Would you like to do a quick estimate of your taxes before tackling the real thing? By entering some basic information regarding your earnings, filing status, and deductions you can get a quick estimate of your Federal tax refund or amount you owe Uncle Sam.

The Turbotax online website has a tax return estimator that you can use for free. Use this handy planning tool to figure out how much of a tax refund you'll get or how much you'll owe.

How to use the tax estimator - Just enter this basic info

* You and your family This is where you enter your filing status. Single, married filing jointly, married filing separately, or head of household. Number of dependents are also entered here.
* Earnings and Income Money you earned from wages, self-employment and investments are entered into the tax refund estimator here.
* Deductions and personal expenses Enter your amounts into these pre-set categories: Medical expenses, real estate and personal property taxes, home mortgage interest and points, home equity loan interest, charitable contributions, alimony you paid, child care expenses, and other miscellaneous deductions.
* Withholding taxes Enter the amount of your Federal income tax withheld, and State income tax withheld.

After entering your information the tax estimator will give you a summary of your tax situation. This summary will give you a good idea of your tax refund amount or taxes you owe. After you've used the tax refund estimator you'll also get a list of tax tips for your situation.

You already know that claiming more Federal tax deductions is the best way to lower your tax bill. What if I told you that Turbotax online software has a built-in tax deduction maximizer? This Federal tax deduction maximizer will find and determine which tax deductions are best for your situation.

Here are just 5 Federal tax deductions the deduction maximizer can help you take full advantage of:

* If you own a home Instead of taking the standard deduction, let the deduction maximizer check to see if you could save money by itemizing. If the interest you paid on your mortgage is more than the standard deduction, you would be better off itemizing.

* State and local taxes Whether you own a home or not, itemizing can still save you lots of money. If you paid State or local taxes, the amount you paid is tax deductible.

* Charitable donations Money you donated to places such as churches, Red Cross, and other nonprofit organizations qualify as Federal tax deductions.

* Medical expenses Being able to deduct your medical expenses can be tricky. Let the tax software figure out whether you can use medical expenses as a tax deduction based on your adjusted gross income (AGI).

* Miscellaneous tax deductions Once you've entered your information as prompted, the the deduction maximizer will alert you to any of the over 300 other miscellaneous tax deductions you may qualify for.

Question: In addition to my stock business, I've authored photo and software instruction books, and I also do photo decor books. Presently, I am represented by two agents -- one for books, and another rep for my decor work. Under the contracts with my agents, each gets a percentage of my earnings.

When filing time rolls around, both agents send me 1099 forms, and I understand that copies also go to the Internal Revenue. The 1099 forms show what money they have sent me during the year in terms of advances, royalties received from publishers, and other payments related to my books or decor contracts. But they do different kinds of bookkeeping!

One agent's 1099 lists the gross (full) amount she received from clients as my income; that is, she does not allow for the commission subtracted by her up front before sending a check for the balance to me. The other one handles things differently; his 1099 lists only the net payment (after commission) he actually sent to me.

How should I report these payments on my return? I know that I have to include payments received from agents in the total figure shown on line 1 (gross receipts) of Schedule C of Form 1040, but I'm not sure which figures to report!

Answer: Let consistency be your guide. The amount of income you declare should be consistent with the figures shown on your 1099 forms. Otherwise, the Revenue Service's ever-vigilant computers might go bananas, with unpleasant consequences to you.

When it comes to monies you received via an agent, what you should declare depends on whether the agent submits a 1099 form for you that shows the gross amount (total paid by the publisher or client) or the net amount (amount actually paid to you after commission is deducted).

Does the 1099 filed by the agent list the gross amount? Then that's the figure you should include in totaling your income to come up with your gross line 1 of your Schedule C -- and remember to include the agent's commission, which is deductible, on line 11 (commissions and fees); otherwise, you'll overstate your income and overpay your taxes, a miscue that the Internal Revenue's computers are not programmed to detect.

Does the 1099 from your agent instead list the net amount, the sum on the check actually sent to you after the agent's commission taken off the top? Then you should use that amount in arriving at your gross income figure -- and you should not deduct the commission on line 11, since it's already been subtracted from the income figure.

