Archive for the ‘http://www.pftown.com/2004/11/19/’ tag
Where does your money go? Taxes?
How much do you pay in taxes every year? I can bet many of you don’t have any idea. You may think you can just look at your tax forms for last year and have the answer. I guarantee that would be just the beginning
Just take a look at the below list of various taxes and do the math yourself:
Federal Income Taxes – Uncle Sam is currently taking between 15% and 39% of our Adjusted Gross Income to pay for what ever it is that they spend money on in Washington. The main point I want to make here is that many people feel that because they received a refund, they didn’t pay any taxes. For some people, this is true. However, the vast majority of people that receive a refund are just getting back the money they already paid in through withholding, minus the taxes they owed. HOW MUCH DID YOU PAY LAST YEAR?
Income Tax Preparation – Yes, I consider the cost of having our taxes prepared by a professional as a tax. If the federal tax code was published in english, maybe more of us could prepare our own taxes.
Social Security – 15.3% of your income goes directly to the federal government for social security and medicare and is conveniently deducted from your paycheck. The myth about your employer paying half is just that. If you weren’t required to pay social security, that is another 7.65% that your employer could pay you.
Sales Taxes – Unless you live in a state that doesn’t have a state sales tax, this costs you around 6% to 7% of every penny you spend. Wouldn’t it be nice to buy something for $99.95, hand the clerk a $100 bill and get a nickle back.
Property Taxes and Real Estate Taxes – These taxes can run into the thousands of dollars a year. I know, there are some places you aren’t required to pay these taxes either, however, you can bet they get this money in other ways. Before you renters start smiling, remember that your landlord has to pay these taxes. Want to guess where he gets the money? Read the rest of this entry »