Jill Russo Foster

Let Tax Season Begin!

Yes, it’s that time of year again – tax time! YOu can begin filing your tax returns today. If money is tight, you may be hoping for a refund. But, like many people, you probably have to use part of your refund to pay for having your taxes done.

But, what if you didn’t have to pay a tax preparer? If you have a simple tax return, and you earned less than there limits, you can qualify for FREE tax preparation. The IRS has free filings for income under $66,000, while VITA (more on VITA below) limit is $54,000. Or, check out AARP Foundation Tax-Aide, which has different guidelines by state.

These are the three safest and most reliable options for no-cost income tax preparation (that I know of.)

I know there are some other companies that promise free preparation, but watch for these restrictions:

Do they offer to do your federal return for free, but charge you for the state return?
Do they restrict your appointment to the first two weeks of February? (I’m really organized, but even I have to wait for W-2’s and 1099’s, etc.)

With the IRS, VITA and AARP, you don’t have to rush and they do both Federal and State (if local rules allow).

Find out if you qualify for VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance)

Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) has volunteers trained by the IRS to do tax preparation for people who are low to moderate income (families earning less than $50,000.) There are locations in every state, typically at public buildings (like libraries, schools, or town government offices). All have different days and hours. Find the location that meets your schedule by visiting the IRS website.

Find out if you qualify for AARP Foundation Tax-Aide

AARP also offers tax preparation services under their program AARP Foundation Tax-Aide. The program gives special attention to those over 60 years of age. There are eligibility requirements that must be met to take advantage of this service. For more information go to AARP.org

These programs are both designed for those with relatively simple tax returns. People who have more complicated returns that include rental property, buying and selling of investments, or businesses are usually not eligible. Check with each organization for locations and eligibility requirements.

Remember: this year April 15 falls on a Monday and that may be a Federal holiday depending on where you live, so you may have an extra days to file your taxes!

The Importance of An Emergency Fund

I am rerunning a post from 2016 that has been really relevant to us so far this year (and the last week of last year too). We had three events between the holidays and now, that we are so grateful for our emergency fund. It saved us again!

We woke up on a Sunday morning to no heat or hot water. If that wasn’t bad enough, our plumber was away for the weekend. The installer of the system was attending a football game was wasn’t available. Luckily, we found a temporary solution. That was great because the part took two weeks to come in (as it was back ordered). Next, I was driving home on the highway and I had car trouble. Help came quick and it was a minor repair. Lastly, the furnace began dripping and another call for service. All in all, this could have been a really expenses month on top of our regular bills. We were fortunate enough to have an emergency fund to rely on when needed.

In praise of emergency funds! I can’t say enough about having an emergency fund to use in times of an emergency, as well as having the protection of insurance. We had a big life emergency this time, and it could have been much worse.

While Dave and I were out of the house for about an hour and a half, an emergency struck our house. A feeder line for the toilet broke and we came back to a small geyser. Not only was the bathroom flooded, the water flowed into the master bedroom and then down into the basement. Ugh! You can imagine the damage this has caused. But it could have been much worse.

So this is how our afternoon went:

* Shut off the water – we had individual shutoffs installed all over the house
* Next the clean-up began – towels, wet vacuums and more
* Contacted the insurance company to file a claim. This is the first homeowners claim we ever filed.
* Started the removal of the damaged stuff, and this was hard without Dave being able to move things.
* The insurance company sent out Service Master to remediate the damage. They moved the heavy furniture, installed the industrial fans and dehumidifiers to lessen the damage
* Next day we had to replace the modem, as we lost phone and internet service. It’s difficult to make multiple calls with only a cell phone.
* The drying out stage lasted for days. It included the carpets, hardwood floors, ceramic tiles, sheet rock, furniture and that’s only the big stuff!

Now we are at the rebuilding stage, with the contractors giving us estimates for replacing floors, hard wood and tile, sheet rocking the portion of the walls that were cut away with water damage, painting of rooms, replacing furniture and items that were damaged and more.

Living in a disorganized home as two rooms of furniture and personal items had to be moved out of the rooms and the basement, made our home somewhat of an obstacle course for quite a few weeks. Hopefully by the holidays, we can be back to our organized house.

Tax Time

It’s that time of year when we start to think about taxes – gathering documents, looking at what can still be done to benefit you.

Now that it’s 2019, there are still some things you may be able to do to help yourself in 2018.

Don’t forget it’s not too late to make your pre-tax retirement contribution for last year. You actually have until April 15 to make your contribution for last year, if you haven’t maxed out your contribution for the previous year. This is turn could lower your taxable income and may turn owing on your taxes into a refund.