Here's an example. Say your agent receives a check from your publisher in the amount of $50,000 (think big!), deducts a 15-percent commission of $7,500, and sends you a check for $42,500. After that year's end, you receive a 1099 form that shows $50,000. You should include the full $50,000 in your reported gross income on line 1 and deduct the $7,500 commission on line 11. If, on the other hand, the 1099 shows only the amount actually sent to you, $42,500, you should include only $42,500 on line 1 -- and deduct nothing on line 11. Either way, you pay tax only on the $42,500; and either way, the serenity of the Revenue Service's computers will be preserved.

An online tax software program such as Turbo Tax Online 2006, does more than just prepare and file your tax returns. It offers advanced tools like tax calculators and tax estimators to help you when preparing your taxes. And guess what? They're Free for everyone to use!

Let's take a look at a few of these handy tax tools

* Tax Return Calculator, Estimator Use this tool to figure out how much of a tax refund you can expect to get back from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Just enter your information as prompted, and the tax return calculator will quickly complete your tax refund estimate.

* Home Mortgage Calculator All you have to do is enter the amount of interest you paid for the year and the mortgage calculator will show you your tax savings. Be sure to add in any points you might have paid.

* Average Tax Rate Calculator Do you know what your average tax rate is? It's your total tax liability divided by your total income. Enter those numbers into the average tax calculator and see your rate.

* Self Employment Tax Estimator, Calculator You can estimate your self-employment tax with this calculator. All people with profits of $400 or more from self-employment are liable for this tax. Tip... Use this calculator for year end tax-planning.

These tax estimators and calculators are designed especially for tax preparation, tax filing, and tax-planning . All you have to do is enter your information when prompted, and the tax calculator will quickly give you an answer.

Some Head of Household rules can make your head spin. People often get confused when trying to figure out if they qualify for the preferable “head of household classification”.

Unmarried persons who provide a home for Qualifying person(s) may file as head of household. This classification entitles the person to a lower rate than single individuals or married individuals filing separate. They also get a higher standard deduction. So when you qualify for this you want to make sure this is the “type” of taxpayer you check off on page 1 of form 1040. The I.R.S. recently reported on their website the following:

Filing Requirements/Status/Dependents/Exemptions: Filing Status If I moved out of my house on July 10, but was not divorced at the end of the year, can I file as head of household and take the earned income credit if I have a minor child? Can I also claim child care expenses?

You do not qualify for the head of household filing status because you and your spouse have not lived apart for the last 6 months of the taxable year and are not considered unmarried. Your filing status for the year will either be married filing separately, or married filing jointly. If it is married filing separately, you will not qualify for the Earned Income Credit and cannot claim a credit based on child care expenses. If you file a joint return with your spouse, you may be eligible to claim these credits. See Publication 503, Child and Dependent Care Expenses and Publication 596, Earned Income Credit.

IRS References:

·Tax Topic 353, What is Your Filing Status?

·Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information

·Publication 503, Child and Dependent Care Expenses

·Publication 596, Earned Income Credit

If the parents of a year old child never married but live together with the child for the tax year, and both contribute to the cost of maintaining the household for the child and themselves, may they both file as head of household?

Only one taxpayer may claim the child as a qualifying child for purposes of filing as head of household. Also, a taxpayer filing as head of household must furnish over half the cost of maintaining the household. Therefore, both parents may not file as head of household. For more information, please refer to Publication 501, Exemptions, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information, for more information.

A taxpayer may file as head of household only if ALL of the following requirements are met:

·The individual is a U.S. citizen or resident for the entire year

·The individual is unmarried

·The individual paid more than half the cost of keeping up his/her home

·A qualified person lived with the taxpayer in his/her home for more than half the yr. Exception- the qualified person is T.P.’s parent, the living provision is not necessary but more than ½ the cost of the parent’s main home must be paid for by the T.P.

A Qualified Person – for Head of Household purposes is:

·Any qualifying child if the child is;

1) single, even if the T.P. can or can’t claim them as an exemption

2) the child is married and the T.P. can claim them as an exemption

·The parent for whom he or she can claim an exemption or

·Any qualified relative of the T.P.

