Let’s write a slogan!

Today is 2/3/17, it’s a Friday. We are discussing a slogan for the company, something catchy and simple.

Becky says,

“I know, we are passionate about taxes.”

Followed by an emphatic,

 “I really mean that!!”

During our exciting discussion we learned that the owner of ABT, Becky, is not only passionate about taxes but that she has been doing this for 43 years!!! Do you know how long that is? That is since 1974. She is truly passionate about taxes; not very many would say that.

Seeing how much she enjoys every person that sits on the other side of the desk made me ask, ”Why do you like to do taxes?” She said it’s because she likes to save people money and that she likes the connection that she gets to make with each person. At the end of the year they come in and all kinds of things have occurred; sale of a home, death of family members, divorce, bankruptcy, new businesses, opportunities, the list goes on. Not only does she listen and care, she loves to see prosperity in their lives!! She wants to save them money and get them back as much as she can.

Another great thing about Becky is that she has cultivated people like her. People that are passionate, maybe not about taxes but about people. There are four other wonderful women that work here and everyone treats each person with compassion, kindness, and respect.

If you are looking to have someone who cares about your return and you, then you should definitely have someone at America’s Best Tax Service do your taxes.

Home Heating Credit

 

Here at America’s Best Tax Service, we file your Home Heating Credit jointly with your taxes; you won’t have to worry about filing it separately. It won’t affect your return amount or how much you would pay in for taxes, it just comes back to you in one of two ways. The determining factor is the type of gas you use. If you use propane gas, it will come back via a check in the mail, which you can use to refill your gas tank. If you use natural gas, your account will credited directly, so you won’t have such a high bill in the future.

To read more on this subject, feel free to peruse this brief article:

Click to access home_heating_credit_361574_7.pdf

Refund Transfer

If you are one of the millions of Americans who are due to receive a refund from your taxes this year, you may be eligible for a refund transfer. It’s a great option that we can offer our clients here at America’s Best Tax Service. The greatest appeal of this method is the convenience of not having to pay anything up front. It’s a safer way of receiving your refund and the money you’ll receive also has the ability to reach you in a shorter amount of time.

If you don’t have the funds to pay our office for the service we provide and are receiving money back from the government, a refund transfer might appeal to you. We won’t charge you our full fee at the moment of your appointment, instead when your refund is issued, we’ll take our fees out of your refund. Now there is a slight catch, the amount you’ll be receiving from the government must be more than what you’ll owe our office for our preparation fees. For most people though, their refund will far exceed whatever we charge for tax preparation. Here’s how it works! We figure your taxes here at our office and we’ll send in everything to the IRS. From there, the IRS will issue your refund to the Tax Product Group, who will withhold the our preparation fees from your balance. Then they’ll release the money to our offices and we will write you a check for the remaining balance of your refund. Once you come to pick it up and deposit it into your bank, you’ll be all set!

Even if you are able to pay our office fees, you still might be interested in our Refund Transfer method. Instead of anxiously awaiting a check in the mail with a large sum of money upon it, you will get a check straight from our office, so it’s in your possession the whole time. It just requires a second trip to our office. in addition to the security aspect, E-filing and refund transfers are the fastest ways to receive your money back. And who doesn’t like fast and substantial refunds!?

What Gets YOU this excited?!

Tax season gets us this excited! Hopefully it’ll get you excited when you see what results we can get YOU!

What The Affordable Care Act Means If You Are…

 *information from time.com, with credit to Kate Pickert

Individual Shared Responsibility Payment

Calculating your Payment 

For 2014, the annual payment amount is:

• The greater of:
  • 1 percent of your household income that is above the tax return filing threshold for your filing status, or
  • Your family’s flat dollar amount, which is $95 per adult and $47.50 per child, limited to a family maximum of $285,
• Your payment amount is capped at the cost of the national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace in 2014. For 2014, the annual national average premium for a bronze level health plan available through the Marketplace is $2,448 per individual ($204 per month per individual), but $12,240 for a family with five or more members ($1,020 per month for a family with five or more members).

Calculating your payment requires you to know your household income and your tax return filing threshold.

