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The Home Office Deduction

Work from Home? A Home Office Deduction is for you.

Home-office-deduction-300x200If you work from home, or use part of your home for your business, you can decrease your tax burden by claiming home office deductions. To be able to deduct home office costs, the IRS requires that the use of part of your home is done regularly and exclusively for business purposes in order to claim the home office deduction.

Need to know more about this method of offsetting taxes? Practical Taxes, your choice for affordable tax preparation in Billings, has the answers.

 

What is a Home Office?

If you are self-employed or a business owner, one of the following should be true about the “business side” of your home:

– It is your principal or main place of business

– It is a place where you deal with customers, clients, or patients on a regular basis, as part of your normal business routine

– It is a separate structure that is not attached to your house (ex. garage, studio) but used solely for your business, and never for personal activities

– It is used to provide day care services for children, the elderly, or handicapped individuals, and meets corresponding local and state licensing requirements.

– It is used as a storage area for inventory or products that you sell in relation to your business, and your home is your only place of business.

If you are an employee, home office deductions can be claimed if you meet the home office requirements as a business owner (mentioned above) and:

– You work from home not for your own convenience, but for your employer’s convenience (ex. your employer does not have his/her own headquarters so you have no choice but to provide your own work space)

– You do not rent the office part of your home to your employer and use it to accomplish your tasks as an employee (in other words, you do not get to receive rent income for doing office work in your own home)

What Expenses are Considered Home Office Expenses?

Direct expenses – These are the costs incurred to maintain your business space such as painting the walls, or treating the windows for privacy and security reasons. Direct expenses are fully deductible.

Indirect expensesIndirect expenses are the costs incurred for maintaining your entire home such as rent, mortgage payments, real estate taxes, utility bills, general repairs, cleaning services, trash collection fees, security services, homeowner’s association fees, and depreciation. Only a percentage of indirect expenses is deductible based on its proportion to your entire home. Take note that only those costs which benefit your entire home and affect your business space in some way will count as an indirect expense. For example, if you are paying for a cable bill, and you do not have a TV with cable in your business space because it is irrelevant to your business and the cable is strictly for personal enjoyment, then you can’t include your cable bill as an indirect expense. In other words, money you spend specifically for personal benefit (ex. installing a jacuzzi in your bathroom) can never count as a home office deduction. The IRS is also very specific about excluding lawn service payment from being counted as an indirect expense.

How to Claim Home Office Deductions

Regular method. With the regular method, home office deductions will depend on the percentage of your home that is used for your business. To illustrate, if your business space takes up 25% of your house, you can deduct 25% of your expenses. This method is a bit more complicated and time-consuming because of all the records and documents you would need to support your claim.

Simplified option. With the simplified option, home office deduction will be computed by multiplying your office area (in terms of square feet) by $5.00. The maximum allowable area is 300 square feet for a maximum home office deduction of up to $1,500.00. Simple enough as it is, the trade-off for selecting this method over the regular method is the maximum cap it has. If you know for a fact that your deductions are way above $1,500.00, this method will not be beneficial for you.

Practical Taxes can Help

Here at Practical Taxes in Billings, we know that working from home is a great benefit. We also know that working from home can present some unique challenges. But most importantly, we know that you get a good tax deduction when you use your home for business purposes.

If you are unsure of how to do your taxes this year since you have started working from home, don’t panic! We can prepare your taxes so that you receive the biggest refund possible using the home office deduction.

Give us a call at 406-894-2050 to get started.

 

Know Your Business Tax Filing Deadline

What’s your Company’s Business Tax Filing Deadline?

When it comes to tax planning, it’s never too early to start, or too late to plan. January is almost over, so it might make more sense to look back so you can learn from what happened last tax season, and make better plans for the current year. On the other hand, there’s no harm in trying to come up with some last-minute maneuvers (just legal ones) that can help reduce the sting of taxes. But it all has to be done before your business tax filing deadline.