If you have a Health Savings Account (HSA), you may also be able to make a contribution for last year, if you haven’t maxed out your contribution amount for 2018. Again, this may lower your taxable income and may turn owing on your taxes into a refund.

Ask your accountant what you can do now to see if you can benefit from this for last year. It never hurts to ask.

Get Organized

January is National Get Organized month.

What are you doing to get yourself and your space organized?

In my book, Thrive In Five:Take Charge of Your Finances In 5 Minutes A Day, January is the month to organize your bills. Now that the holidays are over, actually open up your bills and look at the bill details, don’t just pay them. Take the time to review them to see if it’s correct. Take the time to see if you can do something to save money, Take the time to see what competitors are charging – maybe it’s time to switch or negotiate. If you want to follow along, my book gives you action steps for each day of the month, so that this isn’t an overwhelming task.

We review our bills in our household each year and it never ceases to amaze me how much we can save. We stick to my 5 minute a day theme, take an honest look at one bill. We found that our gasoline credit card bill neglected to give us the $.06/gallon discount. It’s not much, but it is still our money. So we made a quick call and got the discount applied. All this in less than 5 minutes.

And because it’s January and following along with National Get Organized month, we have set up our new filing system for 2019 bills. Start the filing now as the year begins so that your don’t have paper piling up. All papers are filed and ready if or when you may need them.

If you want to learn more about taking charge of your finances and would like to purchase a copy of my book, Thrive In Five:Take Charge of Your Finances In 5 Minutes A Day click here.

January Credit Report Reminder!

It’s January 2019! Time to start the year off right!

Hello, it’s Jill again, reminding you to get your finances in order for the New Year by checking your credit report. For your first report of the year, use Experian.

How to Order Your Credit Report

The only authorized source for your report is AnnualCreditReport.com. You won’t be charged and they won’t force you to sign up for “credit monitoring”. It’s yours to review by law.

To Learn More, Visit AnnualCreditReport.com:

Select, Request Your Free Report.
Fill out your information, then click Continue.
When it asks you to select a service, select Experian.

Not comfortable ordering online? There are other ways to order your report:

Mail your postal order by downloading the form at AnnualCreditReport.com
Call in your order at 1-877-322-8228 FREE

What should you do with your report?

Review it for accuracy!
Follow the instructions to correct any errors.
And, always remember to keep copies for your records.

Were you hoping for your credit score instead? One option is to take a look at CreditKarma.com, Quizzle.com or CreditSesame.com. They won’t give you a FICO score, but they come close by providing a close approximation of your score. And, there’s no charge for you.

P.S. I’ll send you other credit report reminders in May and September to help you keep track for the year.

I work with individuals, couples and families who struggle with their finances and need help getting on the right road – sooner rather than later.
Biography
Jill Russo Foster is an award winning author and nationally acclaimed speaker. Her books – Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day and Cash, Credit, and Your Finances: The Teen Years – help teens and adults understand the importance of personal finance. Using real world examples and her knowledge of the credit and loan industries, she offers information and advice that can be immediately put into action. Her website is www.JillRussoFoster.com

Buy my Books
Cash, Credit, and Your Finances:
The Teen Years

Help your teenagers learn about credit, loans, and savings before they leave home.

Most of our financial problems today are caused by a lack of knowledge. No one wants to admit that they don’t know how to handle their money, but few people do. Today’s world is not a cash world, it’s a credit world. A credit world is a much more complicated world to live in. If your children don’t learn early, they could be headed for trouble.

Order Online

Buy the Book
Thrive in Five: Take Charge of Your Finances In Five Minutes A Day

Each year do you resolve to improve your finances only to have something happen that pushes you back to the same place you were last year? Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day will help you change that. With daily short tips that take five minutes or less, this book will help you improve your credit score, spend less, and save more money – all while getting organized!

Order Online

Buy the Book
111 Ways to Save

If you want to tighten your budget and reduce spending, but don’t know where to start, stop waiting! Try any of these super easy cost-cutting tips to find extra cash in your wallet.
The money saving tips are organized by category, so you can tackle each area of your life.
Savings can be found throughout our lives, but sometimes you need to have a suggestion to see it for yourself. These simple tips will help you to reduce your expenses. In addition, there are charts and lists to simplify your meal planning, travel packing lists, and more to help you plan ahead and save money.
Order Online

Starting Off Your Finances For The New Year

Is one of your goals to take control of your finances this year? Do you want to get control and understand what you have and what you need? Do you just want to get your finances organized once and for all? Do you feel there are no more ways to cut your expenses? Is your goal to save more money for retirement or other goal? Whatever you want, January is always a good time to start.

If you want to take a quick look and here’s a few tips from Real Simple Magazine – 22 Smart Ideas to Take Control of Your Money.

