How to Avoid Getting Taxed for Phantom Income and Debt Forgiveness By Eva Rosenberg, EA If you negotiate with a lender or credit card company to get your debt reduced, you walk away feeling lighter, happier, and calmer. Until the 1099-C arrives. Panic time! Not only is cancelled debt taxable income, but it’s also generally [...]
Writing Off the Family Vacation Eva Rosenberg, EA Ever since I heard about the Harry Potter village at Universal Orlando, I’ve wanted to go there. But Orlando is an expensive place, especially if you want to be anywhere near the main attractions. How could I make this a tax-deductible trip? I could go to an [...]
Skip the Allowance and Hire Your Child Eva Rosenberg, EA It takes about $200,000 to raise a child (not including paying for college), according to the USDA’s annual report. Play with this nifty tool at Bankrate.com to see just how much your child costs. How can you reduce these staggering costs? Two ways: Teach your [...]
Celebrity Tax Scandals Eva Rosenberg, EA The tabloids make millions of dollars chasing after celebrities, knowing readers are titillated by their every action. The IRS also makes millions of dollars chasing after celebrities, having read about their financial antics in the tabloids, or having been tipped off by unhappy hangers-on, or simply because celebrities do [...]
Temporary Work for Fun, Profit, and Retirement By Eva Rosenberg, EA The most fun I’ve ever had working was doing temporary work. Between jobs, I updated my résumé, called up a couple of temp agencies, and pestered them each morning until they put me to work. The beauty of temp agencies is that you get [...]
How to Ensure You Get Audited By Eva Rosenberg, EA Years ago, I was helping a banker with his tax return, and he complained that his bank was having problems with borrowers who submitted phony tax returns. I told him that if he wanted to assemble his staff for one hour, I could show them [...]
Medical Tax Deductions Are Worth More Than You Think By Eva Rosenberg, EA Starting this article sent me on an extended Google search about a sweet client who died several years ago. Johnny came to me when the IRS audited his medical deductions. Johnny (not his real name) had wasted the tax benefits that his [...]
5 Tax Lessons Learned from Filing Your 2010 Tax Return By Eva Rosenberg, EA One of my editors wanted to clarify something. Andrea was surprised to learn that the IRS pays interest on refunds. After all, isn’t that the whole point of reducing your withholding—not to give the IRS an interest-free loan all year? Andrea [...]
This article was written by guest blogger Eva Rosenberg. I have spent many an April 14 working all night, rushing to finish tax returns for clients who brought their information in at the last minute. Tax professionals aren’t the only ones who go through this push—I have seen taxpayers stressing out, too, trying to get [...]
Strategies to Ensure You Get Credit for Your Charitable Deductions By Eva Rosenberg, EA In one of my EA Exam Review Course sessions, we learn about the Tax Court. I build a class around the Tax Court’s recent decisions. One such case was Daniel and Ruth M. Gomez v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. This case [...]