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File on Time

If you have been in business for a while, you might be used to following tax filing deadlines that have been in effect for some time for businesses following a calendar year; that’s March 15 for S Corporations and C Corporations, and April 15 for Partnerships. Due to a recent bill passed by Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama, the Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015, some tax filing due dates have been adjusted, particularly for those in business.

Starting this year, the business tax filing deadline for Partnerships (Form 1065) has been moved one month early, from April 15 to March 15. The filing deadline for C Corporations (Form 1120), on the other hand, has been moved one month later, from March 15 to April 15. The filing deadline for S Corporations (Form 1120S) remains unchanged at March 15.

To avoid being slapped with unnecessary fines and penalties, make sure you adhere to the new business tax filing deadline.

Apply for an Extension if Needed

While some tax filing due dates have changed, the prerogative to ask for an extension hasn’t. So if you are not yet fully prepared to file on your original due date, take advantage of the special consideration being given by the IRS and apply for a 6-month extension (Form 7004) not later than your original due date. For example, a request for extension should be filed by a C Corporation on or before April 15.

Based on the revised due dates, extension deadlines are as follows: September 15 for Partnerships and S Corporations; October 15 for C Corporations.

Don’t worry, Practical Taxes can help you submit the tax filing extension if you need more time.

Review your Deductions

Based on Section 179 of the Internal Revenue Code, you can opt to recover the entire cost or part of the cost of certain qualifying property by deducting it in the year you used it for your business. Starting from 2014, that’s a deduction of up to $500,000 from eligible business expenses such as office furniture and fixtures, business machinery and equipment, computers, software, and many other depreciable properties.

If your business is involved in one of the following industries: architectural and engineering services, construction, film production, or manufacturing, then it might serve you well to look into Section 199 of the IRS Code. Basically, this allows you to deduct up to 9% of your income that is directly derived from qualifying activities related to manufacturing done on U.S. soil.

If you use your home or part of it for your business, make sure you do not forget to take advantage of what is known as the home-office deduction. Based on the simplified version, you can deduct up to $5.00 per square foot (up to 300 square feet) for a maximum deduction of $1,500.00.

Practical Taxes Does Business Tax Filing

As a business owner, you have a lot on your plate. You have to worry about the ins and outs of running a business, worry about employees, worry about the bottom line, and make sure everything is going well with the business. The last thing you want to worry about is whether or not your taxes were done right.

Practical Taxes has you covered. We will prepare your taxes, make sure everything is filed, and ensure that you are getting the largest refund possible.

Give us a call at 406-894-2050 to schedule an appointment.

 

Why You Should Invest In Your Web Presence

Your Web Presence is Important

Web-Presence-300x212Do you know of anyone who doesn’t turn to the Internet to look for information about a product or service that he/she is interested in? No? And that’s precisely why online presence is now an essential part of having a successful business. You do want your business to grow, right? By not being online, you are missing out on so many benefits. Practical Taxes, your best choice for an accountant in Billings, lists out 6 of the most compelling ones that should spur you to action, in case you are still unconvinced or half-hearted about investing in your web presence.

 

Visibility

More and more customers are going online to search for solutions to their problems or needs. When they type their query into the search engine, there’s no chance of you showing up if you do not have a website. So stop being invisible and do what you can to make sure you show up on the front page of that search results list.

Accessibility

With a website and strong web presence, your business becomes accessible to all people from all walks of life, in any part of the world, at any time during the day, because the Internet never sleeps. If you have an online store, as soon as a potential customer makes the decision to buy your product, he/she can immediately place his/her order. Which means better sales potential for you because you are able to immediately meet the customer’s urge or impulse to buy, in contrast to just having a physical store which is restricted to specific operating hours.

