Friday, March 7, 2014

Tax Tips for Young Professionals

Kathi Koenig, CPA
Partner at McGowen Hurst Clark & Smith, P.C

As a young professional you are more than likely going through many life changes, graduating college, securing a full time job, getting married, having children, buying a house, etc.    All of these life changes can result in different tax situations and possibly tax deductions and credits for you.  Following is information that may be helpful to you.

College costs—if you are still taking classes, you may be eligible for different credits or deductions for the tuition, fees, books and required supplies that you are incurring.  Depending on how many classes you are taking and if you are going for your undergraduate degree or just expanding your job skills, you should be sure to find out if you are eligible for the American Opportunity Credit, the Lifetime Learning Credit or the tuition and fees deductions. The American Opportunity Credit is the most beneficial but is only available to undergraduate students who are going to school at least half time.   This credit can be 40% refundable which means you could get money back even if you didn’t owe any taxes.
If you are out of school, but still paying student loans, then your student loan interest is a deduction that you may be able to take if your income is below certain levels.  For 2013, your adjusted gross income has to be less than $75,000 if you are single or $155,000 for married filing joint taxpayers.  
A Job - Getting a job may mean that you have job hunting costs that are deductible.   Or if you have a job, you may have employee expenses that are not reimbursed by your employer, but you can take as a deduction such as those networking costs, computer /software costs or other business expenses.  To realize most of these deductions you will need to itemize to receive any benefit.
Marriage - Now that you are married, you can file married joint or married filing separately.  In most cases, it is advantageous to file together, but you will want to “do the math” to see if there might be an advantage to filing separately.   On the Iowa return, it is most often advantageous to file married separate, unless you have one taxpayer with no income.
 Children - You get $3,900 exemption for each dependent.   You also get a $1,000 credit for each child under the age of 17 at the end of the year.   Also, if you have daycare costs that enable you to work, you can receive a child care credit of up to $3,000 for one child and up to $6,000 for two or more children.
Buying a House - As you probably know, mortgage interest is deductible and it is the deduction that usually makes it possible for you to itemize, instead of taking the standard deduction.   Along with the mortgage interest, you are also able to deduct property taxes you pay for your home.  And if you paid any points to purchase your house, the points are deductible as well.   Another lesser known deduction is the interest paid on a home equity loan.  Because it is deductible, I often recommend that clients use a home equity loan to purchase their car or pay off credit card debt or other consumer loans. 
These are just some of the deductions that might help make your life changes even sweeter.  So be sure to discuss any new changes with your tax advisor, or research the rules yourself so that you can take full advantage of any tax savings that might be available to you.
Authored by:
Kathi Koenig, CPA
Partner at McGowen, Hurst, Clark & Smith, P.C.
515-288-3279