Hidden Tax Breaks for 2020

Still figuring out your tax deductions for your 2020 taxes? Here are a few you might have missed helping you save even more than you expected! 

Hello readers, and welcome to the Hoods Tax and Accounting Services Blog! We are just a little under two months away from tax day on April 15th, are you ready? Have you already sent in your taxes and are already enjoying your tax return? Or are you still working on a few odds and ends before sending it in? Where ever you might be in your tax preparation journey, we are here to help. Just as a reminder for those new to Hoods, we have recently moved and we have updated our hours! We moved right around the corner to 105 Etling Ave. in Goose Creek, SC and we are open Monday-Tuesday 9-5 pm, Wednesdays from 1-7 pm, and Thursday-Friday 9-5 pm! We are currently offering Zoom meetings for tax prep and quick and easy drop-offs. Please contact us with any concerns or questions! Tax day is getting closer and closer and we are getting busier by the day! Make sure to contact us as quickly as possible to schedule working with us if you're still wanting Hoods to prepare your taxes this year! 

Are you still looking for ways to cut down your tax bill? The secret and sometimes the most overlooked element in helping you save money when it comes to your taxes are tax deductions. Before we get started, it is very important to remember that these write-offs and deductions need to be handled with respect, handled correctly, and never made with any assumptions. The IRS pays very close attention to these when you add them to your taxes, and if done improperly they can lead to an audit. Improperly using deductions can also lead to not getting your return promptly, tax fees, and many other issues. While you are adding up and including deductions, make sure to do your research on what exactly you can write off and how to properly do so before writing off everything and the kitchen sink. However, with that being said, there are still many "hidden" and overlooked tax breaks and deductions that so many people don't know about. To help make your tax season a little less stressful, we wanted to share and talk about the many hidden tax breaks and deductions you might still be missing out on! 

One of the main reasons why so many tax breaks and deductions aren't used is because they're not common knowledge. With tax laws changing all the time it also makes it difficult to keep up with what you can and cannot write off, and how much you can and cannot write off. Remember that there is a difference between deductions and tax credits. A deduction lowers the amount you're taxed on and a credit will lower your tax bill directly. It's important to know how they work and to use them to your advantage! When working with a tax deduction, once you have gathered and reported all that you're going to use as a deduction, you subtract the amount of your deduction from your income, lowering the amount you'll be taxed on. A tax credit is an actual dollar-for-dollar reduction in your overall tax bill. There are some refundable tax credits out there, for example, if you owe $500 in taxes but you qualify for a $1500 tax credit, you would get a check for the difference of $1000. While this sounds fantastic, most tax credits aren't refundable.

 Today, we are primarily going to be focusing on tax write-offs and deductions, to focus on lowering the amount of money you are going to be taxed on. With this list, we hope to help you save money and to make sure you don't overpay your taxes! There are two different types of deductions, the standard deduction, and the itemized deduction. While it would be nice to be able to do both on your taxes, you have to pick one or the other when filing. Make sure to do your research on which will be best for you and which will lower the amount you'll owe the most.

The standard deduction is a simple way of doing your deductions, it is very cut and dry and to the point, and relies on how you plan to file; single, married and filing together, married and filing separately, or filing as head of the household. It is also very important to remember that those who are 65 and over and those who are blind are eligible for a larger standard deduction. This standard deduction is a set amount of money that you will not be taxed on depending on your filing status, your age, and your spouse's age. The standard deductions are listed below: 

• Single filer $12,400 (add $1,650 if blind) 
• Married and filing jointly $24,800 (add $1,300 if blind) 
• Married and filing separately $12,400 (add $1,650 if blind) 
• Head of household $18,650 (add $1,650 if blind) 

Like we mentioned before, if you are 65 and older and/or blind, your deduction amount will be more. Also, if you and your spouse are filing as a married couple but filing separately, you must both choose the same kind of deduction. You both will either have to choose the standard deduction or itemized deduction, it can't be both.  

