Training Blog...

April showers bring May flowers…..April also brings Tax Day.  Since 1955, April 15^th has been the deadline to file your federal and state taxes.  This is a dreaded time for me.  Yes, I am one that waits until the last minute to gather all my receipts, donations forms, and make the appointment to file my taxes.  This doesn’t have to be an agonizing process.  There are a lot of great resources online that are available to help take away the stress of preparation and filing.  Here are some helpful tools that I have come across that you may want to check out:

1. Knowing what information you need to have with you when you file your taxes can be a mystery.  H & R Block has a free tax checklist with 10 simple questions and based on your answers will produce a checklist of all the items that you need to gather.
2. Every year there are changes and updates to tax laws.  There are individual websites, blogs, and forums that are out there that are helpful to answer specific questions you may have.  If you don’t know which ones apply to you, the Internal Revenue Service website provides links that will help educate you on the federal changes.  You can also check out your state website for any changes that may apply to your state filings.
3. Anyone that knows me knows that I lack the technical gene, but I am slowly catching up.  In my extensive search for tax tools, I stumbled across Taxbrain. This site provides a list of tax tools and widgets that can help take some of the guessing out of tax preparation.  For example, you can use their refund calculator to see approximately how much you will be receiving back from the IRS.  They also have a W4 calculator, extension forms, and a tax tips blog that you can follow. Are you ready for the best part?  All of these widgets can be added to your social media sites like Twitter or Facebook.  Very cool!
4. Need help on the go?  Now there are tools made available that can be used on your mobile devise.  Here is a couple that I thought were great.
   1. TaxCaster Mobile from Turbo Tax is a tax calculator that will help you estimate what you may owe or receive in a refund.  This is an app made for iPhone and is free through Apple’s App Store.
   2. Tax Answers from H & R Block.  This free app allows you to submit tax questions right to a tax expert.  There is also a store locator and a tax term glossary built in.  This app is available through Apple’s App Store.
   3. BlackBerry offers an app called Tax Receipts Shoebox.  Keep your itemized receipts organized, generate customized reports and much more.  The cost is $2.99 and is available through BlackBerry’s App World.

Leave a comment with any resources that you may use that you would add to this list.