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Don’t be surprised if your mortgage payment takes a big jump. Local property taxes are rising quickly, as well as insurance rates in some areas due to natural disasters. In turn mortgage companies who provide an escrow service to home owners are raising escrow payment amounts to cover the rising costs. Plus, if your property [...]

That is a question I get at least once a week. The answer I always give is, “The IRS can take your house, after jumping through certain administrative hoops. But, the IRS does not do that very often. The IRS pursues other collection methods much more frequently.” If the IRS has jumped through all the [...]

Part of Wider Effort to Protect Taxpayers & Prevent Refund Fraud “As tax season begins this year, we want to be clear that there is a heavy price to pay for perpetrators of refund fraud and identity theft,” said IRS Acting Commissioner Steven T. Miller. “We have aggressively stepped up our efforts to pursue and [...]

Payments to Cover Alimony in Arrears Aren’t Deductible When the taxpayer failed to pay alimony required under a divorce decree, his former wife won a court judgment requiring him to pay the past due amounts. He then paid what he owed and deducted it on his return. But, because state law doesn’t provide that his [...]

Many students take a job in the summer after school lets out. If you know such a student, please share this article with her. Or if you happen to be one of those students, you should read on and take heed. If it’s your first job, it gives you a chance to learn about the [...]

In December 2016, MGM National Harbor, located just minutes from Washington, D.C., had a grand opening. If you are thinking about heading out that way to try your luck in the casino, read this article before you go. Gambling winnings are fully taxable and must be reported. Yes, gambling winnings are always taxable income even [...]

You may have heard that scammers have been calling people claiming to be from the IRS. You may have even received such a call. I have received at least two voice mail messages of this nature. The caller says you owe money to the IRS for unpaid taxes. The caller then threatens you with arrest, [...]

The IRS has been trying to alert taxpayers to a telephone scam involving taxes. The scam involves threats of dire, immediate consequences for not paying immediately. I know this is happening because I have talked with four people in the last month who have received such IRS scam calls. Unfortunately, one person did become a [...]

If you are going to get a tax refund from Virginia this year, you can get it in the form of direct debit to your bank account or in the form of a debit card, not a check. If you chose or are considering the debit card option, you should be aware the Virginia Department [...]

Recent cases of massive identity theft have prompted the Internal Revenue Service to create a Cybercrime Unit to investigate the growing trend of identity theft.  Hackers obtain information by hacking into websites to retrieve names, social security numbers and income data and then filing false returns for refunds.  These data breaches come from various business [...]

One question I get asked frequently is, “How long does the IRS have to do a tax audit on my returns? Can they go back forever?” Generally speaking the amount of any tax must be assessed within three years of the filing of a return. That is, in most circumstances, the length of time the IRS [...]

A disabled widow, after her husband’s death, discovered his financial mess. Her wealthy attorney / politician husband of 20 years had handled all the family finances. All bills, including tax, were sent to the Post Office, where he maintained a mailbox. By the time of her final resolution, the tax liability totaled $1,985,511! [Alioto v. [...]

If you have been in the unfortunate position of having the IRS file a Notice of Federal Tax Lien against you, you know that such a lien can have a serious, adverse impact on your credit score. After you pay the tax debt in full, the lien is released. But, it still is listed on [...]

An alarming 43 percent of American companies have reported data breaches during 2014, according to the Ponemon Institute and Experian Data Breach Resolution. The number continues to rise, and the scope of the breaches is expanding. More than 80 percent of data breaches have their root cause in employee negligence. A company may be spear-fished [...]

If you operate a business that runs on a calendar-year basis, you may be thinking about what you can still do in December to help your tax situation. One thing to keep in mind is the treatment of business expenses paid late in the year – that is, whether the business expense would be deductible [...]