Here are some ways you can make a difference this year and beyond.

Small Gifts Throughout the Year

Sometimes we feel bad that we can’t give what we want to worthy causes because of our limited budget. If giving a large donation would wreak havoc on your budget, perhaps you can spend the same amount, but over the course of the year. There are many charitable organizations that offer small subscription plans.

While you may not think your contribution is much, most organizations could use that money for many projects throughout the year.

• Camp Sunshine: Camp Sunshine offers children with life threatening illnesses and their families a retreat from the strain and toll that these diseases can cause. Services given at the camp include medical, counseling, accommodation  and meals. The camp also offers families recreational activities.
• Feeding America: With a network of over 200 food banks around the country, this hunger-relief charity maximizes your donations. For every dollar you give, it will go towards getting $8 worth of food to someone in need.

Helping Out With Your Skills

Of course while money is certainly appreciated when it comes to giving, it is not the only thing you can do to help your charity. If you have some skills or even just some time available to share, you can do much good in your community. Not all organizations advertise that they need help (they may lack the resources to get the word out), so feel free to contact a local office to see if there is a need that you can fill.

For example, if you have some basic web design skills, perhaps you can donate your time to update the charity’s website. Or perhaps you can help with administration work that would free up time for the full time members to take care of the day to day operations.

Thoughts on Giving

Besides helping others, you may also get some tax benefits with your charitable donations. How many of you are planning on giving more to charity this year? How do you prefer to give? What organizations are dear to your heart and why?

1. Make a Gift-giving Budget and Stick to it. As a couple, you should set expectations to how much you each will spend on gifts for one another. Whether you want to splurge on your sweetie or show how much you care with a DIY gift, make sure to set a budget and expectations so there’s no disappointment come Valentines day.

2. Give from the Heart and Hearth. Happy memories come these special times, not from spending a lot of money on this day. Bake cookies, knit a scarf or make a personalized scrapbook. A handmade gift or baked goods tells your significant other you invested time (not to mention love) in the gift – and that makes it priceless!

3. Gift Wisely. You are spending your hard-earned cash, so be sure that your honey is getting something they value. Instead of giving flowers and chocolates, try giving something they could use like a piece of technology or something they’ve wanted. They’ll surely love that more than the calories from the sweets they normally receive.

4. Dine In. This may be the national day for spending a fortune on a fancy dinner out on the town, but you shouldn’t shy away from staying home with your Valentine. They’ll not only appreciate a home cooked meal, but you can also save quite a bit by preparing dinner yourself.

5. Donate to a Cause – and don’t forget the tax break! Make a donation to a charity close to your Valentine’s heart. Not only will it be a meaningful gift, you’ll also get a quick tax deduction to boot.

Nobody ever said that Valentine’s Day gifts have to be limited to the typical box of chocolates or flowers. While there is nothing wrong with those presents, have you considered giving a gift that carries a powerful message on personal finances?

Valentine’s Day could be the perfect occasion to give your significant other the gift of savings and investing to help improve their personal finances.

So how do you turn the unsexy idea of saving and investments into a Valentine’s Day gift?

• Give Savings Bonds.  Savings bonds can be purchased as gifts for your Valentine and many purchasers save for their children’s education.  Just in time for Valentine’s Day, you can turn tax time into savings and giving time by using a portion of your tax refund to buy U.S. Savings bonds.

Sold in denominations of as little as $50, Series I bonds, the type available for purchase through TurboTax, are available to every taxpayer who receives at least $50 in tax refunds. You can use a portion of your tax refund to buy bonds for your loved one and have the remainder deposited into a bank account or pre-paid debit card.

• Gift shares. Websites like www.oneshare.com allow you to acquire shares from a company that reflects the style and interests of the person that will receive the gift. Giving shares as a gift is meaningful: your significant other will become a shareholder and will be inspired to learn more about the company, its rate of return, and even its upcoming new product launches.

