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This month we are going to do something a little different! We have a "workshop" talking about taxes that shows different tax credits you can claim! So read and click the links below to find out more information.  Join us as we go through different tips and tricks about taxes in order for you to get a better understanding. We will discuss ways to help finding the right tax preparer and what taxes you might be eligible to claim. We also have ways to help save money with tax returns and how to go about doing so in the best way. This is an overall guide to help you understand even more about taxes.
Let’s start out with watching a video that teaches us about finding the right tax preparer and things to avoid as well. How to Choose a Tax Preparer This video had a lot of information in such a short amount of time, but it consisted of many ways to help you find a tax preparer and what to look for. Make sure you write down notes as we go through so you can look back and see what tasks you need to do in order to improve your situation. This is a self guided course in order to meet your needs in the best way possible. Let’s move on to different tax credits you may be eligible for. Click on each link in order to learn more about it and how to see if you’re eligible or not.
Seeing the different taxes you can claim can help you see what money you can save and how to do so. Let’s move on to reading about how we can get the most out of your tax refund. Get the most out of your tax refund in 2021 Let’s move on to watching a video that will help us see how we can save even more money with a few tips. 3 psychological tricks to help you save money | The Way We Work, a TED series The following are some additional guides for filing taxes in more unique situations: Claiming a Child When You're Divorced or Separated Marriage, Divorce and Taxes Reporting Alimony and Child Support Tax Breaks for Foster Parents All About the Adoption Credit Filing as a Widow or Widower We hope you enjoyed this self-guided workshop and refer back to these resources to better understand taxes and improve your financial situation.
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One thing that has been overwhelming for me as a student in family finance is all the new terms to learn without actually experiencing them yet. For example, I am not yet a homeowner and have not had to go through the process of getting a mortgage loan, but I know I will need to be familiar with ideas like mortgage, real estate, appreciation, amortization, down payment, closing costs, debt-to-income ratio, and more when I am ready to own a home. These terms and others like stocks, bonds, and mutual funds will make a difference in all of our financial lives. So if we haven’t yet become homeowners, if we haven’t started investing, or if we just don’t yet feel comfortable with our financial knowledge, how can we know these terms well enough to start? This post will include 3 tips on getting familiar with financial terms on your own and resources that will help you do it.  1. Listen to Podcasts  Podcasts are a great way to learn about finances. You can listen to quick ones in the car on the way to work, while cleaning the house, or while cooking. In fact, one podcast, Popcorn Finance (popcornfinance.com), is designed to discuss finance in about the time it takes to make a bag of popcorn. Another quick one is Optimal Finance Daily (oldpodcast.com), which narrates blogs about personal finance so that you don’t have to find and read them yourself. Dave Ramsey is a famous personal finance advisor who has created many resources including a podcast called The Dave Ramsey Show (daveramsey.com) that is very popular. As a beginner in personal finance, you may not know where to start or what things you should be familiar with. The benefit to these podcasts is that you can simply start listening and discover what there is to learn. However, if you do have something specific you would like to know about, like investing, you could go searching for that on the podcast and listen to related episodes. You can listen to these podcasts, and more, on spotify, apple podcasts, google podcasts, and their respective websites. QUICK TIP: Once you have found a podcast that you like and is helpful to you, follow its social media to have more of that educational influence in your daily routine. 2. Continue Learning About the Terms You Have Discovered  Once you have been introduced to various new terms through listening to podcasts or through discussions with friends and family, you will want to dive deeper into those that really interest you. Investopedia (investopedia.com) is a trustworthy and easy-to-understand website that will help you progress in your personal finance knowledge. By searching for a term like “credit limit” on investopedia.com, you will be able to find articles that define it, and sometimes a video to explain it as well. If you are a visual learner, videos will be great for you. TD Ameritrade is an online financial services company that deals with online stock trading and investing. Ithas videos on its YouTube channel that are quick and informative on financial terms. Another way to deepen your study on the terms you have discovered is to ask friends and family to share their experience. If you are not yet a homeowner, talk to one about his or her experience. Real examples, especially the examples of people you know, love and trust, will do much more to increase your understanding than any quick definition online will. 3. Set Goals Based on What You Have Learned  These new financial terms will be effective in your life once you put them into practice. After discovering new things and learning more about them through podcasts, social media, websites, and discussions with friends and family, set a SMART goal (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timebound) for when and how you want to start trying those things for yourself.
