Pleasant Tax surprises this season?

[Rosie]

During the year I monitored our dividend and CG income, and near the end of the year I figured we had enough leeway to make a fairly substantial Roth conversion without affecting our ACA subsidy. We paid no estimated taxes during the year.

Well, turns out I miscalculated a bit and we needed to pony up the excess ACA subsidy to the IRS.

Our tax bill amounted to $3.00, total.

 

[audreyh1]

The only pleasant surprise was that no one hijacked our tax return and filing went through fine.

 

[FIREd]

The only pleasant surprise was that no one hijacked our tax return and filing went through fine.

+1! I filed on Sunday using Turbotax and kept my fingers crossed until I received the acceptance emails!

 

[Bestwifeever]

During the year I monitored our dividend and CG income, and near the end of the year I figured we had enough leeway to make a fairly substantial Roth conversion without affecting our ACA subsidy. We paid no estimated taxes during the year.

Well, turns out I miscalculated a bit and we needed to pony up the excess ACA subsidy to the IRS.

Our tax bill amounted to $3.00, total.

Please remit $0.75 every quarter.

DH has a little art and graphic design side income of >$10k this year. I increase the withholdings on Vanguard distributions to accommodate for taxes on it. Overaccommodation this year--$3k refund. Woohoo!

 

[John Galt III]

Just finished my taxes this past weekend and caught an unexpected and pleasant surprise - the Retirement Saver Credit -- as I was working through the Turbotax categories. Before I ERd in 2013, I had for years been in the top tax bracket, so most of my tax surprises were of the unpleasant variety. Now, with annual total income of about $40k, lovely tax credits have come into view - the ACA credit, Tuition tax credit (my spouse has gone back to school), and the Retirement Saver Credit (up to $2000 credit on IRA contributions, which I had not even known about). How advantageous to have a middle class income again. (Full disclosure: I itemized my deductions in 2014, probably for the last time, because I still had a mortgage interest deduction and some carryover charitable contributions. These helped reduce my income tax bill to 0.)

Anyone else experience a 'nice' surprise this tax season?

Is one still required to have a j*b in order to contribute to an IRA?

 

[TallTim]

Like others here no good news. Paid as expected on taxable brokerage acct profits. We have usually paid $$ on this and even occasionally paid a small penalty as DW and I figured we earned more on the cash than we would pay at the end -- that and our profits moved around quarter to quarter so we avoided paying estimates (though we likely should have done so).

For '15 it's a very different story as we had a significant windfall this year from sale of my corp employer and a concomitant $$ payout. Net of all of that if we are paying big $ estimates for this year with the plan/hope to owe nearly $0 in April of 16.

With the goal of RE at end of '15 or early '16 we hope to be back to more orderly estimates after one bad year


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[Dogman]

Yes, The AMT in the amount of about $6,500.00. What a kick in the pants. I have worked hard saved all my life, and now having put as much as I could afford into a DB plan, it now has to all come out as earned income.
And welfare people complain about the middle class not paying their fair share of taxes. I pay plenty!

 

[Buckeye]

My pleasant surprise this season is that the TurboTax shenanigans pushed me into investigating other tax software and I discovered that TaxAct works just fine at a fraction of TT cost.

I love TaxAct and have used it since it came on the market 16 years ago. They are the same folks who made Parson's Tax Edge which I also loved because it ran on my old computer long after TT was too big to be loaded.

 

[mpeirce]

No surprises for me - I meet with the CPA in October to figure out what tweaks we can do to optimize everything.

BUT, I'm now doing both my parents taxes with them using TurboTax. I've been having DD harvest capital gains and stay at zero taxes due (no state tax in FL). So for 2014 DD made a little income (working for the county board of elections) and so the exact same CG harvesting as in 2013 pushed him into owing $400 for 2014.

He spent last weekend poring over his records and scared up enough medical expenses (sadly from heart surgery) and charitable giving to make switching to itemized deductions worthwhile. And we got his tax back down to $0.

Phew!

 

[Looking4Ward]

I ER'd halfway thru the year so there was no income (and no withholding) for the second half of the year.

The surprise for me was that after year-end Vanguard CG and Dividend distributions, I ended up owing an additional $13K in taxes.

 

[jjquantz]

My nice surprise is that my planning was about right!