Trust and Credibility

By having a well-maintained website, you establish a permanent venue where customers can check out all kinds of information about your business — your background, your mission, the products and services you are offering, reviews about your business, your interactions with other customers, and all other activities you engage in. If you have a blog, it can serve as a reference for what your brand stands for, what you support, and what is important to you. And if you have social media accounts, you get to connect to your customers on a more personal level and further your web presence. Projecting a positive image on your website and your social media accounts makes you more credible in the eyes of customers, making them trust you more easily, and therefore, more likely to avail of your offers, as well as leave good feedback for you.

Wider audience

Because anyone who has Internet connection can find out about your business, having a website and overall web presence will exponentially increase your reach not only locally, but globally too. So instead of just relying on those who physically visit your store, you now have the ability to tap a much broader customer base. And with the power of social media, you can reach so many more!

Effective marketing tool

Many people like to take their time before finally making a purchasing decision. Having a website that provides detailed descriptions about your products and services allows you to address the needs of these types of buyers who would prefer to check out information on their own rather than deal with an aggressive salesperson. Plus, marketing through your website is significantly less costly compared to traditional advertising. Letting people know about your new offers and promotions is also much, much faster when done online.

Better customer service

One of the most important sections that your website should have is an FAQ section. This way, consumers will have a quick way to get answers to the most common questions and issues related to your offers, without having to do anything else but browse through the available information. If they happen to have unusual or deeper concerns, having a “Contact Us” section can help them get in touch with you easily. And the sooner you get back to them, the better chances you will have of making a new sale, as well as keeping your existing customers happy.

Practical Taxes helps Businesses Succeed

By providing full accounting services, Practical Taxes can relieve some of your stress as a business owner. We offer tax preparation, payroll, and more. Give us a call at 406-894-2050 to schedule your time to learn what we can do for your business.

Practical Taxes serves the Billings, Montana area. We specialize in offering affordable accounting services for businesses and individuals.

 

6 Dos and Don’ts for an Energy Efficient Home

Want a More Energy Efficient Home?

Energy-Efficient-300x225If we are honest with ourselves, we will admit that we all have bad habits. Maybe it’s forgivable if it doesn’t affect anyone but yourself. Sadly, it seldom does. The good news is that bad habits can always be changed. And when it comes to using energy, the sooner we transform our bad habits into good ones, the better it will be for us, our entire household, our country, and our planet. Being energy efficient shouldn’t be the exception, it should be the norm.

Practical Taxes strives to be the best accountant in Billings. So we have put together 6 do’s and don’ts that will help you become an energy saver through an energy efficient home. These will help you save money, reduce your impact on the environment, and still enjoy a happy and comfortable home.

 

Don’t leave appliances on standby. That small red light that remains on still uses up electricity just by being plugged in.

Do turn off and unplug all appliances that you aren’t using. This includes chargers which continue to use electricity even when they’re already fully charged. For commonly used appliances, try using a power strip. This way, you can easily switch power off and on without having to plug and unplug every time.

Don’t constantly wash clothes at a very high temperature. It doesn’t only make your bills go higher, it also makes your clothes shrink faster. Modern detergents don’t need hot water; science says 80 degrees is hot enough for most clothes (that’s barely over tap water temperature in most places).

Do wash your clothes at a lower temperature, or simply cold water from time to time, and wash full loads only. After washing, there’s no need to tumble dry your laundry all the time. When it’s a sunny day or a windy day, try air-drying your clothes. It’s not only an energy saver, it also helps make your laundry smell more pleasant.

Don’t take the sun for granted. It’s the easiest to use renewable resource we have.

When the sun is out, do welcome its warmth into your home by opening your blinds, curtains and drapes. When evening comes, keep the warmth in by closing your rooms off. With leftover natural warmth, your heater will not have to work as hard to keep the room warm and cozy.

Don’t insist on using lights that are pleasant to the eyes, but not to your budget. The days of bright 40-watt, 60-watt, and 75-watt incandescent bulbs are over.