Itemized deductions are a little bit different. Instead of a set amount of money based on how you're filing that's not taxed, itemized deductions are qualified expenses that are subtracted from your adjusted gross income. You may have one item that you would like to write off in your itemized deductions, but most taxpayers who choose this option will have many qualified expenses they are subtracting from the AGI. When a taxpayer chooses to do an itemized deduction instead of a standard deduction, it usually means that the number of qualified expenses that they are writing off is more than what they would be writing off for the standard deduction. Please note that choosing to do an itemized deduction will take you much longer to prepare your taxes compared to doing a standard deduction. An itemized deduction takes more detailed work to claim and prove everything you're writing off. Depending on what you do and how many deductions you can take will be the deciding factor in choosing if you should do an itemized or standard deduction. It has been noted that the standard tax deduction has gone up a significant amount in the last few years, so it might be best to take that standard deduction. This choice will vary from person to person, and you will need to consider what is best for you when deciding! Here are a few other tax-saving options to help as you prepare your return! 

• Charitable deductions that you make throughout the year are a very common itemized deduction, however, you might be missing a part of your charitable deduction that you can write off. You can write off the donation, but you can also write off all the out-of-pocket expenses you rack up when doing work for a charity. This can include the groceries you buy for meals you're donating or dishes you're donating to a non-profit soup kitchen. You can also write off your gas if you are using your car to drive for charity and charity events. You can deduct 14 cents for every mile you drive, and the money you spent on parking, tolls, and more. Please keep your receipts from everything you do and give when involved with a charity. If you do give more than $250 in contributions and you wish to write this off, you'll need to provide proof to the IRS from the said charitable organization to prove that you did indeed donate the amount you're claiming. 
• While trips to Las Vegas and other casinos were out of the question in 2020, gambling was still available virtually thanks to our electronic devices. If 2020 was not a good gambling year for you, you might have the opportunity to deduct these losses. To do this you have to choose to itemize your taxes, and you must keep all of your receipts that track and prove what you spent on gambling throughout the year. To take advantage of this write-off, it is limited only to the number of winnings that you report on your taxes as taxable income. 
• Have you been spending a lot on childcare, especially throughout the last year due to the pandemic? There might be an opportunity for a tax credit for you! Remember, credit is so much better than a deduction, and this is one of those rare dollar for dollar refundable examples! If you pay your childcare bills with a reimbursement account through your job, you might be eligible for a tax credit. You have $5000 that, by law, you can spend in a tax-favored reimbursement account through your job. If you hit that maximum amount, but you spend more on work-related childcare, you can claim up to $1000 of that extra money spent. 
• Taxpayers who have children that are probably very familiar with the $2000 tax credit for children 16 years and younger. You can also get a $500 tax credit for your children that you still claim who are over the age of 16, and you can also claim older relatives that you're taking care of in your home. 
• For all of our teachers and educators, you can deduct up to $250 every year in what you spent on supplies for the classroom. Please remember to keep all of your receipts for this! 
• Many of us have been working from home thanks to the pandemic, so don't forget about your home office deductions. Be very careful with this deduction as the IRS has very strict rules about it. You can write off expenses connected to rent, utilities, repairs made on the home, real estate taxes, and a few other options! 
• If you've been contributing to your Health Savings Account (HSA), those contributions are tax-deductible. For an individual HSA, you can contribute up to $3550 and $7100 for a family for 2020 taxes. If you are 55 and older, you can contribute an extra $1000 to your HSA. 
• There are some qualified health care expenses that you can also deduct. This includes what was spent on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, and this amount is subtracted from your AGI. However, you can only deduct medical expenses that cannot be reimbursed up to 7.5% of your AGI, and you can only deduct necessary procedures. Procedures like cosmetic surgery can not be used as a deduction. 
• For all of our homeowners, don't forget about the option for mortgage interest deductions. This option can help make owning a home more affordable, and make tax season a little less expensive. This option cuts a homeowner's federal income tax by subtracting the amount of mortgage interest they pay! 

To all of our readers and taxpayers, know that these ten common examples are only a few examples. This is one of the many reasons why it is so beneficial to work with a tax preparation company like Hoods! There are so many tax credits and deductions out there that are constantly being changed and added, it's hard to keep track of them all! It's part of our job to keep up with each of the common and uncommon tax credits and deductions. While it might seem like it costs a lot to work with a tax preparation company upfront, it can save you money and then some. Working with a tax preparation company can lower your tax bill and can get you an even larger refund. Sounds pretty great, right? We think so! We are here for all taxpayers, so please give us a call today! Remember, if you are looking for the best accounting services in Goose Creek, the best tax preparation in Goose Creek, business consulting in Goose Creek, bookkeeping in Goose Creek, or payroll services in Goose Creek, we are here for you! Our phone lines and inboxes are waiting for you. Don't hesitate! Please stay safe, everyone. We will see you soon!