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kungfuNurse said:   Thank you for your very kind reply. I'm still navigating FW so plz forgive the newb questions. Wouls a new thread still go in this forum, or a different forum?
Respectfully,
KungFuNurse

Yes, start @ http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/finance/ click "new topic" near the top right of the page.

Can someone direct me to the TAX questions thread. I know we had it last year. I cannot seem to find it. Thanks.

I refinanced my home last year November about the time that property taxes are due. My new lender paid my taxes (out of escrow) and I too went ahead and paid it. Mine was accepted by the county and 2 weeks ago my mortgage company got a refund. In the meantime my mortgage company sent me a 1098 which shows they paid my taxes. I called them to correct it since they got a refund. They indicated, the payment was made in 2011 and the refund was in 2012. They say in the 1098 for 2012, they will reflect the refund. Does this mean for the my taxes for 2011, I include the taxes "twice" ? For 2012 since the refund will be reflected in the 1098, it would mean it should show a net of 0$ for my property taxes (if they remain the same) and I wont get to deduct anything in 2012.

In other words should I :
A) Take a property tax deduction twice for 2011 based on my case and nothing for 2012 (based on the refund)
B) Take only one property tax deduction for 2011 and one for 2012.

It seems that A) would be right based on my situation.

Any help is appreciated.

uutxs said:   mrng said:   Can someone direct me to the TAX questions thread. I know we had it last year. I cannot seem to find it. Thanks.
There is no dedicated thread. If your query warrants it, just open a new thread.

Is it common for health insurance plans of employers to cost more than what it would be for a spouse to have their own individual plan? For example.. If my premium costs 25$ to my employer every paycheck for coverage on myself alone, and it would cost $125 for myself and spouse, would it make sense for my spouse to get insurance through her employer for $50 for coverage on her only. So in total we would be paying $75 instead of $125.

Or am I missing something here?

Thanks.

Yeah I did compare the plans.. they are close but obviously not identical. Co pays are similiar.

I guess my main question was probably more of, if its legal to have 2 separate plans even if you are married. Doesn't seem like there is anything opposed to doing that. However, it seems that some employers mandate you having an insurance plan makes me thing otherwise about other rules that may be in place.

Yeah, I know it comes down to breaking down copays, premium costs and what we will potentially spend on.

Thanks for bringing up the maternatity thing. I'll look into that as well.

But if it seems like its legal to do so, and the numbers work out, we'll probably have separate plans.

imbatman said:   titan01 said:   Is it common for health insurance plans of employers to cost more than what it would be for a spouse to have their own individual plan? For example.. If my premium costs 25$ to my employer every paycheck for coverage on myself alone, and it would cost $125 for myself and spouse, would it make sense for my spouse to get insurance through her employer for $50 for coverage on her only. So in total we would be paying $75 instead of $125.

Or am I missing something here?

if both plans are identical (same benefits, same co-pays, same dr's in network, etc), then you should each go through your own employer. All plans are not the same, and you really need to look at both plans to compare though.

some questions
1) what are the co-pays for various services on each plan (if you have a $20 co-pay, and hers is $75 - how many times do you each goto the doctor in a year)?
2) Are your current dr's and preferred providers in network on both plans?
3) do either plans have deductibles for in-network/out-of-network services?
4) are there limits that either plan will pay for particular services?
5) Do either of you wear glasses, and are eye exams covered by either plan (some plans do not include vision)?
6) Have you had babies? Are you planning on having babies? Some insurance plans do not cover maternity care - double check both plans if you plan on having babies.
7) are there any other normal medical expenses you occur? If so, which plan has the best coverage for those items?

Basically, is one plan better? Compare 2011 medical record on both plans.

Example for me - we have two plans offered through the same company. One is 18/paycheck (PPO), the other is 26/check (POS) for just me. Having a baby anywhere under the PPO plan will costs $2,000 deductible. Having a baby under the POS plan with an in-network provider cost $25 co-pay.

So you need to get more info for yourself to answer this question.

How does it work when you transfer an IRA? Do the holdings get liquidated & then cash transfers and you reinvest it? Or, do they actually transfer the holdings?

This year is going to be interesting. Both incomes are going up and the mortgage deductions are going down significantly. I am afraid we will have huge tax bill for 2012. I am hoping that gurus on this thread can shed some light on what are my options to reduce taxable income, besides earning less of course.

