Are your 2013 taxes driving you crazy? With the deadline looming, you may be scrambling to file on time or, if you won’t be ready, to request an extension.
I worked with a client yesterday morning before she met with an accountant to file her taxes. We spent most of our time together organizing current and recent bills, and double-checking that she had all needed documents for her meeting. I shared with Sue my ongoing practice about tax readiness.
Suggested as a Timely Tip on this website last fall, perhaps it bears repeating and expanding, to help you stay ahead of the game for this year’s taxes, when filing time rolls around next winter.
It’s easy. Organize papers in a tax file. I keep one going all year long. It includes letters about charitable contributions and receipts from medical appointments. There’s a list about online purchases, so I can pay state sales tax. (Yup, I’m one of the honest ones!) Elsewhere, in the old-fashioned calendar I carry around and in a small notebook kept in the car, I log miles driven for all volunteer activities, including choral rehearsals and performances. Last year’s total was 2,056. At 14 cents a mile, it’s well worth it.
Admittedly, these suggestions are so low-tech as to be no-tech. They work, though. You might try them. When tax time comes around again, as it surely will, you may be grateful for your tax file!