Still Can’t File My Taxes
So I am waiting on ONE statement from a financial institution so that I can finally file my taxes. It does not matter if I am getting a refund or if I have to pay. I just like to do my taxes early and get it over with.
I am really annoyed by being forced to wait but the documents will not be available until next week. I will file as soon as I see the document is ready so I can cross that off my checklist once and for all.
Monthly Financial Check Up: January 2012
This month I came in $1681.17 in the red. I was expecting to have a negative cash flow because of the job loss so that was something to keep in mind.
Areas where I remained under budget are:
-Shopping : I remained at $66.65 under my shopping budget. This budget includes household items, clothing and personal items.
- Home: As usual, I remained under my home budget for the month, based on the rent and water bills.
- Utilities: I stayed under my utilities budget to the tune of $42.26, even though the electric bill still needs to come down.
Send Money Online With Credit Cards Through Moneygram
I have been using MoneyGram to send money every now and then to family members who are outside of the country. I liked the program because once you register online you can receive a discount on the fee every time you send money.
I had not sent money in a little while but last week I needed to send some money in a hurry. I would have had to transfer the money from my ING savings account into a local account and then withdraw it to take cash to MoneyGram. This would take me a few days and my relative was really in a hurry so I wondered if I could do it online instead.
Valentine’s Day Is Almost Here!!!
So Valentine’s day is right around the corner and I know that many of us are getting ready to shell out some big bucks for that special someone.
There are so many options of what to give someone to show you care but they do not all need to cost lots of money. A valentine’s day gift can be sweet and practical at the same time and it can still mean a lot to someone. I know that a few people have been concerned with the economy and may be cutting back on gifts this year…while others are experiencing an uptick in finances and will spare no expense.
Started Working On My Taxes
Well I still do not have all of the documents I need to completely file my taxes. I started inputting what I have so I could see an estimate of the final picture. My tax situation is greatly different from previous years because I lost my job last year and still have not found suitable full time employment.
My W2 lists a really low figure compared to past months since I did not receive paychecks from September to December of last year. I ended up giving the same amount at church as I was giving before I lost my job but the tax software is saying I cannot claim it because I donated too much based on my income.
Just Pulled A Credit Report
I just pulled one of my credit reports from the ONLY site that is totally FREE. To get your free credit report directly from the three agencies you need to go annualcreditreport.com to log in.
Once you have filled in the necessary identifying information on the first page you will be able to request a credit report from
- Experian
- Equifax
- Transunion.
You can request all three at the same time or you can do what I do, which is request one from each bureau every four months so that you spread out the reports over a full year.
Get $50 Bonus From ING When You Open An IRA In 2012
If you have not already opened an Individual Retirement Account or IRA you now have a chance to get an extra $50 by simply opening a new account with ING.
All you have to do is go to retiremyway.com/50 and open your new account with $500 before 31 January 2012. Once your account is open and funded then you will receive the bonus by 16 February 2012. Of course this bonus will be reported as income for the year and will be listed on your tax documents but the benefit will far outweigh the cost in my opinion.
Documents You Need To Do Your 2012 Taxes
It is tax time once again and while some people view this time with trepidation, I am one of those who actually look forward to doing my taxes.
I do not get excited about my taxes because of a possible refund. In fact if I do get a refund it is really very small, meaning that the government did NOT get to hold on to my cash for a whole year.