+1 I retired mid-year and, despite the drastic change in income, our withholding worked out so that we ended up writing checks for ~$120 to the Feds and ~$220 to the state. This is a bulls-eye compared to the last several (tens of?) years.

We'll see how it works out during this first full year with the start of my small pension.

 

[Accidental Retiree]

During the year I monitored our dividend and CG income, and near the end of the year I figured we had enough leeway to make a fairly substantial Roth conversion without affecting our ACA subsidy. We paid no estimated taxes during the year.

Well, turns out I miscalculated a bit and we needed to pony up the excess ACA subsidy to the IRS.

Our tax bill amounted to $3.00, total.

Good job!

 

[harley]

How about an unpleasant surprise, more Turbo Tax than just tax.

I bought TT Home and Business because I have a business, as well as a couple of rentals. Did my taxes, then did my Mom's taxes (no tax due, no refund). She passed away last year, leaving a relatively small estate, waaaay below the estate tax limit. So when I started the estate filing, I discovered I needed Form 1041. And in order to do Form 1041 in TT you need TT Business. Not Home and Business, but Business. Never even heard of it. I ended up filing an extension for the estate, and can probably figure out the form directly without TT, but what a rip off! I bought basically the most expensive version they have, and still couldn't do something pretty basic.

 

[ejman]

How about an unpleasant surprise, more Turbo Tax than just tax.

I bought TT Home and Business because I have a business, as well as a couple of rentals. Did my taxes, then did my Mom's taxes (no tax due, no refund). She passed away last year, leaving a relatively small estate, waaaay below the estate tax limit. So when I started the estate filing, I discovered I needed Form 1041. And in order to do Form 1041 in TT you need TT Business. Not Home and Business, but Business. Never even heard of it. I ended up filing an extension for the estate, and can probably figure out the form directly without TT, but what a rip off! I bought basically the most expensive version they have, and still couldn't do something pretty basic.

I just checked and TaxAct supports form 1041 Form 1041 and Form 706 - Estates - Trusts - Generation-Skipping Transfer | Help Topics | TaxACT

 

[jwkde]

2nd full of ER and again no Federal Tax Liability due to managing LT/ST gains and Qual Dividends.

 

[Snowcat]

Nope, no pleasant - or unpleasant- surprises. Just the realization that I should really simplify my investments.

I had the same thought about simplifying our investments. Waiting for K-1's means filing an extension. This is making me a bit nervous about IRA to Roth conversions and the ACA limits.


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[Trawler]

It was not a surprise but it was nice with the HASA Deduction, Personal Exemptions and Standard Deduction for a couple filing jointly was able to convert 25K to Roth and fed tax this year was $276 Living off cash stash spending more then when we worked but less than planned thus far.
Sure better than the 33% I used to pay before fired.

 

[Retch The Grate]

I guess mine counts as pleasant, when I made my estimated tax payment last year, I underestimated how much I was going to have to pay so I've got small penalties and just had to send the government an extra $12k. The upside? I made more money last year than I was expecting!

 

[LinCella]

Nothing pleasant for me! In 2014 I cashed out my 457 (no penalty), had the state and fed taxes taken out. Turned out it was not enough taken out so I am owing both state and fed. This year will be much, much better!

 

[Gatordoc50]

We received a nice refund from a Net Operating Loss on a rental property we sold in 2013. We had already digested the loss so the refund of taxes paid in 2011 and 2012 was a nice surprise. Definitely softened the blow of a bad investment.

 

[harley]

I guess I had one semi pleasant surprise. We made a lot more money this year than previously due to some unforeseen income, and my Mom left me a little in a USAA annuity that threw off taxable income too. So my big Roth conversion last year took us way over the 15% bracket. However, I was able to recharacterize part of it down to the top of the 15% bracket, and it was easy. That was a bit of a surprise. And Vanguard's rep was very helpful. So, glass half full.

 

[Sunset]

I guess mine counts as pleasant, when I made my estimated tax payment last year, I underestimated how much I was going to have to pay so I've got small penalties and just had to send the government an extra $12k. The upside? I made more money last year than I was expecting!

I had the same pleasant surprise, we made toooooo much..... Better than making too little but surprising considering we aren't working regular hours by a long shot.