Do replace those energy-burning high-wattage lights. Use energy-efficient lights like light-emitting diode or LED bulbs. Although significantly more pricey than general lighting bulbs, LED lights tend to be more of an investment because of the expected energy savings you’ll reap in the long run. Compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs) are also an option. They’re less costly and almost as energy-efficient as LEDs; however, they don’t last as long. Don’t forget to clean your lights regularly too so that it always gives off its maximum brightness, not dimmed by dirt and dust.

Don’t ignore those drafts. When combined, those small leaks and gaps that let cold air in and warm air out can result in a very noticeable difference. And not in a good way.

Do seal everything up so that air is kept in and let out, only through openings and entries that should. Use caulk, sealant, or weather-stripping to plug cracks, gaps, and leaks on walls, doors, windows and electrical outlets.

Don’t close your mind to the idea of going solar.

Do give solar energy a chance. Global warming is a very real threat and it’s time to seriously consider doing as much as possible to save energy and help keep our planet alive. The initial cost of solar power installation might immediately turn you off. It shouldn’t, though. Having your home powered with solar energy might just be the most energy-efficient move you can ever make. You’ll just have to open your mind to its possibilities. Even in our northern climate, your house can convert a lot of sunlight to electricity.

Practical Taxes Wants to Save You Money

Whether we are helping save you money on your taxes, get a bigger tax refund, or save you time, we believe in doing all that we can to make sure you are living a rich life. In order to be the best accountant in Billings, we believe in passing along money saving tips whenever possible. Those tips include making your home more energy efficient.

Want to get started saving money on your taxes? Call 406-894-2050 today!

Should I Keep A Budget?

Is it Important to Keep a Budget?

Budget-300x200Anyone who has money to spend should, at some point, learn how to set a budget. At the very least, a budget will give you some kind of direction — a plan to follow so that you’ll have enough money to pay for the things you need, and hopefully, for the things you want. Everyone has goals, right? And in terms of financial goals, it is practically impossible to achieve what you are aiming for if you do not have a budget.

If you still need a bit of convincing to start one, Practical Taxes, your affordable accountant in Billings, lays out 4 of the most important reasons.

 

Control Spending and Avoid Debt

Before the age of credit cards, it was much easier to live within one’s means. It’s quite simple, you have to make sure that you spend just enough so you can pay for everything you need, or else you might end up having nothing to eat, having your utilities disconnected, or having to be thrown out from your apartment because you can’t pay for rent. Now that there’s plastic money, however, responsible spending has become more of a challenge, rather than what used to be a norm. It’s just become so easy to have your credit card swiped, and promise to pay for it later. There’s hope, though. Even if you have access to both cash and credit card, with a set budget, it will still be possible to manage your finances and make sure that you know just how much you can spend each month — with savings to spare, and without having to go into debt.

Set Short-Term Goals; Achieve Long-Term Goals

Keeping a budget will give you a clearer picture of where you are, and where you are going. If you have short term goals, it’s only logical that you should have long term goals too. How else could you give something up if you aren’t looking forward to something better in the future? So you might feel bad that you can’t have that new laptop or that divine-looking dress you know would look absolutely gorgeous on you. But if you remind yourself that it’s a small sacrifice you’re making so that you can buy that new car you’ve been saving up for, then it will be probably be that much easier to keep your money in your pocket and walk out of that store.

Be Prepared for Emergencies, and Retirement

If you don’t keep a budget, it will be that much harder to practice what financial experts have been recommending, is to pay yourself first, before paying others. Essentially, you should make savings part of your budget, and not an afterthought. This way, you’ll have what you need to deal with the unexpected (emergencies), as well as the expected (retirement).

