine are pretty much done...I just need to sign and hit the file button.

I do my own, my daughter's, and my grandkids. I used to do fiduciary tax returns at work, but we have closed most of the estates we were handling and the executors, or their accountants, are handling those returns.

I started with Personal Tax Edge tax software back in the mid-1990's ... they merged with Turbo Tax years ago, so I that's what I currently use. I did try another software program a few years ago, but it drove me nuts and I asked for a refund, which I then used to buy Turbo Tax.

My tax return is a bit complicated b/c I still work full time, receive social security benefits and have some investments. Thankfully my daughter's and the GK's returns are easy-peasy, although both boys did work three different jobs each in 2023, so I need to make sure I have all of their W-2s.

My kiddo worked two different jobs last year, and my hubby had 2 different jobs and some unemployment so yeah, making sure we had everything was the pain this year! I tried another one at one point as well, but I'm just to comfortable with TurboTax at this point.

I used to work in an accounting office, so I have always filed our tax returns. I switched to Turbo Tax as soon as it was available so I’m pretty familiar with it now. I haven’t really started working on them yet though as we won’t have all our forms until the end of March.

So many here either worked in accounting or tax offices, also lots of TurboTax users lol. Good luck after March

 

[Lynnette]

Ugh, I hate taxes and I don't even do them! My husband is self employed - he owns an LLC with a partner, and then we have PC as a layer of protection between the LLC and our personal accounts. It's complicated so it's worth it to pay an accounting firm to do the taxes for us, however it's overwhelming and can be a challenge to provide them with all the info they need. I've been collecting documents but I need to really buckle down and get everything together!

 

[ScrappyHappy82]

I totally get not ever want to do it professionally...I would not be comfortable messing with someone else's money lol So cool that you've had all those tax people in your life. My son is also active duty military and uses Turbo Tax. He never said if he had any issues during deployment. I'm going to ask him.

After thinking about it some more, it's entirely possible it wasn't just the combat pay that was an issue but the fact that we did a DITY/PPM move (you probably know what that means but basically the Army pays us to move ourselves instead of them contracting a company) in that same year. If I remember correctly Turbo Tax wasn't differentiating between the two different types of incomes? It's been a long time since then and my memory isn't what it used to be! Fortunately we haven't had a deployment and a PCS in the same year since then so I haven't had to worry about it but I would think that in this many years since, that Turbo Tax would have also "gotten smarter" with how many people seem to use it these days?!

 

[Scrapping with Liz]

We do our own...hubby actually does and always has. We use TurboTax. Hubby has a corporate job, so his is easy. I'm self-employed with 2 small businesses. I usually gather all my tax info and just hand it over to him and he handles it all.

 

[Lor]

Ugh... taxes and FASA! I hate taxes! Back when I went to college to become a Paralegal, that class was my least favorite and it lowered my grade point average. I had an "A" in all my law classes except Tax Law; I got a "C". Ddddrrr.... So I avoid tax like a plague! And I can now say FASA is behind us! Yeah! My hubby does our taxes with Turbo Tax.