The IRS, or Internal Revenue Service, is the agency in the federal government responsible for regulating and collecting taxes. Learn more here about your taxes and what the IRS does in these articles, columns, blog posts, videos and radio shows.
Capital Gains Tax When You Sell Your House After a Divorce
After divorce, your capital gains tax burden on the sale of a property owed with your ex-spouse can be difficult to determine. Q: I separated from my husband five years ago, was divorced four years ago. As part of the divorce decree, he was to live in the house until both of our children went [...]
IRS Policy Change Aims to Help Victims of Identity Theft
From 2011 through 2014, identity thieves submitted more than 19 million suspicious tax returns to the IRS for more than $63 billion in fraudulent refunds. But until recently, taxpayers weren’t allowed to see the fraudulent returns filed using their Social Security numbers (SSNs). That changed recently, thanks in part to a letter sent to the [...]
4 Common Errors to Avoid When Filing Your Taxes
4 common errors to avoid when filing your taxes. How to avoid errors that could delay your tax refund or require a lengthy amendment process. Everyone makes mistakes, but if your mistake happens to come in the middle of filing your taxes, you may find yourself facing a delayed refund (if you’re owed one), or [...]
My Tax Refund Was Stolen—What Should I Do?
Odds are rapidly increasing that you could become a victim of identity theft or have your tax refund stolen. In early 2015, the IRS announced that tax-related identity theft was once again a major concern for consumers, naming it to the agency’s “Dirty Dozen” tax scams list for the year. According to the latest data [...]
How a Tax Lien Can Impact Your Credit Score
If you owe money to the IRS, the agency could file a tax lien against you. A tax lien is a legal claim to all of a taxpayer’s property for the amount that taxpayer owes the IRS. It establishes priority rights against other creditors that might also have liens against the taxpayer’s assets. In addition [...]
I’m Self-Employed. Can I Buy a Home?
As of 2014, there are approximately 10 million self-employed people in the United States. If you’re one of them and you’re in the market for a new home, you may face some extra hurdles during your home buying journey. While lenders are used to working with self-employed borrowers, buying a home when you’re self-employed requires [...]
Tips on Making Estimated Tax Payments
The other day, a client called me very proudly. She had made her second quarterly estimated tax payment “right on time”—on July 15. I couldn’t help chuckling. After all, she tried to get it right. Unfortunately, she was actually one month late on her payment. Estimated taxes are used to pay taxes on income not [...]
Should You Borrow from Your Retirement Account to Fund Your Grad School Education?
Anyone preparing to go back to school has probably considered paying tuition, at least in part, with their retirement savings. After all, the money is just sitting there, waiting to be used. But that doesn’t necessarily mean you should use it to pay for your degree. “Don’t do it,” says Kathy Ruby, senior college financial [...]
What Part of My Inheritance Is Taxable?
It’s one of Benjamin Franklin’s most famous quotes: “In this world, nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Of course most people aren’t so certain about those taxes, particularly when it comes to taxes surrounding death and inheritance. Estate taxes—the so-called death taxes—have been a hot button issue for a long [...]
The Tax Implications of Renting Out Your Home
On a recent weekend, I visited the Malibu, Calif. area for brunch and a play. The restaurant had a rack of freebie publications, including a glossy homes-for-sale magazine. Wow! The homes and estates stunning—and so are the prices. The advertised monthly rental prices for Malibu homes and estates ranged from $20,000 to $100,000 per month. [...]