Doing taxes, ugh

Post by **matthew1** » 17 Apr 2011, 13:46

Using Turbo Tax Deluxe 2010.

I'm taking deductions on Volvo parts I bought in 2010 because I'm confident I can defend it: I run MVS and need to write Repair Database content, therefore buying and evaluating parts for my Volvos is a business expense.

Sound plausible?

Post by **jblackburn** » 17 Apr 2011, 14:19

You can write items purchased off as long as you can provide an explanation as to why it's a business expense and have kept receipts. Labor costs on the car, like your trips to Volvo Specialists, would not count since that is a service someone else was performing for your own property.

A bit last minute, are we?

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 17 Apr 2011, 17:42

Yes, you definitely can. I write off all my parts and even the tools I need to do the how tos. Hell, I am thinking of picking up another volvo just to use for how tos and meets which I would write off.

Also, I know how you feel about the last minute part. I am mailing my taxes in tomorrow.

Post by **matthew1** » 18 Apr 2011, 09:39

Thanks guys.

I'm miserable. Utterly, irrevocably miserable. Not done yet as you can tell.

Why can't we just have a flat 20% sales tax on everything and no income tax? This is insane. Have you read what TurboTax asks you? Have you provided temporary housing for a Midwesterner affected by a disaster?

Really? That affects how much tax I pay? Insane.

Post by **jblackburn** » 18 Apr 2011, 09:48

There are some quite amusing questions in the deductions section.

I finished mine up last month. I had to fill out 3 returns - one for VA, one for NC (since my car is still registered there - I'm taking care of that this week and moving it to VA), and the federal one. To make matters worse, mine kept freaking crashing as I hit "finish", and then it would resume like halfway through it again. I had to start my federal section all over again.

Because I paid for health insurance on my own policy, though, I ended up getting like $350 back from Virginia for that alone. I guess that made it worth it.

20% would be way too much! TN does exactly that - I think theirs is around 10% and no income tax. Virginia's is a nice 5%, I love it.

Post by **billofdurham** » 18 Apr 2011, 11:30

I don't have this problem because I am retired.

However, most of our income tax is collected by Pay As You Earn (PAYE). Self employed people have to submit an annual tax return so I have just finished doing my daughter's. It doesn't seem to be as complicated as your system.

The PAYE system is great. We give Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs all of our income, let them take out however much they want, then try to live on what they leave us.

Bill.

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 18 Apr 2011, 16:40

I hear you Matt. I ended up owing a lot this year and on top of that, because I was 3 minutes late to the counter. WTF!!!! Now on top of owing an arm and a leg this year, I am going to be hit with a late fee. The whole system is just out of hand.

Post by **jblackburn** » 18 Apr 2011, 21:52

I filled out the old-school paper form for NC - had I actually owed them money rather than entering "$0" for most columns since I made no income in that state, the forms would have utterly and completely confused me. It's like "add this multiply by this subtract from this go fill out this worksheet and add to the previous row". More than my brain can handle early in the morning or after a long day of work. It's 11:30 something and I just got back to my apartment for the first time since 7:30 this morning.

Heck, they may as well just throw in a few cosines and tangents of numbers just for the heck of it.

FCPEURO · Post by **FCPEURO** » 19 Apr 2011, 16:10

jblackburn wrote:I filled out the old-school paper form for NC - had I actually owed them money rather than entering "$0" for most columns since I made no income in that state, the forms would have utterly and completely confused me. It's like "add this multiply by this subtract from this go fill out this worksheet and add to the previous row". More than my brain can handle early in the morning or after a long day of work. It's 11:30 something and I just got back to my apartment for the first time since 7:30 this morning.

Heck, they may as well just throw in a few cosines and tangents of numbers just for the heck of it.

Yeah, the forms are like doing the math section of the SATs. I used turbo tax to make them up but being I owed a lot, I mailed them in to save on the e-filing charges.