For all our talk of tax season (and especially our excitement and subsequent hibernation when it ends), it’s not as if it is something that ever fully goes away. The IRS may do the bulk of its work early in the year during tax season, but it never fully rests. This is something that uglily rears its head when you open your mailbox and find a piece of mail from the agency.

Now I know I can’t sit on too high of a horse and tell you that you shouldn’t worry in this situation. First, it’s impossible to not get a little jolt when it happens. After all, there’s no way that good news is inside that envelope, right? Well, it could be. The agency will definitely tell you if they think you did something incorrectly on your tax return, but it occasionally does tell of one that occurs in their favor.

But yes, chances are still that any news from the IRS is not going to be grand. You still must open that envelope, though, because no matter how bad the news is, there is no way that it’s going to get better by procrastinating finding out what it says (or ignoring it completely).  After, all, there’s a good chance that it’s speaking to a debt with interest involved, so the longer it goes on, the more that interest mounts.

So, especially if you work with us concerning tax matters, open it, read the news, and send a copy of the notice to us. We can then help you understand what it says and if there is anything that can be done to combat it.

In addition, all correspondence from the IRS is part of its Taxpayer Bill of Rights that includes a taxpayer’s right to be informed. So these notices aren’t always giant pieces of bad news of which you were completely unaware. They feel that way when you first see the envelope, but it could also be an update on an issue you are already dealing with.
On the whole, we find that anyone receiving THAT bad news out of nowhere is very rare. Even if someone doesn’t file taxes, they know somewhere in their head that they should and their bill is growing. So, if the IRS is trying to tell you something, being informed of that can then become a strength for you. When you know what’s going on, you can fight against it or at least plan to handle it.

​So don’t hide and know that we are, as always, on your side if you need help traveling the path that any envelope opens.

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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Last week I wrote about how easy it is to think about making changes when you receive a tax return, but if you don’t take quick action on them, that impetus can fade and suddenly you’re looking at your next tax return after having done nothing to change its outcome.  And yes, I still stand by this advice and think it’s a very good idea to jump on the changes you can make while you still can. And with many of these things, the sooner you do them, the bigger impact they can have.

This week, though, I also wanted to acknowledge that some of these things feel too big, and possibly are too big, to really take on. This doesn’t mean that they should be ignored, though. After all, if they are that big, that means they’re still going to feel big come your next tax return, so they may even be the most important things to tackle.

An important thing to remember here is that you don’t have to do it by yourself. Chances are you that if you’re reading this, you already work with us at TSBAS to handle your tax returns. There are many clients in this situation who we only see during tax season. Oftentimes, there is no issue with this. We do what you need us to do when you need us to do it and if everyone is happy with how things turn out, we continue in this manner. This doesn’t mean, though, that that must be the only time we work together.

Perhaps you need a little guidance on how to implement some changes within your finances so that you get better answers come tax time. Perhaps you want to check in every quarter, see how things look and keep a better handle on what that final tax number may look like as you go. Perhaps you want to make some moves or estimated payments to mitigate the damage of that final number. These are all things we would be happy to help you with.

Of course, there are only so many things that one can do, so this isn’t a promise that extra check-ins will be a way to riches. There is power in knowledge, though, and we will happily use ours to help you gain more of your own. So, if there is any way that we can help you more along the way, please let us know, and let’s start talking more often!

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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It is not odd to hear us trumpet about this wonderful time of year. Summer starts a little early for us, beginning as soon as the tax season ends. This doesn’t mean that it can’t be great for everyone, though.

When you prepare your final tax return and drop your signature before finally sending it off, it’s possible that the final number surprised you. It’s also possible that it caused you to want to make some changes to avoid a similar surprise next year – no matter whether it was a good or bad surprise.

Once that return was sent off and you received your refund or paid your balance, though, that surprise can wear off quickly. Much like what carries us into tist season of bliss, a wind blows that makes us happy it is all over.

Until next year that is.

For if you don’t make any changes between now and next year, that surprise is likely to remain. Acting now may feel daunting but will feel worth it come next filing season.

If you already know what changes you could make, then great, consider this s gentle reminder to do them as soon as possible. After all, the earlier things get accomplished, the easier it is to see them make a significant difference on that final return number.

If you are not sure exactly what to do to help your situation, though, a good place to start is with tax withholding that comes out of your paycheck. After all, a shift of $50 in each paycheck won’t feel nearly as big as hundreds (or thousands?) of dollars at the end of the year. The IRS offers a tool at www.irs.gov/individuals/tax-withholding-estimator that asks the right questions to get you into a better spot.

Finally, remember this can go either way, too. If you had to pay more than expected with your tax return, that is going to look like an immediate problem. If you ended up with an unexpected big refund, though, it doesn’t feel like a problem. You can also change things so in that situation, though, so you bring home some of that money with each paycheck. Even setting things up so that some pay goes into a savings account means you will get to earn the interest on that money and not leave it for the government to benefit from.

Warmly,

Josh Bousquet
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