Develop Discipline

One of the primary purposes of having a budget is for you to keep track of how much you are spending, and what you are spending for. If you don’t set a budget, there won’t be anything stopping you from eating out for every meal, buying all those clothes and shoes that catch your eye, going out for a drink every night, and just spend, spend, spend. But, if you are aware and mindful of where your money should go and where you want it to go, you will learn when to say “yes”, when to delay and say “some other time”, when to say “it’s time for a change”, and when to say with conviction — “definitely not!”

Practical Taxes Helps you Keep a Budget

A budget is not something you get right the first time. Changes are always happening and you need to be able to adjust accordingly. Remember that a budget is something to guide you after all, not restrict you from actually having a life. So while you’re working your butt to pay for all those bills, don’t forget to keep your eye on the prize and assure yourself that though the journey might be hard, reaching your destination will make it worth your while.

Let Practical Taxes prepare your taxes this year. We can help save you money, and get a larger refund than you thought possible. This means that you can bolster your emergency fund and not have to worry about breaking your budget if something unexpected happens.  Call 406-894-2050 today to schedule an appointment.

How Much Home Can You Afford?

Have You Considered the True Costs of Buying a Home?

real-estate-agent-billings-montana-300x227Buying a house is a big step. But most people don’t really understand what a house is going to cost them. Instead, they look at the price of the home, plug that into a mortgage calculator, and then think “hey, I could afford those payments!” What they fail to take into account is that owning a home is more than just principle and interest payments each month. If you’re wondering how much home you can afford, keep reading as Practical Taxes breaks it down.

For the sake of our analysis, we will use a home price of $200,000 and a 4% interest rate with no down payment.

 

Paying on Principle and Interest

Principle and interest are the two biggest components of owning a home. We can figure out exactly what those payments are by using a mortgage calculator. Google has one built right into its system, or there are dozens online (Bankrate has a good one).

Using a calculator we can see that a 30 year loan will cost $955 each month.

Paying Private Mortgage Insurance

Private Mortgage Insurance, or PMI, is required if you put less than 20% down on the house that you are buying. This insurance protects the lender in case you default on the loan. Unfortunately you, the buyer, has to pay for this insurance that does nothing for you. PMI can run between .5% and 1.5% of the loan costs. Let’s use the lower number for our analysis.

PMI will cost an additional $83 per month.

Paying for Insurance

Homeowner’s insurance is a good idea even after you have paid off the loan. If you have a mortgage on your house, it is required by the lender that you maintain insurance. Costs for insurance premiums can vary dramatically depending on where you live, what types of materials were used to build the house, how old the house is, and if there are any “dangerous” items or animals on the property (swimming pools, trampolines, aggressive dogs, and the like). Most of the time homeowner’s insurance is pretty cheap.

Insurance will run you another $75 per month.

 

Paying for Utilities

Depending on where you were living before, you might not have had to worry about utility bills. If you lived in an apartment, then your bills were likely a lot lower than living in a home. Apartments are often warmer (especially if your unit was between 2 others), they don’t have a lawn to water, and generally they are smaller than a house. When you move into your own home, you are responsible for the entire utility bill. Since they fluctuate depending on season, age of the house, size, etc. we will try for a reasonable average.

Utilities will be roughly $200 per month. Not including phone, internet, cable, and other perks.

Paying for Maintenance

We’re not done adding up the costs of owning a home yet. Unless you are buying a brand new house that comes with a warranty, you are responsible for all of the maintenance that goes along with the house. That means if a water heater conks out, you get to fix or replace it. If the furnace dies, the dishwasher overheats, the refrigerator stops running, or even a light bulb burns out, then it is on you to get it back in order. That’s not to mention the fact that eventually the roof will need replaced, landscaping dies, and things will need upgraded, updated, and at least painted. You can pay for all of these when the time comes, but it would be better to have an emergency fund to offset those costs.

A maintenance slush fund needs at least $100 per month added to it.

