It’s That Time of Year Again
Yeah, it’s Christmas and the holidays, but it’s also year end, where it’s the time to tie up loose ends for your 2011 tax season! I enjoy this time of year almost as much as I enjoy Christmas and the holidays, frankly.
This is my “to do list” to prepare for year end:
- Go over my receipts for expenses and add them up (I really enjoy this and I am not sure why)
- Go over my charitable donations and make sure I have more than $200 (so I can get deduct 29% and not 15%). If you need to donate, why not donate to your favourite cause AND guest post on my blog? Deadline is Dec 16! Email me!
- Go over my non-registered and see what I can see/ move into my TFSA investment account to offset the capital loss I have for this year
- Make sure I max out my extended health benefits (acupuncture here I come!)
So in addition to reading my own post on how to save more money on your taxes (yes, I tend to be egocentric like that, look at my own reference articles) and my post on 16 last minute tax tips for Tiger Woods/ and his number of mistresses (yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking when I created that blog post title- don’t ask!).
Liz from H&R Block sent me some other tips that might help (and I thought they were quite useful, so I’m re-posting them in point form here)
- Do a rough calculation of your taxable income (this is important so you know what to expect!)
- Donate shares that would gain capital gains to charities
- Pool medical expenses (If you have an expensive trip to the dentist coming up, you may want to consult a calendar. Medical expenses can be claimed in any 12-month period ending in 2011 so it could be beneficial to try to fit known medical expenses into the same 12-month period in order to maximize your claim. You don’t actually have to go to the dentist but if you have an outstanding amount, try to pay the bill by the end of the year. Remember, medical expenses are reduced by a percentage of your income. So the greater their dollar value, the likelier it will be that you can make a claim
PF blog Love
- Retire by 40 gives us an update on hour four-plex rental investment
- Invest it Wisely has a great guest post on how he relearns a valuable lesson to not fall for the hype when it comes to the stock market (and we relearn and relearn again- or at least I do!)
- Dividend Ninja has a great post with and update on income trusts (remember them? They were the bees knees!)
- My Own Advisor has a Million Teacher book giveaway! I am planning/hoping to read Andrew’s book this weekend and have a giveaway for you next week too!
- Boomer from Boomer and Echo has a great post on how to avoid identity theft
- Crystal over at Budgeting the Fun Stuff updates her monthly income for last month. $10,000- yes you read that right!! She is on F-I-R-E! GOOOO Crystal!
- Id theft blog gives the best identity theft tips
- If you haven’t yet entered Sustainable Personal Finance‘s first blogiversary giveaway of an iPad, do so now.
- Prairie Eco Thrifter discusses some eco friendly home improvements that reap great returns.
- Little House in the Valley has a great guest post on the five steps to buying a home
- Krystal from GMBMFB reviews and rebalances her investment portfolio with the help of a fee based advisor
- I was included in Lindy Mint’s DIY Friday (check out her DIY xmas decorations- they are awesome!)
- And Kevin from Invest it Wisely is giving away $300+ just in time for the holidays! Go enter to win!
Thanks for the mention and all of the support!!!
@Crystal- Thanks for visiting! Keep up the fantastic work Crystal
You’re MY idol! 
Thanks for the mention! I’m not looking forward to this upcoming tax season.
@Echo- Me neither…
It’s gonna be complicated. Oh well, lets hope we both get some nice refundage (you with your child tax credit and me with my education tuition credit lol).
We have started prepping for tax season too. We are trying to get all of our investment stuff sorted out before month end so that we can get our receipts for filing. We will be away in the new year so we like to get our stuff filed before we leave.
Thanks a bunch for the inclusion. I really appreciate it.
@Miss T- Yeah the time is a’tickin to tie up those last minute tax loose ends! I haven’t gotten a chance to look at my “to do” list. Been busy this weekend with my other “to do” lists, like getting my winter tires on and putting up the xmas tree.
