Tax Tip: Why you should NOT use Turbo Tax and Seasonal Tax Services

Many people out there want to save money on taxes. That usually means preparing their own tax returns. So they head down to the store and buy Turbo Tax. The program operates by asking you a bunch of questions and it processes the info and pumps out your tax return.

I sat down and went over tax returns prepared by friends on Turbo Tax and found many shortcomings. People seem to feel free to do as they please with this program. I've seen people take more charitable contributions or or itemized expenses than their actual income. Then there's the variety of improperly classified income. Schedule C's (unincorporated business) that are completely wrong.

One of the things that's really apparently wrong is the way it adds State Withholding into expenses, but doesn't ask about State refunds to add BACK IN as income. That's the law and the program ignores it.

I'd say go to some / any tax professional. But places like Jackson Hewitt or H&R Block are no better. A lot of those poeple only prepare tax returns for tax season and do no accounting for the rest of the year. I've seen Hewitt and Block seriously botch up rather simple tax returns. The problem is that you're getting a bargain on preparation fees, but not getting a seasoned professional.

So this tax season think about your options. You can take a shot at it yourself, even though you might not know the laws. You can go to some guy who does this for 3 months a year and isn't really up to speed on the laws, or go to a seasoned veteran who can prepare the best tax return to keep you safe and out of trouble.