When something like investing or budgeting is new to you, you won’t start it unless you make a goal to do so. So, if you don’t feel comfortable with your personal finance knowledge and don’t know where to start, how can you learn about it on your own? Listening to podcasts, diving deeper into newly discovered terms on trusted websites and through discussions with loved ones, and setting a goal to get started experiencing it yourself by a specific date are three ways to start your journey toward being a financial guru! Goal Setting It’s a New Year, which means a new you, right? Have you already set your goals for the New Year and already failed at them? Sometimes we take on too many things at once and try to change every single part of our lives. This can be overwhelming and stressful! Setting financial goals can be hard to stick to, which is just like any other goals. Also, trying to come up with what you can do to improve your financial situation can be hard to know where to start. If you are struggling to know where to start, have already given up on your goals, or if you haven’t had the chance to make them because life is too stressful, one way to start is to make a… BUDGET!  This may seem like a big and overwhelming task to do, but if you break it up and accomplish one thing at a time, it is definitely doable! Follow these three steps to help you along the way!
In order to figure out how you can afford the things you want and need, the first step is to track your expenses. Write down what you spent and how much you spent, with every purchase you make. As you do this throughout the month, you will be able to take a look at it and see what you are spending your money on and where your money is going. You then should review what you are spending your money on and create a budget. You can do this in multiple different ways, such as, using an App, Spreadsheets, Pen and Paper, or using the Envelope Method. The Envelope Method can be used by making envelopes for each category, such as groceries, rent, car payment, savings...etc. and when you are going to go grocery shopping you only use the amount that is in the envelope for that month. This can help you stay within the limits you put in each category. All of the other methods are essentially the same thing, but just in a different way. Remember that there is no right way to budget, just do what works best for you! 2. Start Saving Remember to add a category in your budget to put a certain amount into savings. This will help you in many different ways. A good way to become successful with your budget and money is by making sure you have some savings. This can be used for emergencies, a down payment for your home, or if you are unemployed and need to live off your savings. A savings account has many benefits that can help you as it is important to add money to it every month, even if it's just a little bit. Sometimes life happens and we end up getting a flat tire, or parking somewhere we shouldn’t and getting a ticket, or even forgetting about a family members birthday. It is important to save. The best advice I have been given about savings is to save at least 10% of your paycheck in your savings account. This can be very beneficial to a set amount in your savings because once it is in there it is much harder to spend. Savings can be overwhelming but putting at least 10% away proves that you are budgeting even though it may be small, it can be very beneficial in the long run.  3. Stick to Your Budget Once you have tracked your expenses, made your budget, and implemented your savings, it is important to stick to the budget you have made! You put a lot of work into figuring out what works best for you. Once you have tried out your budget, you will be able to see necessary changes that might need to be made. You can challenge and stretch yourself to fitting within your means. For example, if you noticed that you have spent too much money on eating out, you can set your budget to only spending $20 a month on eating out. You can go through each category and see if your budget is working for you. Once you set these limits, stick to them! This can be hard at first, but once you figure out the groove of having a budget, it starts to get a lot easier. Sticking to your budget will improve your situation and cause less stress!  These three steps can get you on your way to financial success! It can be really hard when just beginning to try these methods out, but once you figure out what works best for you, you will see how easy and effortless it really can be! Remember to start tracking your expenses to help you know where to start, then from there you make a budget and make sure to put savings in a category for your budget. Then stick with your budget and make changes as necessary. Let’s make February the month where we start budgeting and stick to our goals for the year!
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AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
April 2021
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