I actually do rough calculation of our taxable income right after our last paycheck in December. It helps to see if we owe or maybe getting something back. Other than that I have not thought about my year end plans/goals yet. But soon I will.
@Aloysa- Doing it after the last paycheque is a good reminder! Do you do your rough calculation with tax software?
I actually keep a spreadsheet estimating my income for the year throughout the year! I have a row for each month’s paycheck, plus rows for each bonus I am supposed to receive. Then on the side, I have the full breakdown of my paycheck’s deductions. After each paycheck, I verify the numbers against my pay stub and change the color of that row. This way, I can easily forecast my overall income and whether or not I can Roth IRA for the year. I also keep track of interest/dividends in this spreadsheet.
My employer makes it really easy to adjust our tax withholding throughout the year. The IRS has an awesome calculator for that, so I use that at the beginning of the new year, whenever I get a bonus, and at the beginning of December. Since it takes FOREVER to get your tax refund back, this way, I’m most likely to have a very small tax refund or owe a very small amount.
Good luck with your tax preparation!!
@Leigh- LOL girl, that is why you is da bomb! You are so organized! When do you get your tax refund back in the states? Here you fill out the T1213 to get your tax withholding adjusted throughout the year, but I’m too lazy to do it, and I actually really like getting my big cheque next year (I’m such a loser that way, I know). It’s like my instant “lump sum” RRSP/TFSA contribution for next year.
Thanks for the mention! I haven’t done a rough tax calculation yet, but I think we’ll owe quite a bit this year due to capital gain earlier this year.
@retirebyforty- Did you sell your winning stocks? Or was it from selling an investment property? I hate paying capital gains. That’s why I’m moving most of my stocks into my TFSA where IF i sell my stocks, I won’t incur any gains. However, if I lose big time, I get screwed too. I guess its gamble.
I never really know what to do for tax season if I picked up odd jobs. Like, in 2011 I did pick up quite a few and need to pay taxes on those – probably about $3,000 or so. But because they were informal, I’m always kind of confused.
In any case, happy taxes!
@Daisy- Did you get a paystub for those odd jobs? Or was it “cash” (wink wink nudge nudge). I know a lot of tutors who get paid like $25 an hour who don’t declare their income (or servers and their tip money). But you didn’t hear it from me
Love your focus on what you need to accomplish before the end of the year. Shopping, what’s the big deal…
@Dr Dean- Hi Dr! Yeah, I know! I’m pretty immune to all this consumerism. Maybe it’s because I have a highly trained limbic system lol (was reading in Newsweek magazine today about that). I saw a tweet that the average spent for xmas presents is $1200! That’s a lotta money!!
Thanks for the blog love! Yeah, taxes this year are going to be messy for me. More dividend income to figure out, ACBs, which is a good thing, but I’m REALLY going to test my self-taught accounting skills
Cheers! Chat next week!
@MOA- lol, well if you don’t hear anything from the CRA, then that’s a good thing!
Thanks for the inclusion, Y&T!
@Invest it Wisely- you’re welcome!
Have a good weekend.
Thanks Young!
My employer actually makes it SUPER easy and I can adjust my tax withholding using a website that is accessible outside of the VPN.
It took me 5 weeks to get my tax refund this year from filing in late February, whereas the previous year it only took about 3 weeks from filing in early February. (Since no one else is really crazy enough to file their taxes that early, it doesn’t take long to process the return! lol)
So long as you use your tax refund as an instant lumpsum for your RRSP/TFSA, I suppose it’s not that bad
Thanks for including a link to my guest post! And oh yes, taxes. This year paypal is sending out 1099′s for those who’ve processed over $20K in payments. I’m trying to figure out what to do about the processed payments I’ve processed for others. I’m leaning towards a 1099, but I’m confused. This year I’ll have to get tax help.
@Little House- You’re always welcome, my CA friend! Oh dear, that sounds like a lot of work- because how can paypal tell (or the gov’t for that matter) whether you’ve merely processed the payments or received the payments! I’m contemplating getting tax help this year too- it all depends on how much taxes I might have to pay.