Higher Cigarette Tax Keeps Teens From Smoking

It has been shown that increasing the cigarette tax is a very effective way to get young adults and youths to reduce or stop smoking. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that increasing the cigarette tax is less common with states at the present time compared to the past.

In 2009, 15 states increased the tax on cigarettes, but in 2010 and 2011, the number of states doing the same was only eight. The state of New Hampshire actually lowered the excise tax. The CDC has found that when excise taxes are increased on cigarettes, the overall sales … Read the rest

Reduced Tax Assessments Sought By North Jersey Homeowners

Last year, Nora and Pat Sfarra were in the unenviable position of watching the market value of their eighty two year old home in Teaneck decrease, while their property taxes simultaneously increased.

Assisted by a tax appeal firm, the Sfarras managed to put this right and got the assessed value of their home decreased from $351,000 to $310,000. This gave them the benefit of saving $1,000 worth of tax, which is a real gain when you are paying in excess of $8,000 in tax. Nora Sfarra was happy that she “got something off” in any event.

Dorothy Monoopli was in … Read the rest

The Pros and Cons of Filing Your Tax Return Early

Some people can’t wait to file their tax returns. They are the lucky ones, who anticipate a refund. Others dread tax season every year, and want to put off the knowledge of how much they owe the IRS for as long as possible. In these contrasting situations, it is easy to see why some people would want to file their tax returns early, and why others would want to wait. But are there advantages to filing early, in general? Or are there drawbacks? If you find yourself considering the possibilities of both, then these pros and cons of filing … Read the rest

How To Get The Most From Turbo Tax

People are wondering for 2012 tax season how they can get the most tax refund. The filing deadline is April 17. Even though, we are a few months away from submitting returns, getting yearly spending together might be haunting the mind.

Turbo tax is the best-selling tax software that offers a step-by-step guide on how to file your tax return to get the maximum refund at a low price.  Do not pay a high price to the tax office and still wonder if your savings were maximized.

To receive the highest refund, we should choose the cheapest and best option … Read the rest

5 Reasons You Should Hire a CPA This Tax Season

Are you one of those do-it-yourselfers who believes it is always better to know than it is to pay someone else who knows? If so, it is likely that you also feel that you should be doing your own taxes. After all, how hard can it be? Millions of people do their own taxes. There are even easy-to-use software programs to help them through it. Well, while you may be right that you can do your taxes yourself, what you might not have considered are the reasons for why you might want to pass this job off to a professional. … Read the rest

What’s New In TurboTax

As the tax season approaches, it’s time learn about all of the new features included in the #1 tax preparation software, TurboTax 2011. Whether you have real estate investments, rental properties, mutual funds or just a simple tax return; TurboTax has a version to fit your needs.

What’s new with TurboTax 2011?
New features include, but are not limited to, expert advice via online chat or by phone. They also include a guide to take you step by step through your return, and make it easy to navigate to any section.

Two more features that can make your return much … Read the rest