• Open a mutual fund. You can open a mutual fund account on behalf of your significant other. Secure all the information needed and give them a letter with next steps, so they will only need to fill out the personal information section and sign to complete the process. Keep in mind that in order to open a mutual fund account, most investment companies require a minimum deposit of between $1,000 and $3,000. However, if you go the extra mile and provide your loved one with the money to open the fund, you will change their financial life by helping them become a real investor and encouraging them to keep contributing to that account.

•  Buy an ETF. You could open an account for your loved one by buying shares of an Exchange Traded Fund (ETF). ETFs are like mutual funds that are divided into shares; those shares are traded in the stock exchange like other company’s shares would be.  ETFs are attractive because shares can be acquired with a relatively small investment (between $100 and $200). Fidelity Investment, an investment company, offers you the opportunity to open an account when you buy an ETF share. Fidelity offers 30 different ETFs that can be bought without having to pay a commission.

•  Give A Book. A book on finances could also be a great gift to your significant other, inspiring them to improve their personal finances. There are a lot of finance books, so look for one that contains real and simple solutions to common problems on personal finances.

]]> http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2013/02/13/surprise-your-significant-other-this-valentines-day/feed/ 0 Boyfriend giving his girlfriend a Valentine's present. jmejiaa http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2013/02/04/sorprenda-en-el-dia-de-san-valentin/ http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2013/02/04/sorprenda-en-el-dia-de-san-valentin/#comments Mon, 04 Feb 2013 19:14:06 +0000 Jaime Mejia http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/?p=13327 Full story]]> En Ingles

Nadie dijo que el regalo de San Valentín tiene que ser una típica caja de chocolates o unas flores. Y no hay nada de malo con esos obsequios. ¿Qué te parece un regalo con significado que contenga un mensaje poderoso de finanzas personales?

El día de San Valentín puede ser la ocasión perfecta para darle a esa persona especial un regalo que le ayude a ahorrar, invertir y mejorar sus finanzas personales.

¿Cómo convertir la idea de ahorrar e invertir en un regalo para el día de San Valentín?

•  Regale bonos de ahorro. Bonos de ahorros pueden ser comprados como regalo para tu ser querido, y es más muchas personas los usan para ahorrar para la educación de sus hijos. Justo para el día de San Valentín, puedes aprovechar el tiempo que pasas completando tus impuestos para comprar regalos, utilizando una porción de tu reembolso de impuestos para comprar Bonos de Ahorros de los EE.UU.

Los bonos Serie I se venden en denominaciones tan pequeñas como $50 dólares, los cuales  pueden ser comprados a través de TurboTax. Estos están disponibles para cualquier contribuyente que reciba como mínimo $50 dólares en su reembolso de impuestos. Puedes usar una porción de tu reembolso para comprar bonos para tu ser querido y depositar el resto en una cuenta bancaria o en una tarjeta débito pre-pagada.

•  Regala la acción de una empresa. Sitios de Internet como www.oneshare.com te permiten adquirir acciones de alguna empresa cercana a los gustos o intereses de la persona  a quien quieras enviarle el obsequio.  Regalar una acción está cargado de significado: tu ser querido se convertirá en accionista y tendrá el estímulo de empezar a interesarse por lo que hace la empresa, su rentabilidad y hasta los productos nuevos que lanzará en el futuro.

•  Abre un fondo mutuo. Puedes abrir un fondo mutuo a nombre de tu ser querido. Tendrá que buscar la información y entregar una carta de instrucciones para que la persona finalice el proceso con la firma y datos personales.  Ten en cuenta que  la mayoría de las compañías de inversión requieren de un depósito mínimo de entre $1,000 y $3,000 para abrir un fondo mutuo. Sin embargo, puedes ir un poco mas allá y darle a tu ser querido el dinero para abrir el fondo. Un regalo de este tipo cambiará la vida financiera de la otra persona porque se convertirá en inversionista de verdad  y tendrá un estímulo real para continuar aportando a esa cuenta.