The True Cost of Owning a Home

When you add up all of the costs, you can see that owning a home is a lot more than plugging the price into a mortgage calculator. In our example we see that our monthly costs come to:

  • Principle and Interest: $955
  • PMI: $83
  • Insurance: $75
  • Utilities: $200
  • Maintenance: $100
  • Total Costs: $1,413/month

Owning a home comes to about 150% of the principle and interest. So before you jump into home ownership, make sure that is the number that you can afford.

Practical Taxes Can Help

When you need an accountant in Billings, you have options. If you come to Practical Taxes you will get low cost tax preparation by an accountant. Your tax refund will likely be higher than if you try to do your own taxes, and the end result is that you have more money that you can set aside to put as a down payment on your next home.

Need to set up an appointment to have your taxes done? Call 406-894-2050.

Credit Card or Cash?

The Debate Wages on: is Cash or Credit Card Better?

Credit-Card-300x200When making any kind of purchase, the same question is always asked (even if not out loud): will you pay in cash or using a credit card? It is typical for many people to use one or the other in different situations because both payment methods do have their own advantages and disadvantages. The key is to balance your choices so that you get the best of both.

If you read a lot of personal finance, you will hear the experts loudly proclaiming cash is better or credit card is better! They have their reasons, and ultimately it depends on you and your personality. Your Billings accountant lays out the details why you might choose one over the other.

Advantages of Paying in Cash

Controlled Spending – When you pay with cash, you are forced to be more mindful of your spending because you can only spend money that you actually have. If you go shopping with $500 in your pocket, you can’t let your purchases go over $500.00. If you bring your credit card instead of cash, although you plan to spend only $500.00, it will take more willpower to stick to that budget and avoid impulse buying to because it is just so much easier to have your credit card swiped than hand over real cash.

No additional costs – With cash payments, there are no fees to worry about. With credit cards, even if you do not have to pay for any interest because you make sure to always pay your full balance on its due date, you’ll still have to contend with other fees such as annual fees, foreign transaction fees, cash advance fees, and balance transfer fees. And, if you happen to pay your bill past its due date (even just once), you will not only get charged with interest and late fees, it will negatively affect your credit history and credit score as well.

Security – When you pay with your credit card, merchants get the chance to ask for personal information (such as your email address, contact number, or your residence address) which they can then use for their promotional and marketing campaigns. By giving out this information, you are opening yourself up to the possibility of being victimized through data security breaches and identity theft. And even though you might not be held liable for unauthorized purchases done as a result of such, sorting things out might take some time and you will have to suffer through some unnecessary inconvenience. When you pay with cash, however, you rarely have to give out your personal data, and, you’ll be that much harder to track (for whatever reason you don’t want to be tracked by anybody).

Advantages of Using Credit Cards

Safety – Carrying too much money is rarely a smart move. When you lose your wallet or your money gets stolen, it’s simply gone for good. When you lose your credit card, you can just have it canceled and replaced. And, you will not have to pay for unauthorized purchases because of the protection that comes with it.

Convenience – When you carry only enough cash and an unexpected purchase needs to be done, you’ll have to resort to making an unscheduled withdrawal from your bank. If you have a credit card, you can easily pay for your purchase with it, and then make sure you include it in next month’s budget so you won’t have to pay for any interest charge.

Flexibility – When you’re fond of traveling, having a credit card gives you more flexibility because foreign stores and vendors generally accept payments from major credit cards. In contrast, you might need to have your cash converted to the country’s currency before you will be able to use it to pay for anything.

Additional perks – Paying in cash keeps you away from additional fees and charges, but rarely ever gives you the chance to receive any other perks. Credit card companies, on the other hand, usually offer rewards and incentive programs such as frequent flier miles, freebies from partner establishments, cash back rewards, and all kinds of discounts. More importantly, every time you pay your credit card bill on time, it makes your credit history look better and consequently, improves your credit score. This will certainly come in handy when you get faced with the need for a huge amount cash which you can only come up with by applying for a loan.

