Tax Scams and Ghost Preparers: How the Common Ones Work
The impersonation call, the refund that goes to somebody else's account, the preparer who will not sign. What each one looks like and what to do.
Tax guides, in plain English
Written for people filing their own returns or hiring someone to do it. Every article cites primary sources, and none of them pretends a tax question has a one-line answer when it does not.
How to Amend a Tax Return (and When Not To)
Form 1040-X fixes a return you have already filed. It is slow, it is not always necessary, and the three-year refund window is the part people miss.
How Long to Keep Tax Records
Three years covers most of it, six years covers the bad case, and some documents you keep until long after you sell the thing they relate to.
Tax Credits Families Miss Most Often
Credits beat deductions dollar for dollar, and several of the biggest ones go unclaimed every year by people who qualify. Here is what to check.
Free Ways to File Your Taxes, and Who Qualifies
Volunteer programmes, free guided software, military filing and free tax clinics. Several of these are excellent and almost nobody uses them.
IRS Notices and Audits: What Each Letter Actually Means
Most IRS letters are not audits, and most audits are conducted entirely by post. Here is how to read the notice number and respond without making it worse.
You Owe the IRS: Payment Plans, Penalties and Offers in Compromise
The options are more generous than most people assume, and the worst move is the common one: not filing because you cannot pay.
Filing an Extension: What It Does and What It Does Not
An extension buys six months to file. It buys nothing at all in time to pay, and confusing the two is the most expensive misunderstanding in the tax code.
Quarterly Estimated Taxes, Explained
Who has to pay, how the safe harbours work, why the quarters are not three months long, and what happens if you skip one.
Self-Employed Taxes: What the 1099 Does Not Tell You
Why the first year of freelancing produces such a shocking tax bill, what self-employment tax actually is, and the deductions that reliably reduce it.
Standard vs Itemized Deductions: Which One Wins
Most filers take the standard deduction now, and for good reason. Here is how to check whether you are in the minority who should itemize, and how to get there deliberately.
How Much Does Tax Preparation Cost?
What drives the price of a prepared return, which fee structures to walk away from, and how to work out whether a preparer is worth it for your situation.
What to Bring to Your Tax Appointment
The document list that keeps a one-hour appointment from turning into three visits, plus what to do about the forms you cannot find.
CPA vs Enrolled Agent vs Tax Attorney: Who Does What
Four kinds of people can prepare your return, and only three of them can argue with the IRS on your behalf. Here is what each credential means and when it is worth paying for.
How to Choose a Tax Preparer (and the Questions Most People Forget to Ask)
Anyone can hang a sign that says tax service. Here is how to tell a credentialed professional from a seasonal storefront, and what to ask before you hand over your W-2.