We both are W2 - using all tax-free deductions - 401k max out, health insurance, FSA, Dependent care FSA, have a mortgage. I am trying to find more tax shelters for us W2 earners.

TIA

LongDongSilver said:   Tax question...

I'm a 1040 with Schedule D filer. I received a 1065 Partnership Schedule K-1 from a ETF trade (US Oil Fund, Symbol: USO). What am I supposed to do with it? Do I need to worry about it on my 1040 return?

Thanks!
Yes, this gets reported in Schedule E (Part II: Income or Loss From Partnerships and S Corporations) of Form 1040.

employers are not required to reimburse mileage, it's up to each employer and you should check your employee handbook/company policy.
If you use a private vehicle for business use (other than commuting to/from work), you may deduct from your gross income (1) the amount paid under your own mileage allowance or (2) the IRS’ standard rate multiplied by the number of miles driven for business purposes, whichever is less.

titan01 said:   still a bit confused..

so if they reimburse me 25 cents a mile.. can i writeoff the difference in teh full rate? so i would get back 30 cents per mile?

I think that fits under #1 from my previous post. You wouldn't get 30 cents back per mile, but you could deduct 30 cents/mile from your gross income when you're doing your taxes.

Is there a thread or other resource that compares card benefits like; this one gives double the manufacturers warranty, or this one has the best rental car coverage.com? If not maybe a thread like that would be useful.

Although it has been quite a while since codename47-type tactics have been widely discussed here, I feel the opportunity for financial gain is substantial enough to justify this question (flame-free!). First, some background: I have no overdue debts. Credit cards are all paid in full, pristine credit report, no late payments, no judgements, etc. However, I have a cell phone number that has been getting somewhat frequent debt collection calls intended for other people, people that I have no connection whatsoever with, and do not share a similar name with. My standard policy has been to inform callers that they have the wrong number, they usually apologize, and the calls from that collector usually cease. I keep typed notes of each of the callers for future reference, including date, caller ID, name of caller and company, etc. This has been working well, until recently.

The latest collection agency, from the first call that I answered, I gave them my standard "wrong number" answer, the clerk acknowledged, and then hung up. Later I got another call from another individual from the same agency (recognized from caller ID), who became very aggressive and rude. She refused to identify the name of her company until I asked her directly. We went back and forth, with her saying that she will not stop calling this number, that she doesn't believe me that I am not her target, so on and so forth. Subsequent calls have been made to my number since, but I happened to miss them.

Now, my plan is as follows:
1) Send a "cease communication" letter certified mail RRR to their corporate headquarters, listing no personal contact information except the phone number that they are calling (I don't want to give them other ways to attempt to target me).
2) Wait for next phone call.
3) Record next incoming phone call, where I try to get the caller to confirm as much as possible about their identity.
4) File a lawsuit in federal court under FDCPA
5) Profit??? (Will they agree to settle once served to avoid going to court?)

Any holes in this plan? I feel ethically this is sound, considering they've been told 2+ times that they have the wrong number, but won't stop harassing me.

Comments, please.

If a company doesn't offer 401(k) so the employee has to invest in their own IRA, how do they get the tax benefits? Since the company will take out the taxes on the money that will be invested in the outside IRA. Do you have to wait till next filing year to get a credit back on the taxes paid?

Quick scenario that my wife and I are going back and forth about:

$9500 in savings
$3000 in checking
Single CC at a balance of $4000, ~12% APR

Should we pay off the CC in full right now, or continue to build that emergency fund and make ~$750 payments until the balance is zero?

tequilavip said:   Quick scenario that my wife and I are going back and forth about:

$9500 in savings
$3000 in checking
Single CC at a balance of $4000, ~12% APR

Should we pay off the CC in full right now, or continue to build that emergency fund and make ~$750 payments until the balance is zero?

How much do you spend a month? How secure is your job? How much do you make (how much is added to your e-fund monthly?)? At 12%, I'd lean towards paying off the $4K now and use the saved interest to bolster the emergency fund. Or, as nycii said, if you can qualify for a 0%, 0 fee BT, that is a good option.

Received a Memorandum of Costs and am panicking!

Hi so I think I need help and I have no idea what is going on. My best friend suggested that i start here.