Every year I always get asked at least a dozen times the same thing…”Who must file an income tax return?” The answer is almost always the same…”you!”. But, there are a few who are not required to file, the I.R.S. recently responded with this response.

2.1 Filing Requirements/Status/Dependents/Exemptions: Filing Requirements How much does a student have to make before he or she has to file an income tax return? If you are an unmarried dependent, you must file a tax return if your earned and/or unearned income exceeds certain limits. To find these limits refer to Filing Requirements for Dependents in Publication 501, Exemption, Standard Deduction and Filing Information. If part of your earned income is from tips, see Tax Topic 402, Tips.

Even if you do not have to file, you should file a federal income tax return to get money back if any of the following apply:

1.You had income tax withheld from your pay.
2.You qualify for the earned income credit.
3.You qualify for the additional child tax credit. “

More specifically, Individuals, who are U.S. citizens or resident aliens, and whose gross income exceeds amounts shown in the table below must file.

Additionally, any taxpayer who owes special taxes like:
·Social security or medicare tax on tips unreported to employers
·Uncollected social security, medicare tax or railroad retirement tax on tips reported to an employer
·Alternative minimum tax
·Household employment taxes
·Additional tax on a qualified retirement plan or IRA
·Additional tax on HAS’s, MSA’s , or other qualified tuition plan
·Recapture of certain credits

1. Choosing to file your tax returns online should make filing returns easier.
Look for a website that is extremely easy to navigate and to use. Research has shown that when filing tax returns online for the first time, tax payers like to use a site in clear plain-English to help them in the preparation of their tax returns. The more experienced tax filers like to use a site where comprehensive support can be obtained. This is obviously an important factor, as when filling in tax returns you never know when you are going to run into a problem. So look around and settle with a site that offers a combination of ease of use and support this is easy to access.

2. Using an online system should offer a comprehensive service.
You need to check that a full and comprehensive support system is in place. Whether you are an individual with particularly complicated tax affairs, or you need to complete a small business return, you have to be happy that the service you choose has full support. Look for the length of time the servie has filing returns online, and go with experience.

3. Should be able to provide a year round online tax solution.
Will you have use of tools to enable you to manage your taxes all year, as well as to prepare the tax return? You need to be able to stay in complete control of your individual or business tax profile all year and therefore need to look for an online tax system that will provide live customer services, as well as access to your previous year returns, financial services and various planning tools to assist you.

The best solution is to look for a system that will give you a personalized tax management page where you can store your tax profiles, manage your filings and make any payments that may be due.

4. Should Use Dedicated Tax Professionals.
Is tax guidance freely available? Is the Customer Support staffed by professionals that have experience as tax payers? Is the customer service unlimited? These are all important and you need to ensure that you can obtain immediate support from Tax professionals.

5. Most of all should be fast and accurate.
When choosing a service to place your business with, you will want to ensure they are fast and accurate. Look for a simple and short questionnaire, so that the clutter of the seemingly endless question based personal interviews can be a thing of the past. This after all is one of the main reasons for using an online tax filing system.

Do you get help in selecting the relevant input sheets? Will all your entries be validated? Is there anything in place to organise your paperwork?

Using an online system to file your tax returns can be a great help, and is not very expensive, so visit specialized sites such as TaxBrain Online, and see which one is best for you. The aim of using an online system to file your taxes is to save you hassle, time and worry so you need to be sure that the company you choose will do all of these things.

Are you thinking of adding real estate to your portfolio? If you are, please consider the acquisition of a property that could be a principal residence at a later time for you and your spouse. If you have always wanted to live at the beach or in the mountains, this strategy allows you to get a second home or rental into your portfolio while keeping the option open for making it a principal residence at a later date. Why is this important? Please read on to find the answer.

If we create a real estate piece to our portfolio that allow us to claim property as our principal residence at some point, there is the potential to save on income taxes. Suppose that one purchases a property as a rental with the idea that it would make an ideal principal residence at some later date. Assuming that they currently own a principal residence. they will be able to sell their current home and get the $250,000 or $500,000 gain exclusion (under IRC code 121) providing they meet the requirements. Later, they can move into their one-time rental or second home and claim this as a principal residence (having it qualify as a principal residence will require living in it for 2 out of 5 years). This would allow for the property owner to enjoy increases in market values while enjoying favorable income tax attributes as well. This is called having the best of all possible worlds.

