I have just discovered something the hard way: filing your taxes on investments can be a major pain in the butt.
I’ve not only discovered that my usual online tax preparation service can’t handle the forms I need to file, but H&R Block wants to charge me an arm and a leg to file this stuff online.
For now, I’m going to walk away, calm down, and think about this. If I’m going to have to pay around $100 to file them anyway, it might be best if I simply hire a professional to do my taxes locally.
There’s one just up the street.
I’ve got one online tax preparation service that I’ve yet to try that I’m aware of: TurboTax. I may try them tomorrow. If I can file online without beating my head against a wall, I’ll do that. If not, it will be time to make some phone calls starting Monday.
Wish me luck.
We’ve had good luck with the online version of TurboTax. They make it pretty easy to use. So, do you have dividend income you need to report? Is that the complicating factor?
Actually, reporting the dividends is one of the easy parts…the wall I keep bashing up against is a single K-1 I’ve received from one of my dividend stocks. The company is a Master Limited Partnership, and the codes they use in some of the boxes apparently aren’t commonly used. A friend at work suggested that I call the IRS Monday to ask for advice on the situation since that’s all I’ve got left to fill out on my taxes.
Hopefully, I get really, REALLY lucky and they can help me fill it out with my original tax preparation service, because that would save me a fortune over what the other places want to charge me. I didn’t earn much since it was my very first year; to sacrifice my tiny profits to tax preparation fees would be disappointing.
I used to work for H&R Block and they charge a ridiculous amount to go to one of their offices to file (like $300 for a very simple return). If TurboTax doesn’t work I would strongly urge you to use a CPA or other local tax person, you’ll get off much cheaper. TurboTax should be able to handle it, though. I used them for years and they make it super easy.
I managed to find an online service that could handle my needs without spending too much; that said, I can tell that I am definitely going to have to start hiring a professional in the future. While I have to reservations against paying taxes, I want to find someone who understands the tax laws enough to legally minimize the amount I owe when the time comes where refunds are no longer an option.