Today I was visiting my mother's house when she said she received this letter for me, which is odd since i haven't lived with her in years. It's a Memorandum of Costs after judgement acknowledgement of credit and declaration of accrued interest sent from Nelson & Kennard on behalf of Pioneer Financial LLC. First and foremost I have never heard of either of these companies. I have spent the last few years rebuilding my credit after being young and stupid. I hope you can imagine my panic when i saw this letter mentioning a judgement which totals 0$ but has a whopping $3364.28 in the Declaration of Accrued Interest box.

I have no idea where to turn or what to do. i have worked so hard to make my credit less crappy and to receive this has scared the living daylights out of me. Should I seek a lawyer? should I contact the courthouse? I just don't know what to do and hope that maybe I can get some guidance from you all.

Thank you!

Oh i should mention that there is no information about the original debt in any way shape or form.

Maybe. But that's life, if you need/want to sell do it. Don't worry about what your neighbors think. If they feel that way, they're not great neighbors anyway.

Edit: if they say something to you, you can counter with "I just helped you appeal taxes(lower comparable sales I the neighborhood so you pay less every year"

Not a newbie but still asking

I have an American Express premier rewards gold card that I got 50k bonus points from in 2010. When I wanted to cancel it for the $175 fee at the end of the year and they were dropping continental airlines, I told them it's not worth it anymore (seriously I would have kept it). I got an offer to keep it and they'd give me 17500 points to equalize the cost of the card. I did take the offer since I could still redeem it for continental and an international business ticket is worth like 0.06 per point. However, I now have other cards that I'm using more frequently due to better price protection (Continental card allowing online price protection as well) and now there's nothing I'd like to redeem the points for.

They can't convert the charge card to a regular credit card I know this. So what are the consequences I have to face if I cancel the card and get an additional card at my parents' AMEX?

Pros:
1. No $175 annual fee
2. Helping parents earn Cash Back through their card (I only use my AMEX at costco)

Cons:
1. Finished with AMEX? (Do I still get the credit reported as an authorized user?)
2. Reducing my credit line (It's a charge card with no limit actually, but have around $37k in 4 different chase cards, and $23k in 2 Citi Cards)
3. Not eligible member since...

Anything else I'm missing?
What would you suggest?

PS: I rent one of my parents' properties by the campus so there is always a money flow between our accounts anyways, so all I have to do is check out the AMEX website to see how much I spent and add it to the rent. So it's no hassle.

Tosunum said:   Not a newbie but still asking

I have an American Express premier rewards gold card that I got 50k bonus points from in 2010. When I wanted to cancel it for the $175 fee at the end of the year and they were dropping continental airlines, I told them it's not worth it anymore (seriously I would have kept it). I got an offer to keep it and they'd give me 17500 points to equalize the cost of the card. I did take the offer since I could still redeem it for continental and an international business ticket is worth like 0.06 per point. However, I now have other cards that I'm using more frequently due to better price protection (Continental card allowing online price protection as well) and now there's nothing I'd like to redeem the points for.

They can't convert the charge card to a regular credit card I know this. So what are the consequences I have to face if I cancel the card and get an additional card at my parents' AMEX?

Pros:
1. No $175 annual fee
2. Helping parents earn Cash Back through their card (I only use my AMEX at costco)

Cons:
1. Finished with AMEX? (Do I still get the credit reported as an authorized user?)
2. Reducing my credit line (It's a charge card with no limit actually, but have around $37k in 4 different chase cards, and $23k in 2 Citi Cards)
3. Not eligible member since...

Anything else I'm missing?
What would you suggest?

PS: I rent one of my parents' properties by the campus so there is always a money flow between our accounts anyways, so all I have to do is check out the AMEX website to see how much I spent and add it to the rent. So it's no hassle.

1) If you have any remaining MR points, you will lose them when you cancel your card.
2) There's a thread in here someplace - if you close your card, they'll still keep your history. I had a card from 2001-2003. I closed it (my only AMEX). I opened a new AMEX in 2006, my cards and credit report say member since 2001.
3) you could demote PRG to the Zync Charge card from American Express. it has a $25 annual fee, and doesn't really do anything, but you could sock drawer it.
4) Apply for a non-charge AMEX with no annual fee (Blue Cash) and cancel the PRG card. you'll keep your "member since" status.

Does anyone have the "my apartment was broken in to" thread bookmarked. I searched but could not find. Neighbor's apartment was broken in to yesterday and I realize there is nothing stopping them from hitting mine next.