That's me, thinking about the possibility of actually getting a refund. This year, we actually did get a little back from federal, but had to pay in state so it was a wash.
I used my half of our refund for paying for our football season tickets, and our hotel for a gaming convention we'll attend in November. My husband used his half to pay for the convention itself, and then to make an extra car payment. All of these reservations had to be made about the time the money came in so it made the most sense to use the money that way.
I'm just trying to figure out how to file my taxes from abroad when I make foreign income and have a foreign husband who doesn't have a SSN. How fun!
Wow, have fun. Visiting Scotland, Wales, and Ireland is a dream of mine. Someday! As for me, we're not getting all that much back, but we did upgrade our summer Disney trip from a moderate to a deluxe resort. I cannot wait!
Put all in savings, which was getting low, like way low. Some in ours and some in DS's. DH and I are thinking about having a little extra taken out each month. A guy DH works with does this, and they get a really, really, really good refund at the end of the year.
I owed a little in federal this year (unusual because I usually get a good size refund, but self-employment tax went up this year), but got enough back in state to end up getting a small refund. I bought some Words Their Way books I've been eyeing, and will save the rest.
I truthfully aim to configure my taxes so I owe little /expect little back...no need to give my money to the government to use and wait for them to return the 'leftovers' to me...I'd rather make my own decisions about how to spend my money all year than to have too much taken out and hope for a refund.
Why give the government free money (by withholding too much)? ... Use the extra money for investments........
I like to get as close to breaking even as possible. This year I got back $24 combined refund from federal and state.
Savings, savings, savings. Looking forward to being able to make a nice down payment on a house eventually and still having enough in the bank to feel completely comfortable living well.
I had to pay two dollars one year. I was so proud! I generally have to pay a little or get a small refund.
I can't think of a time we got a refund. We owe 3k this year, and that's with the most taken out each month we can have taken out. Our accountant explained to us when either of us starts a new job mid-year, it hurts our refund because the new employer takes less out or something. We've had one of us starting a new job just about every year of our marriage, and it looks like this year will be the same. It's getting ridiculous. I thought for sure with our move-a huge write-off-and a kid we might not owe, but no cigar. Grrrrrrrrrr. I would LOVE to get a refund.
I agree, that starting a new job is tough on taxes. I don't know why, but it really messes with it. Even if it's not new, I think it takes a couple years to settle in. Hubby has worked at the same company for years, but his job keeps changing. He has been getting different incentives, stocks, bonuses, etc, which is nice-but makes our taxes freak the freak out.
Refund? No. If I had a refund I'd put it toward my daughters' braces. I swear I could go to Hawaii twice for what it costs and insurance doesn't pay any of it.
When we get a refund we just put it back into our household account and use it for home improvement projects. I have not bought anything for myself with tax refunds in years.
If I get a refund (we haven't done the taxes yet) some will go towards paying ahead on bills and the rest will go into savings. My savings is almost completely depleted with the wedding and all, and we are possibly going to NYC this summer for some friends' wedding. Subbing doesn't pay during the summer so we need to sock away pennies while we can.
I'd rather pay in too much and get some back rather than owe. DH and I have honestly just started to get a handle on finances and budgeting, even though we're in our mid 30s (pathetic, yes). Maybe I'm misunderstanding, or DH is, about what his guy and his wife do. All I know is that we make comparable salaries and have the same deductions and they get back double what we do. I hate taxes. They suck. DH and I paid in over $16,000 in taxes last year, and we don't make that much, trust me. I know taxes are necessary, it just really sucks when you see how much is paid in compared to what you get back.
I wish I could get to the point of being near 0, but with the set of circumstances, it's honestly hard to determine the exact amount to withhold, and probably would be a shot in the dark. My wife only works one full time job, but also takes a class a quarter (thus a deduction) and saves towards retirement (more deduction) On the other hand, up until late last year (and thus for taxes this time around), I had one "steady" retail job that was 20-30 hours a week, subbing (which varied month-to-month and obviously is nothing over the summer), and then an extra "side job", that, while only a grand or so, was one payment and was, until this year, considered an "independent contracter", so I generally had to file it under self-employment. And until earlier last year, when I decided to just get rid of all my student loans at once, I had that interest payment (deduction) and retirement (deduction)...it would've taken some luck to hit 0!
That's not pathetic at all! Don't let anyone tell you that is. Plenty of people struggle with money-it's a tough world financially right now. It's easy to get into habits, and "get by". Be proud that you have a handle on things now! :thumb:
I have to agree with you here. I hate them and they do suck. :lol::lol: Because we live on investments our taxes are incredibly complicated .... and therefore we've used an accountant to do them for years now. But we still have to provide the accountant with TONS of data which is a pain in the "behind."
I was really proud of myself this year-I did our taxes. Yes, I used TurboTax, but we have dividends, interest payments, and several sources of income. No EZ here!
Don't feel bad. Sweets and I are going through this, too, and we are in our 40's. I never completely had a handle on things, but I did OK. Then when we got married (and even before) everything changed. He is self-employed so that means living paycheck to paycheck. I am subbing and had a second job until last August. Management wasn't willing to work with my subbing schedule this year so we decided I needed to move on. I've recently started a different side job, but now we have to figure out what is going to happen this summer. The subbing goes away but bills won't. The job market isn't looking great next year either.
I got about $250 back from federal, but owed the state over $500, so it's not really a refund. I'm just putting my federal refund back into my checking account. I was actually pleasantly surprised- I sold some stock to pay for grad school, and last time I took stock out I ended up owing over 1,000. I didn't realize I got a tax credit for being in grad school, so I went from owing about 1200 to federal to getting some back once I put in my tuition information.
It went to savings, which then went to pay off dh's student loan. I prefer getting a refund because I am able to do more with the lump sum. If it were spread out over my paychecks, I would just spend it and have nothing to show for it. Refunds pay off debt. We rarely spend it frivolously.
We just recently became debt free except for our mortgage. We plan to use this tax return for a long weekend away to celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary this summer. The rest will go in savings.
Putting it towards our home equity loan. Ds starts college in 3 1/2 years and we'd love to have as little debt as possible when he starts. Our only debt is our mortgage and home equity loan so each month we put as much extra as we can towards the home equity loan.