In short, planning ahead will always save you money, especially if you are aware of the rules. ONe can even do a section 1031 exchange into a investment or business use property with the idea that it will become a principal residence at some later date. The 1031 exchange is like-kind property allowing the deferral of gain when acquiring a substantially similar property to the one being sold. Imagine the tax savings when this gain deferral becomes permanent when the property becomes a principal residence at a later point in time. I wish you happy planning and invite you to ask questions or listen to my radio program, "Better Business", Saturday mornings at 10ET on WBIS AM 1190

Real estate taxes various from each state. Despite this, real estate tax is often based on the outer structure and surrounding features of your home. For instance, if the structure of your home is new, you taxes are based on the equity on this home.

Tax issues often review the outer area of your home. They often look at the structure, landmark, and other buildings on the property. If you have a barn on the property, you will pay taxes on this too, since it increases the value of your home. Thus, real estate tax is estimated by your home value.

If you need help with real estate tax, you can find online real estate sites. The sites offer you tools to estimate your taxes, find deductibles on your property tax and more. Search around, since you may find ways to save money on your home tax.

Many of the real estate sites offer you support for home mortgage and interest deductions. In short, you may have the ability to deduct some of your interest on your real estate tax. Real estate sites will offer you information for investment income as well as finding deductibles on your real estate tax expenses. Tax forms are available at some of the websites online.

You will find help for questions that you may have, such as "Does interest on home equity" such as the "line of credit" has deductible options. You will find answers for second mortgage deductibles too.

You have the option in some instances to deduct equity on your home. This is often listed under the "itemized" deduction options.

You will find tips at the real estate sites too. Use the tips to save money. For instance, use the tip to pay your interest on your home during the tax year to save money.

Moreover, if you have a home business you can find help with real estate tax also. In fact, you can write off many things if you have a home business, which will apply to your real estate taxes.

Take advantage of the many options available to you at the real estate sites online. Use the tips perhaps to save money real estate tax.

To find additional help, be sure to visit the IRS tax center. At this center online you will find forms also, help with your taxes, and real estate tax information. Take your time to explore, since you may learn that you have more options than you realize to make money.

Real estate tax deductibles are the start of your exploration. Be sure to look at the itemized deduction details to take advantage of each item you can write off on your home.

Anytime you have a home or property you will pay real estate tax. Real estate tax is estimated based on your home value. For instance, if you purchase a home and the property is worth $10,000 but you pay $20,000 for the home, thus this additional balance is your equity.

In some areas, you pay taxes in the winter and spring months. Some cities charge city taxes and state taxes for property. In addition, the real estate tax estimate is based on the current market price also. For this reason, you want to find deductibles to save money on home taxes.

If you purchased a home and lived there a couple of years, you have an invested property. The interest that you pay toward the property will not qualify you for interest deduction on your real estate tax. On the other hand, you may have tax deductibles under the itemized returns.

The purpose of bringing this up is to let you know that you may have real estate tax options available to you for saving money. Many people do not realize this. Renters get money back from the government all the time for paying rent each month. Thus, like renters homeowners have return options also. Check these options carefully.

Moreover, check your options, since you may have deductible choices on your equity interest dues. Check under the itemized deduction options to learn more.

You will find that you may have options for taking out loans over home improvement. If you recently were accepted for a line of credit or a home improvement loan, look under the itemized deductions to see if you have options for tax returns. Tax options are available for second mortgages, etc. You can also find help for particular issues. For instance, if you recently lost your home because of flood, fire, or your home was damaged, thus you may have an option to file claims. You may find a big real estate tax relief by searching through the theft, fire, and disaster category on your tax forms. Usually, you will need tax form 1040X.

To learn more about real estate tax visit the real estate sites online. Here you will find helpful information, calculators and other valuable tools to help you save money. Many sites post information about real estate tax deductibles, so see what you qualify for by visiting now.