For a more in depth look, my book Thrive In Five: Take Control of Your Finances In Five Minutes A Day is a great way to start your finances off with a quick suggestion for each day of the year. Each chapter is dedicated to one aspect of your finances. And it even includes catch up days to when there isn’t enough time to squeeze on more thing into your day. For more information or to purchase your copy, click here.

Happy Holidays!

Double (Sometimes Triple) Savings

If you are like me you love to save. Getting something for less makes my day. So imagine if you could save even more. Well I have done great this holiday time.

I have shopped online and in person and saved both ways. Just yesterday, I found the item I have been looking for with double the savings. I have been looking for a great multi purpose day tote / carry on. It has to do double duty to carry all my items as a carry on (needs to be sturdy and have pockets) and it has to double as a day tote for shore excursions (to handle all that’s needed on shore) and zip closed. I have been searching and looking for months – at the outlets, at the famous tent sale last week and found it online this weekend.

I tell you this because I wanted this and I wanted it at a bargain. First, it was on sale for 40% off, then the site offered free shipping and easy returns – a must. Then I found an additional discount with Honey to make the saving even greater.

Another example, I purchased windshield wiper blades with a discount coupon at the auto parts store. They installed them for free which is also great. I came home a found a rebate offer on the purchase of two blades and immediately completed the online rebate. I do this online so that I can keep track of the rebate status.

Yes, I do this with most of my shopping year round. Double and sometimes triple savings with coupons, cash back /rebate offers and credit card rewards all add up to savings. How are you saving with your shopping this holiday season?

Increasing (or Starting) That Emergency Fund

Are you one of those people that sets a goal to have or increase your emergency savings fund each year. As we reach the year end, did you accomplish this?

An emergency fund is something that each and every one should have. If life hands you an unexpected expense and you really need to pay for this now, how will you handle this without that emergency fund? That unexpected expense can be a car repair, loss of a job, a home repair and more. These expenses typically come when you don’t have any extra money. If it’s something you need to do immediately, without this savings you will be adding debt to your budget. That’s where your emergency fund comes into play. If you have one, you wouldn’t have the stress of figuring out how to pay for it. That’s why you need to start or increase yours today!

Have you made your plan to start or increase your emergency fund? Don’t get overwhelmed thinking you need thousands of dollars now. Nobody starts off with thousands, think baby steps to increase your emergency savings with each and every pay check.

Steps to start your emergency fund:

Open a new savings account for your emergency fund – don’t link it to your ATM. debit card.
Set an amount to save each pay period – can you find $10 or more to save each pay period?
Set up automatic withdrawals from your paycheck – either through your payroll dept. or with your bank. Think pay yourself first attitude (you won’t spend it if you don’t see it).

Follow these steps to start out and increase the dollar amount at least annually. A good time to do this is when you get a raise at work – more money coming in, the more money can go to your emergency savings. Suze Orman’s suggests that everyone needs eight months in their emergency savings. That can be overwhelming, so let’s start with a goal of saving $1,000 in a year – you can do this as it’s on;y $20 a week.

If you haven’t started or at the level you want / need to be at, these are some great tips from WIFE – Women’s Institute for Financial Education to get you started.

Happy Savings!

Fact Checking Charities

My heart breaks with all the information and photos from the California Wild Fires. We all want to help and these people need our help. but you want to give where your money will do the best and not go to scammers. If you choose to give, and I’m sure you do, make sure your money goes to those in need through a charity that you have researched.

This is also the time of year when you are receiving mail / calls from many charities who are asking for donations in this holiday season. Check them out as well.

Unfortunately, it’s fairly easy to set up a charity, and fundraisers can legally keep most of the money donated to the cause. Not to mention the scammers who are out there to take your money. Before you donate, find out whether the charity is legitimate. You should also find out how your money will be spent.

You can start your research at Give or Charity Navigator. These organizations research charitable organizations to find out how they use the funds they receive – how much actually goes to the people in need versus other expenses.

Here are some tips to help in your research:

Find out if the charitable organization has a 501(c) status (IRS code for non-profit organizations). Non-profits have stricter requirements, and your donation may be deductible on your tax return.
Find about how much of each dollar is being used for the cause versus administration costs and other expenses. The more expenses, the less of each dollar is being used for those in need. Look for the lowest administrative costs.
For cash donations, request a receipt to use as documentation on your tax returns. All donations over $500 will require additional documntation, so speak with your tax preparer ahead of time.
When donating non-cash items such as food, clothing, furniture, etc, you will need an itemized list of the items you donated and the total value. Most charities will ask you to value your own items.
Make sure you get a receipt for your donations with the charity’s information on it.

Do your research and chose the organization(s) wisely. This is a great way to help out others who are less fortunate than you during this season of giving.