• Compra un ETF. Puedes abrir una cuenta para tu San Valentín con la compra de una acción de ETF (Exchange Traded Funds). Los ETF son como fondos mutuos que se dividen en acciones y las acciones se negocian en la bolsa como la acción de cualquier empresa. El atractivo del ETF es que se puede comprar una acción por una cantidad relativamente pequeña (entre $100 y $200).  Fidelity Investments, empresa de inversiones, ofrece la posibilidad de abrir una cuenta con la compra de una acción de un ETF.  Fidelity ofrece 30 ETF que se pueden comprar sin pagar comisión.

•  Regala un libro. Un libro de finanzas también puede ser una opción para darle a tu ser querido ideas de cómo mejorar sus finanzas personales. Hay muchos libros de finanzas. Trata de buscar uno que ofrezca soluciones reales y simples a los problemas más comunes de finanzas personales.

Jaime Mejia es graduado de periodismo de la Universidad Central de Bogotá en Colombia. También cuenta con una Maestría en economía de la Universidad Javeriana en Bogotá y un MBA de la Universidad del Sur de California en Los Ángeles. Su pasión es el periodismo de negocios, economía y finanzas personales. Vive en Estados Unidos desde 2000. Es periodista free-lance y tabaja como columnista de finanzas personales para el HuffPost Voces y para la Associated Press. Puedes leer más de sus artículos a través de http://voces.huffingtonpost.com/jaime-mejia.

]]> http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2013/02/04/sorprenda-en-el-dia-de-san-valentin/feed/ 0 jmejiaa Boyfriend giving his girlfriend a Valentine's present. http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2011/02/09/5-ways-to-spend-your-tax-refund-on-your-honey/ http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/2011/02/09/5-ways-to-spend-your-tax-refund-on-your-honey/#comments Wed, 09 Feb 2011 14:00:03 +0000 TurboTaxBlogTeam http://blog.turbotax.intuit.com/?p=5151 Full story]]> It’s tax refund season, baby! Are you excited?  Are you one of the average Americans who got back $3,000 this year?  If so, and you haven’t spent it yet (you haven’t spent it yet, have you?), I offer you five ways to exchange it for the happiness of your significant other instead Just in time for Valentine’s Day.

1. Open up a Roth IRA in their name! Or if they already have one, contribute directly into it for her/him.  This not only says “I love you” in a financially responsible way, but it allows the both of you to reap the rewards come retirement day.

2. Have a “game night” in the home. Contrary to popular belief, you don’t need to spend hundreds of dollars to please your Valentine. Pick up some flowers, a few board games, and some dinner ingredients, then go back and concoct the perfect romantic night in.

3. Pay off your lover’s credit card debt! It’s not as sexy as a game night in, but I guarantee they’ll remember it more than all the other February 14ths

Fund your next family vacation.  You probably don’t want to spend all $3,000 on this, but setting aside $1k or $2k for a nice vacation this year can always be good for the soul.  A little nice quality time together is an excellent break from reality.

4. Donate to your significant other’s favorite charity Again, it doesn’t have to be all $3k of it, but sending a nice chunk on behalf of your Valentine is a very beautiful thing to do.  And beats the “dinner and movie.”

5. We can go on and on here, of course, but the reality is that YOU know your significant other way more than we do. Spend some extra time this Valentine’s week and really think about how you can do something special for him/her.  It doesn’t have to be financially-related, but it also doesn’t hurt

Use that tax refund wisely and be sure to invest it in the things that truly matter to you.  Chances are, it’s not on “things.”

Between the dismal economy and just business as usual, the year 2009 was filled with major life changes for many people. Now, as we approach Valentine’s Day, many more can expect another major life change in the near future–marriage.  An estimated 2.2 million Americans get married each year, and approximately 10% of those marriage proposals happen on Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day also happens to fall during tax season–and it’s important to know that most of life’s big milestones, such as having a baby or buying a home, come with lovely (forgive the pun!) implications. Here are some timely tax tips to plan for these life-altering events which may have occurred in 2009:

You Got Hitched in 2009

Americans are waiting longer to get married. The median age for a man and woman’s first marriage was 27.6 and 25.9 years, respectively, in 2008. (In 1960, men typically got hitched at age 22.8 while women were 20.3.) There are plenty of social implications for delaying marriage, but waiting longer to tie the knot means that you may be more established in your financial life, too. And that can make filing your taxes more complicated. Yet while all married couples can file their taxes together or separately, most save thousands of dollars by filing jointly. That’s because filing separately disqualifies you for some of the most significant tax credits and deductions which include:

• The Earned Income Credit

The Earned Income Credit is responsible for more than $49 billion in tax credits, so you don’t want to miss out. Congress originally approved the tax credit legislation in 1975 as a way to offset Social Security taxes and to provide an incentive for workers. For 2009, you’ll need an AGI (adjusted gross income) of $70,950 if married filing jointly to qualify.