• Household income is the adjusted gross income from your tax return plus any excludible foreign earned income and tax-exempt interest you receive during the taxable year. Household income also includes the adjusted gross incomes of all of your dependents who are required to file tax returns.
• Tax return filing threshold is the minimum amount of gross income an individual of your age and with your filing status (e.g., single, married filing jointly, head of household) must make to be required to file a tax return.

2014 Federal Tax Filing Requirement Thresholds 

Filing Status	Age	Must File a Return If Gross Income Exceeds
Single	Under 65	$10,150
	65 or older	$11,700
Head of Household	Under 65	$13,050
	65 or older	$14,600
Married Filing Jointly	Under 65 (both spouses)	$20,300
	65 or older (one spouse)	$21,500
	65 or older (both spouses)	$22,700
Married Filing Separately	Any age	$3,950
Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Children	Under 65	$16,350
	65 or older	$17,550

*Information via IRS.gov  

Affordable Care Act

There are a few changes to this years tax return forms. The 2014 tax documents marks the first year that health insurance plays a part in your taxes. Most taxpayers already have qualifying health care coverage, we’ll just need to check the box on your return. Some taxpayers are exempt from the requirement to have coverage. Most coverage exemptions can be claimed when we file your return. However, some exemptions must first be obtained from the Health Insurance Marketplace. The biggest difference in filing this year will be for those who don’t have qualifying insurance. If you do not have qualifying coverage or an exemption for each month of the year, you will need to make an individual shared responsibility payment with your return. As it is with all changes, we know there will be some confusion, but at our office we will help you through each step!

E-Filing: It’s Safe, Quick and Easy

E-Filing is an option that we offer here at America’s Best Tax Service. Most of our current clients file electronically. In fact, according to the IRS, eighty percent of our country’s population file electronically. Below are a few great reasons to do so:

• Security — the IRS uses the latest encryption technology to safeguard your information.

• Flexible Payments — File early, pay by April 15th.

• Greater Accuracy — Fewer errors means faster processing.

• Quick Receipt — Get an acknowledgement that your return was received and accepted.

• Go Green — Reduce the amount of paper used.

• Faster Refunds — Get your refund faster by e-filling using direct deposit.

Gambling Winnings Are Taxable Income

You might not know that gambling could affect your taxes. Here is some information regarding this subject:

1. Gambling income includes – but is not limited to – winnings from lotteries, raffles, horse and dog races and casinos, as well as the fair market value of prizes such as cars, houses, trips or other non cash prizes.
2. Depending on the type and amount of your winnings, the payer might provide you with a Form W-2G and may have withheld federal income taxes from the payment.
3. If you itemize deductions, you can deduct your gambling losses for the year.
4. You cannot deduct gambling losses that are more than your winnings.
5. It is important to keep an accurate diary or similar record of your gambling winnings and losses.
6. To deduct your losses, you must be able to provide receipts, tickets, statements or other records that show the amount of both your winnings and losses.

Helpful Documents to Bring Along to Aid in Tax Preparation

Many people wonder what they should bring in with them so we can properly prepare their taxes. This is a very detailed list, so don’t feel intimidated if you may not have all these documents. However, you can never bring too much to us, even the things you think may not matter, could possibly affect your return!

          

Income Information 

• W-2s
• Interest
• Dividend Slips (1099)
• Stock Slips (1099)
• Self-Employment Income
• Sale of a Personal Residence
• Rental Income
• Sale of any Business Assets
• Gambling or Lottery Winnings
• State Income Tax Refund
• Pension Income
• Social Security or Railroad Retirement
• IRA or 401 K Income

Personal Information (for each family member) 

• Name
• Date of Birth
• Driver’s license
• Social Security Card
• Last year’s tax return

Deductions

• Medical expenses
• Real estate or personal property taxes
• Mortgage interet
• Charitable contributions
• Moving expenses
• Employee business expenses
• Gambling losses
• IRA contributions

Tax Credits

• Child care provider’s address and Employer Identification Number (EIN)
• Estimated tax paid
• Rent paid in 2014 – Landlords name and address
• Heating costs from the year of 2014