BOISE, Idaho — With tax season upon us, there are some simple tips and tricks you can do to make filing less complicated.
- Mid-March is a good time to begin filing
- This year's biggest change is in the 12% tax bracket
- Keep and use your donation receipts
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
It's tax time, and at this point, you should have already received your W-2 form from your employer, with any others being sent out by mid-February at the latest. So when is a good time to safely begin knocking out your taxes?
"I'd say mid-March is probably the appropriate time that you say, ok, I think I have everything, but just be aware of anything that you've submitted in the past or received in the past and just double check," said Four Seasons taxes Certified Financial Planner and Tax Preparation Expert, Jared Davis.
The biggest change people might see is a little more room in the twelve-percent tax bracket, so anyone in the 80-thousand dollar salary range might breathe a little easier.
"The top of the 12% bracket was about, I think it was about 80,000 last year. Now, it's 89,000 for the tax year 2023. So that means if you're kind of at that income, you're more likely to be in the 12% rate versus the 22% rate so any dollar taxed above that rate would be taxed at 22," said Davis.
Personally, I've used tax software for several years because my tax situation is pretty simple and straight forward. But I have always wondered if I'm missing out on a bigger return by not seeking out a professional service. So when should you seek one out?
"If you have rental income or investment income, multiple jobs or if you're looking for deducting different things like itemizing charitable contributions, medical expenses. Those can be overwhelming for the average person," said Davis.
Another reason to see someone? You end up owing money on your taxes year-after-year.
"Tax planning, you know, if they didn't withhold enough and now they owe. I help try to solve that problem where ok maybe we should withhold extra from your paycheck each month and maybe we can help you figure that out cause if you just did it with the software and didn't do anything about it, then guess what, you're gonna owe next year, probably just as much," said Davis.
And just to throw a few tax tips out there, if you're someone who donates a good amount of items to charity, you could be missing out.
"Most people I meet with, they give clothing, goods out and then just throw away the receipt, and that's something that they could easily save the receipt and report on their tax return," said Davis.
Lastly, if you can, e-file those taxes.
"Eager to get your tax returns, submit it early, just make sure you have all your tax documents before that time, and then try your best to e-file and not paper file cause it takes a lot longer to process," said Davis.
To chat with Jared or anyone at Four Seasons Taxes in Boise, visit this link.
