I look at it this way.

You either use your money for what you want during the year.

Or you let people like Pelosi, Schumer, Schiff, Nadler and Biden use your money the way they want during the year.

Remember it’s called The IRS. If you remove the space between the two words it’s spells Theirs which is how the IRS thinks about your hard earned money.

The inept jackasses still owe me my $2,000 overpayment from last year. CPA messed up and I mailed in too much.

Guess which side I fall on

That’s far from an unpopular opinion on this forum.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
a high-yield savings account

What’s that? (At least for the last many years.)
I understand that I could be making more money from my money if it were more sensibly invested, but a savings account? I would have to overpay the IRS a heck of a lot of money for it to be earning anything other than a tiny amount of interest in any savings account I’m familiar with.

Yes, I am being lazy by not learning how to manage my money better and going to the trouble to do that, but then I pay a lot to be lazy as it is anyway. And what am I missing?

I also prefer a large refund. Living on Social Security as my only income, the $3k I get back is my mad money for the year. I would much rather have that as a lump sum "fund" than to get a few dollars more each month. This year it got me a new Macbook Pro 14", with $1k left over.

The argument for not doing this was valid when interest on savings actually paid anything.

I try to keep my refund really low. I had my withholdings too low and owed the last two years. Only a couple hundred bucks. This year, according to my accountant, first in his career… my state refund was exactly the same as my federal debt. It was a perfect wash, to the exact dollar. My federal withholding should be perfect this year, and state should give a small refund.

That said, I’ll be getting a large refund when I file for 2022. I just put a solar system on the roof. That will give me $4k from the feds and $1k from the state. This is all tax credit for the solar system.

I told Mrs. Cooker to plan where she wants to go on vacation. Instead of putting it in savings and going on vacation, it gives her something to look forward to, and be excited about all year. Either way we would be taking a vacation, but this just makes it a fun/silly waiting game.

The reason I prefer to have a small refund, I get 26 checks a year. That extra $100-$200 per check that would be sitting in Uncle Sam’s savings, is more useful to me in my bank, than in a savings account I have no control over. If I need that money for anything, it’s available, instead of locked away until next year.

I share your opinion. When I was young I was sometimes jealous of people who got a big fat return until I figured it all out. We usually end up owing a few bucks in normal years and I’m fine with that. To each his own though.

We are jumping on "owe the IRS" bandwagon and altered our withholdings against next year. Our work status has changed and we won't owe taxes anyway. We are getting a four digit refund - paying for dental surgery - and also increasing our paycheck at the front door.

Mostly due to the current outrageous levels of inflation and the likelihood of it getting worse, which makes money held out of our taxes now worth less next year. At 12% inflation there is no "savings" its "losings". Along with that inflation is that it caps cash on hand at a lower level which restricts spending in unanticipated ways. Sure it could go on a credit card, that is exactly how debt is built up. We are debt free up front - getting in deep during a long run inflation curve isn't money management, it's a signal of bankruptcy.

Oh wait - that is exactly what our national money policy is doing right now -

We can discuss the usual conditions and remedies that many follow during normal times, this isn't, and I would suggest financial expedience in anticipation of extreme economic stress would be the better course. As if $5 a gallon gas hasn't signaled that. Don't give the IRS money you may well need yourself. There's a reason why states are now voting out fuel taxes to ease the pain at the pump.

Now if we could just get $5 a pound off coffee coupons. Lets not kid ourselves, things are not going well. We aren't sticking it to the man, he's been sticking it to us all along. Now is not the time to finesse a strategy when the percents are against us.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
a high-yield savings account

What’s that? (At least for the last many years.)
I understand that I could be making more money from my money if it were more sensibly invested, but a savings account? I would have to overpay the IRS a heck of a lot of money for it to be earning anything other than a tiny amount of interest in any savings account I’m familiar with.

Yes, I am being lazy by not learning how to manage my money better and going to the trouble to do that, but then I pay a lot to be lazy as it is anyway. And what am I missing?

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
During the Carter years maybe. Maybe he is taking about Bonds in Developing African countries.

I didn't write the article and that particular statement is out of date.

However, a stock market account can be very high yield and that's the way to go.

Since I first started working, I've tried to adjust my tax withholdings to come as close as possible to breaking even at the end of each tax year. It wasn't about having more to invest, it was simply because I didn't make a lot of money and wanted to keep as much take-home pay as possible. Over the years, as I started making more money, I kept the same mindset and have never received a large tax refund in my life.

quote:

Why it's better to owe the IRS than get a refund every year

Yes and no. I understand the idea, but would still rather get back a few hundred bucks than pay.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: egregore,

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
However, a stock market account can be very high yield

Not over the last couple months... I think my investment brokerage is close to running out of red ink.

(But yes, over the long run, a properly diversified stock portfolio historically performs leagues better than any flavor of bank account, even considering periods that saw relatively "high yield" bank accounts.)

I quit paying income taxes in 2016
I do not like the way Gov. spends the money.

Incoming tax evasion charges in 3... 2... 1...

He is using the Will Rogers approach to the stock market. Just buy the stocks that go up.

I try to manage my withholdings so that I'm plus/minus $300 with the IRS. I don't want to pay out too much and I don't want to loan the feral government money then get it back.

Every now an then I'm unsuccessful due to something out of my control. For example, title company filing a form with property tax authority mail my property taxes to 2 homes ago. That messed up two years in a row - no deduction one year and monster deduction next year.

When I was helping out my buddy on the gunshow circuit our best show by far was always the one in mid-April. Guys would come in and spend their "free" money they'd just got from Uncle Sugar.

I fall into the don't give the IRS too much money group. I also file an extension and do my taxes in October. Sometimes I get a refund and sometimes I pay some.

flashguy

quote:

Originally posted by tatortodd:
I try to manage my withholdings so that I'm plus/minus $300 with the IRS. I don't want to pay out too much and I don't want to loan the feral government money then get it back.

exactly. i figure if I'm within a couple hundred bucks either way we're fine with that.


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I pay every year and that's the way, uh huh, uh huh, I like it.

quote:

Originally posted by dave7378:
I pay every year and that's the way, uh huh, uh huh, I like it.