I would like, just once, to receive one of those fat tax returns
You’ll probably be getting one, a lump deposit of a couple hundred dollars. I imagine it’s nice to think of all the ways to blow through it.
I wouldn’t know how that feels.
Instead, it’s all too often that I’m considering how deeply I’ll have to tap into my savings account.
After three hours of preparing my taxes, it turns out I owe $624 in state income taxes. That’s an improvement. Last year, I owed $1,100.
I should say, I’m not one of those people who balks at paying taxes. I figure I get my money’s worth and I’m pretty good at taking advantage government-funded offerings. When sick, I choose the free health-clinic. And I’ve taken up running along Gettysburg battlefield roads. I figure that saves me a couple hundred dollars a year in a gym membership.
Still, it’d be nice, just once, to have a refund coming my way.
Especially considering that everybody I know seems to be planning how to spend their refunds. One of my friends is buying a flat-screen TV, another is renovating his bathroom. My parents are pricing out laptops.
Maybe I need to have my taxes professional done.
A former roommate swears by it. He says the accountant will find some unknown deduction that will cover the $50 expense of having your taxes professionally prepared.
Instead, I rely on the software program TurboTax and it’s a little like feeling your way through the dark. I plug in numbers and hope I don’t get an error message.
I’ll be getting a federal refund this year of about $643, just enough to cover the bill to the state. Maybe I can pay the bill online. I do all my other banking over the Internet.
If not, I’ll have to buy some stamps.