Easy monitoring – Credit card statements give you a complete and accurate record of all the purchases you made. With cash, you will have to do manual recording of your purchases so you’ll know where your money went.

Do You Prefer Cash or Credit Card?

The debate will always wage. Some will say cash is better, others claim you’re throwing away money by not utilizing perks. What it boils down to is your preference. If you’re disciplined and can manage your spending, then a credit card is great. But if you tend to overspend, then carrying cash is ideal.

Regardless of your method of spending, Practical Taxes, your best choice for accountant in Billings, MT, will provide you with outstanding service, prepare your taxes for less than you think, and get you the biggest tax refund possible.

5 Money Myths That Won’t Go Away

Stop Believing these 5 Money Myths

Money doesn’t grow on trees. No, that’s not one of the 5 money myths that your Billings accountant wants to tell you about; most people realize that money doesn’t grow on trees. It is important to be aware of what is right and what is wrong when it comes to money, especially since almost any move you make can be restricted if you do not have it. To help get you on the right track, here are 5 of the most common money myths which you should stop believing today.

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It is always best to pay in cash.

While paying in cash is almost equivalent to saying that you have the funds needed to pay for what you are purchasing, sometimes, it isn’t always a good idea to do so. Why? Because you might be missing out on special offers, discounts, and other rewards offered by credit card companies. As long as you make it a point to pay your full credit card balance when it is due (which means no interest is charged), you will be better off racking up those reward points instead of paying everything in cash all the time with no rewards. And don’t forget, carrying too much cash around is a security risk because it is prone to theft, and is untraceable. Though your credit card can also be stolen, it can easily be canceled or frozen to prevent unauthorized use.

I’m too young/old to save for retirement

When you start saving while you are still young, you’ll have the benefit of earning more through compound interest. Which means it’s never too early to start saving. On the other hand, even if you are a bit older, you’ll still get to enjoy compound interest when you save, just not nearly as much compared to starting when you were younger. Which means it’s never too late to start saving.

You get what you pay for.

When it comes to quality, almost everybody assumes that the more expensive it is, the better it is. This may be true in many cases, but not in all instances. A good example is generic drugs. Sure, you have this preconceived notion that the popular medicine brands will surely help stop whatever pain you’re feeling. But have you compared the ingredients to the generic? A generic aspirin will stop a headache just the same as a brand name one. The point is, the brand and the price tag shouldn’t always be the only deciding factors when you are making any purchase. There’s a time to be practical, as well as a time for brand-consciousness. Know when it’s worth paying the higher price, and when it isn’t.    

You can’t start saving until all your debt has been repaid.

Whoever started this myth should be ashamed of themselves. Because emergencies and unexpected circumstances are a part of life (just like death and taxes), paying off everything you owe before you start saving might be impractical, if not, impossible. Just think about it. You’re working, working, working to pay your debts and make ends meet, when someone suddenly gets sick. You don’t have extra funds to go to the hospital or buy medicine. So it’s a choice between sacrificing food and groceries, or getting into some other kind of debt. And instead of achieving your goal to be debt-free, you end up getting into more debt instead. The lesson: even if you still have debts to pay, strive to set up an emergency fund by saving even just a little bit each month so you won’t have to go into crisis mode every time something unexpected happens

A penny saved is a penny earned.

Minimizing your spending is indeed a great way to save. But it is illogical to think that the savings you get by cutting down on expenses will pave the way for elevating your financial status — you can only do that by earning more. The best way to get ahead financially is not to just save more, but earn more.

Practical Taxes Squashes the 5 Money Myths

Here’s a bonus myth that you should stop believing: stop giving the government an interest free loan. Overpaying your taxes is a good thing since most of us don’t have the discipline to save that money every single month. A sudden windfall is harder to spend than a dollar here or there, and can help boost your financial health dramatically.

To get that sudden windfall, you need a great accountant that will maximize your tax refund, and save you money. As the best accountant in Billings, we can do that for you!