TaxCure Blog

Owing property taxes is scary. Worst case scenario—if you don’t pay the taxes, or you end up with unpaid property taxes for a long period of time, you lose your home. Luckily, there are a lot of options before that happens.

With the 2017 tax season over,  you probably already put your tax return behind you and put your tax refund to good use. But what about all that paperwork? How long to keep tax papers? Have you filed your 2016 documents away somewhere never to be gazed upon again? Perhaps the documents are still sitting in a folder on your counter or on top of your printer, or desk? Maybe you’ve even thought about tossing these documents. Find out why it might be a bad idea to toss any tax-related documents away, at least right away. Here is some insight as to how long to keep tax papers.

The IRS recently released their annual offer in compromise (OIC) data for 2016. Although the acceptance rate fell in the fiscal year 2014 and 2015, it reached a new all-time high in 2016 with an acceptance rate of 42.86%. That is almost 1% more than the previous all-time high reached in the fiscal year 2013.

The United States has been doing pretty well in the 2016 Summer Olympics, held this year in Brazil. As usual, the United States leads the medal count, including for gold, helped along by great performances by the United States swim and women’s gymnastics teams.

We all know child care can get expensive. However, it’s sometimes necessary. If you are working and need help with child care, you can reduce some of the impacts to your bottom line with the help of the child care tax credit.

One of the clarion calls of this year’s presidential election, at least in terms of what Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton say they will do if either is chosen as the Democratic nominee and then goes on to win, is raising taxes on the wealthy.

In recent weeks, one of the most significant tax-related issues in the news has been the Panama Papers. This story revolves around the leak of offshore companies that were serviced by a Panamanian firm specializing in helping individuals and others set up tax havens.

When we think of tax breaks, we normally think of the boring things we all claim: charitable contributions, Earned Income Credit, and mortgage interest. We might think about our business expenses, or deductions for things like moving and student loan interest if they apply.

As you prepare your taxes this year, it’s important to understand the key differences between certain tax breaks. Knowing how deductions and credits work can help you make more informed choices about how you fill out your tax return, and help you legally reduce your tax liability as much as legally possible.

With tax season underway, many of us are concerned about tax ID theft. With major data breaches in the last year, including Scottrade, Anthem, T-Mobile, and even the IRS, the concern about identity (ID) theft is big. From January 25 – 29, 2016, the FTC is hosting a Tax Identity Theft Awareness Week that aims to educate consumers about what to look for and what to do when they become victims.  It is important to understand child identity theft is real too.