Soooo… You know that I wasn’t a fan of the first time home buyer credit. It was touted as a “stimulus” for middle class taxpayers to make home buying more affordable. The idea was that folks would rush to buy homes, thus buoying the housing industry, getting banks going again and more or less saving…
Taxpayer asks: Last year, I moved in with my boyfriend at his condo. He lost his job so I paid most of the bills. I paid the mortgage direclty for most of the year. I also paid some of his credit card bills, the car payment and some of his child support paymnets so he…
Taxpayer asks: I don’t even know how to start. Last year, I found out that I was adopted. My parents have no interest in helping me find my birth mother but it something that I have to do. I have found a lawyer that says he will help me find her but it is very…
Taxpayer asks: Thanks for taking my question. I moved back home last year after I lost my job. I’ve been paying my parents some rent but I can’t afford to pay the original amount that we agreed on. Can they take the difference between what I promised to pay and what I actually paid as…
It’s October, which means that it’s Breast Cancer Awareness month. Last year, on the blog, I promised to donate a dollar for every unique comment on my cancer post. This year, I’m doing it again. I saw, on twitter, and elsewhere criticisms of similar campaigns, asking why it’s necessary to ask for comments: why not…
Stephanie Dean and Stefani Hovarter (yeah, I know!) have filed a lawsuit against Feed The Children for wrongful dismissal. Dean and Hovarter claim that they were fired after pointing out to the charity that more than $1 million was owed to the State of Oklahoma. The tax allegedly owed is in the form of use…
The IRS amnesty program for taxpayers who had previously failed to disclose income from offshore accounts ended last week on October 15. By all accounts, it was wildly successful. According to IRS Commish Doug Shulman, nearly 7,500 taxpayers came forward to make voluntarily disclosures in hopes of avoiding criminal prosecutions. Dollar amounts ranged from $10,000…
“Survivor” winner Richard Hatch is finally a free man. The controversial TV personality, sometimes referred to as the “fat naked guy” on the show, has completed his sentence for tax evasion and related charges. Hatch walked out of jail this morning, about 6 a.m. But that doesn’t mean that he’s completely off the hook. Hatch…
In 1999, my husband and I decided that our house was too big and empty for the two of us. So we did what many couples our age did: we got a dog. Our lab mix, Lyle, has been a part of our family ever since. He goes with us to Maine on vacation every…
It’s somehow appropriate that the IRS would release a private letter ruling regarding a double mastectomy in October (in case you’re not aware, it’s Breast Cancer Awareness month). Here are the facts: Taxpayer had a double mastectomy. She later gave birth to a healthy baby. As a result of the mastectomy, she was not able…