March 31st, 2008 Bill Winterberg
After several notices this year, I finally received my first phishing attempt by folks masquerading as the IRS. Here is their note below:
After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of $2839,49. Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 3-9 days in order to process it.
A refund can be delayed for a variety of reasons.
For example submitting invalid records or applying after the deadline.
To access your tax refund, please click here <link removed>
Best Regards,
Tax Refund Deparment
Internal Revenue Service
© Copyright 2008, Internal Revenue Service U.S.A. All rights reserved.
TAX REFUND ID: IRS822513
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General, Taxes | No Comments »
March 27th, 2008 Bill Winterberg
Oh man, March has been a terrible productivity month for me. I caught a bad cold the week of the 10th and missed most of the week at work. Then I left on the 14th for California for vacation with my wife. Fortunately my health improved as my vacation began, so it wasn’t a complete loss.
I must recommend how I spent my time in California. We rented a convertible and drove north on the coast from San Diego to San Francisco. All the sunshine was welcome, especially coming from a rather cloudy winter in the Pacific Northwest.
Upon my return I just had 4 days in the office this week as I’m out again on Friday. Therefore, I haven’t made much progress on long-term objectives, and I also have been delinquent on my blog duties. I apologize to my numerous readers and subscribers!
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General | No Comments »
March 9th, 2008 Bill Winterberg
Notices from the IRS regarding the Economic Stimulus Payments are now being mailed to taxpayers. In case you haven’t received yours, I uploaded a PDF copy of one.
The notice describes how most taxpayers do not have to perform any special tasks or complete forms to receive the payment. It also covers eligibility and runs through a basic chart to calculate how much to expect for a stimulus payment.
Below is a preview of the notice, which you can see in its entirety by clicking here.
Posted in Taxes | No Comments »
March 4th, 2008 Bill Winterberg
A little more than a week ago I wrote about how the IRS was unable to accept electronic files for returns created solely for the purpose of applying for the stimulus payment. The problem is two-fold: our return software, TaxWise, does not generate an efile for $0 AGI returns, nor does the IRS currently accept efile returns when AGI is $0 (as mentioned here).
In my previous entry I referred to a temporary solution to the efile problem and I’m happy to report that the IRS has officially sanctioned the use of this solution. I received confirmation of the IRS’ position in a message from Bonnie Speedy, the National Director for AARP Tax-Aide.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Taxes | 2 Comments »
March 2nd, 2008 Bill Winterberg
I suppose my blog doesn’t have to revolve around financial planning 100% of the time. Still, financial planners buy plenty of airline tickets to attend national conferences, study groups, and retreats. A little more than one month ago, I started using a tool called Yapta.
I used to fly cross-country quite a bit from 2002 to 2005 and developed some pretty good skills to buy cheap airfares on major carriers. One of my most reliable tools was, and still continues to be, the matrix display from Orbitz. Enter your origin and destination and select the search option for 1 day before and 1 day after your ideal travel dates. The matrix display shows nine different travel options with the lowest prices for each day.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in General | No Comments »
