Category: Taxes

Tax season is officially underway, and for Americans in their mid‑60s and beyond, one new rule stands out: an extra deduction of up to $6,000 that can sharply cut what they owe. The so‑called “senior bonus” is layered on top of existing breaks for older filers, but it only helps if you know you qualify…

Millions of households are being told to brace for a tax season jolt, but for once it is the kind that could pad their bank accounts instead of draining them. The Treasury secretary is signaling that typical workers may see unusually large refunds, in some cases up to $2,000 per household, as new tax rules…

Rising dental costs can turn a routine cleaning or an emergency root canal into a serious hit to your budget. The tax code does offer some relief, but only if you understand when dental bills count as medical expenses, how the thresholds work, and exactly how to claim them on your return. I will walk…

Oregon regulators have ordered a high-cost lender to return hundreds of thousands of dollars to residents after finding the company charged interest rates that violated state law. The case forces a rare look under the hood of a business model that thrives on borrowers’ financial distress and tests how far the state is willing to…

The new 1% U.S. remittance tax is already nibbling at the cash many families send abroad, turning routine transfers into a little more of a luxury. The good news is that the law is full of carve-outs, and with a few changes in how you pay, you can often avoid the charge entirely. I will…

Millions of Americans were told they would not be punished for falling behind on their taxes during the pandemic, only to discover later that a technical failure inside the Internal Revenue Service quietly cut them out of that relief. Instead of automatic penalty forgiveness, some taxpayers saw unexpected bills, smaller refunds, or no refund at…

Child care has become one of the biggest line items in many family budgets, but the tax code quietly offers a way to claw some of that money back. The child and dependent care credit, claimed on IRS Form 2441, lets you turn a slice of eligible day care, after‑school programs, or in‑home help into…

The $600 IRS reporting rule turned a once obscure tax form into a flashpoint for anyone who gets paid through apps instead of paper checks. At its core, the rule tried to drag casual side hustles and online sales into the same reporting net that already covers traditional contractors, but it did so with a…

The Internal Revenue Service does not need to knock on your door or pore over your receipts to reach into your checking account. Its power to take money directly from a bank rests on collection tools that operate separately from the traditional audit process, and they can move faster than most taxpayers expect. I want…

Homeowners in New York, California and New Jersey are finally seeing meaningful relief from a federal tax rule that has squeezed high property tax areas for years. A temporary expansion of the state and local tax deduction, paired with fresh IRS inflation adjustments, is poised to cut federal tax bills for many households that have…