• Child and Dependent Care deductions

The typical American family with two young children spends an average of $14,000 a year on child care, which is almost a quarter of its annual income, according to the U.S. Census bureau. The good news is that some of those childcare costs are tax-deductible; the bad news is that figuring out if you qualify can be extremely tricky. (We have a full-time caregiver for our son, so I know firsthand that you will need to jump though several hoops to get these deductions.) And that’s why TurboTax is an excellent resource for sorting out the complex paperwork to get you what you are owed.

• American Opportunity and Lifetime Learning credits

For 2009, there are several tax credits available to help you offset the costs of higher education by reducing the amount of your income tax, depending on your income. The Lifetime Learning Credit can be used for qualified education expenses for you, your spouse or your offspring while the American Opportunity Credit can be claimed for tuition and certain fees you pay for higher education in 2009 and 2010. For the tax year, you may be able to claim a Lifetime Learning Credit of up to $2,000 (and the credit is $4,000 if you are a student in a Midwestern disaster area). The American Opportunity Credit is worth up to $2,500 for qualified tuition and expenses.

• Student loan interest deduction

The interest you pay on your student loans may also be tax-deductible.For 2009, the tax deduction is phased out if your filing status is married filing jointly and your modified adjusted gross income is between $120,000 and $150,000. Keep in mind that you aren’t eligible for this deduction if your modified AGI is $150,000 or more.

You Had a Baby in 2009

If your bundle of joy lives with you and does not provide more than half of his or her own support, you can claim that kid as your dependent. Additionally, there are other credits your child may qualify for:

• Child Tax Credit

This credit, which can be as much as $1,000 per eligible child, is in addition to the regular $3,500 exemption claimed for each dependent.

• Earned Income Credit

The Earned Income Credit is pretty hefty. You get a credit of $5,657 with three or more qualifying children; $5,028 with two qualifying children; and $3,043 with one qualifying child.

You Bought A Home in 2009

If you’re the primary borrower on your home loan and you make the loan payments, you qualify for a mortgage interest deduction. All you need to take the deduction is your mortgage statements. Other key deductions include property taxes, private mortgage insurance payments, purchase points, home improvements for medical reasons and mortgage interest on a second home.

If you are a first-time homebuyer, you are in luck, too. Thanks the stimulus plan, the maximum credit amount is $8,000 for a first-time homebuyer –– which is a buyer who has not owned a primary residence during the three years up to the date of purchase. There’s also a long-time resident credit of up to $6,500 to others who do not qualify. Keep in mind those buyers must have owned and used the same home as a principal or primary residence for at least five consecutive years of the eight-year period ending on the date of purchase of a new home as a primary residence.

Remember that you can’t e-file if you take this credit.  You need to paper file and provide documentation.

You Changed Jobs in 2009

Getting a raise, starting a new job, or retiring from an old one can also have a dramatic impact on your taxes. Here are few final tax-saving tips:

• Keep receipts for job hunting and work-related moving expenses. They are deductible!

• When you rollover your 401(k), have it directly deposited into your new account.

• If you’ll owe taxes on your Social Security benefits, request voluntary withholding to minimize the tax bite.

• To find out if your tax will rate will change with a new salary, compare your last year’s tax bracket to this year’s. Your tax bracket is the rate at which your last dollar of income is taxed. It’s higher than your actual tax rate. But it will give you a good idea of how much of your income will go to Uncle Sam.

As you spend Valentine’s Day with your significant other, make sure you raise a glass of champagne to celebrate love and its many tax benefits!