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Brief, easy to understand insights and realistic solutions for saving money on taxes at every stage of your life.
All you need to know about cutting your taxes...this year and every year!
Simply the best thinking
THE TRUTH AND NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH
This book reveals 52 PROVEN bite-size, easy tax savings techniques that work.
“Kay Bell’s blog aims to provide tax and personal-finance tips and advice that will put more money in your bank account, not the government treasury.”
The Wall Street Journal
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Figuring Out Your Filing Status
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Filling out the Right Form
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Meeting Filing Deadlines
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Not Everyone Has to File
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Truth #35 – How Bad Investments Can Pay Off
The Truth About Paying Fewer Taxes: Truth #9 – Why Credits Are Better
Download the sample pages (includes Part 1)
Introduction vii
Part I: The Truth About Filing Requirements
Truth 1: Not everyone has to file 1
Truth 2: Figuring out your filing status 5
Truth 3: Filling out the right form 9
Truth 4: Meeting filing deadlines 13
Part II: The Truth About Taxable Income
Truth 5: Determining what's taxable 17
Truth 6: Earned versus unearned income 21
Truth 7: The alternative minimum tax 25
Truth 8: Our progressive tax system 29
Part III: The Truth About Credits and Deductions
Truth 9: Why credits are better 33
Truth 10: Standard versus itemized deductions 39
Truth 11: Dealing with deduction limitations 43
Truth 12: Maximizing charitable deductions 47
Truth 13: Deducting without itemizing 51
Part IV: The Truth About Taxes and Your Family
Truth 14: Marriage and taxes 55
Truth 15: Innocent and injured spouse issues 59
Truth 16: Tax implications of divorce 63
Truth 17: Claiming exemptions and dependents 67
Truth 18: Adoption assistance 71
Truth 19: Child and additional child tax credits 75
Truth 20: Tax help in caring for your kids (and others) 79
Truth 21: Tax-favored college savings options 83
Truth 22: When a child has to file 87
Truth 23: Taking tax-smart care of a parent 91
Part V: The Truth About Taxes and Your Employment
Truth 24: Getting your withholding right 95
Truth 25: Tax-favored employer-provided benefits 99
Truth 26: Recouping employee business expenses 103
Truth 27: Writing off job-hunting costs 107
Truth 28: Tax help in paying work-related moving costs 111
Truth 29: Self-employment tax considerations 115
Part VI: The Truth About Taxes and Your Home
Truth 30: Mortgage interest deduction 119
Truth 31: Writing off your property taxes 123
Truth 32: Increasing your home's tax basis 127
Truth 33: Home-sale tax exclusion 131
Part VII: The Truth About Investment Taxes
Truth 34: Capital gains rules and rates 135
Truth 35: How bad investments can pay off 139
Truth 36: Reporting investment income 143
Truth 37: Wash sale rules 147
Truth 38: Accounting for the kiddie tax 151
Part VIII: The Truth About Retirement Taxes
Truth 39: Individual retirement accounts 155
Truth 40: Company retirement plans 159
Truth 41: Retirement saver's credit 163
Truth 42: Retirement plan rollovers 167
Truth 43: Taxable Social Security benefits 171
Truth 44: Required minimum distributions 175
Truth 45: Estate taxes, or leaving it to your heirs, not the IRS 179
Part IX: The Truth About Tax Compliance
Truth 46: The trouble with tax protests 183
Truth 47: Payment options 187
Truth 48: Tax penalties 191
Part X: The Truth About Audits
Truth 49: Minimizing audit risks 195
Truth 50: Preparing for an audit 199
Part XI: The Truth About Special Tax Situations
Truth 51: Taxpayers abroad and military filers 203
Truth 52: Tax help in disastrous times 207
Epilogue 211
About the Author 212