November 18th, 2009 | 
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Standard Deduction A taxpayer has a choice of itemizing deductions or taking the Standard Deduction in computing his Regular Tax liability. The Standard Deduction is a fixed dollar amount that varies depends on filing status. In tax year 2009 it is $5,700 for Single and $11,400 for Married Filing Jointly – what we’ll call the [...]
November 14th, 2009 | Print This Post
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“Miscellaneous” Itemized Deductions It may seem odd that a category of expenses labeled “job expenses and certain miscellaneous deductions” could affect nearly a third of all taxpayers caught in the AMT, but that just happens to be the case. This category includes, in addition to job-related expenses that are not reimbursed by your employer, such [...]
November 11th, 2009 | Print This Post
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Sales Tax on New Cars – Special Alternative Minimum Tax Benefit Expires December 31 If you still are thinking about buying a new car but haven’t done it yet, you’d better start visiting showrooms soon. The new tax law allowing a one-time deduction for sales tax paid on a new vehicle will expire in just [...]
November 8th, 2009 | Print This Post
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Property Taxes Real estate taxes Similar to state income taxes, for Regular Tax purposes you are allowed a deduction for property taxes that you pay. Under the AMT, however, you are allowed no deduction for property taxes. This problem affects 94 percent of all folks stuck in the Alternative Minimum Tax, so it is something [...]
November 2nd, 2009 | Print This Post
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State Income Taxes For Regular Tax purposes – that is, if you are not in the Alternative Minimum Tax – you are allowed a deduction for state income taxes that you pay. Under the AMT, however, you are allowed no deduction for state income taxes. This problem affects 94 percent of all folks stuck in [...]
October 31st, 2009 | Print This Post
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“It’s the time of the season” was a popular song some years ago. The barbecue grills are put away, the kids are back in school, and the foliage is starting to turn. The 2008 tax return season was officially over on October 15; now it’s time to start thinking about 2009. With only two months [...]
June 21st, 2009 | Print This Post
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Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, enacted February 17, 2009, taxpayers who buy a new vehicle this year can deduct state or local sales taxes paid on the purchase. Unlike any other itemized deduction for taxes, AMT payers also are eligible for this break. A problem, however, is that individuals in states without a [...]
June 14th, 2009 | Print This Post
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Yesterday President Obama issued a call for returning to a statutory pay-as-you-go (“PAYGO”) requirement. This issue has a direct and very significant inpact on the Alternative Minimum Tax you pay, yet it is understood by very few AMT payers. By way of background, PAYGO refers to a method of financing changes to the law that [...]
June 5th, 2009 | Print This Post
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The second quarter for estimated tax purposes actually is a bit of a misnomer. The “quarter” consists of taxes for the months of April and May alone, and these taxes must be paid by June 15. Because of this shortened period, a reminder for AMT estimated tax payers is important. Repeated below is what we [...]
May 22nd, 2009 | Print This Post
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It’s a pretty safe bet to say that the vast majority of folks do not have an understanding of the Alternative Minimum Tax. In this next “mini-series” of articles we’re going to try to give you just an outline of it, not a full-semester course as our title would indicate. This is an “audit” class [...]
