It’s Tuesday, which must mean that you’re in desperate need of your weekly tax fix. Well, it’s not quite “Ask the Taxpert”-worthy IRS advice, but for my junkies out there, I hope this will suffice.
Right before the big tax deadline, The New York Times ran an article about taxing as a rite to be a member of society. The Times compared human taxing to rhesus monkeys and food calls, where a monkey who happens upon a tasty morsel must call out to the rest of society and share. If a monkey fails to do so, he is subject to excommunication from the rest of the group and vicious beatings.
Freakonomics blogged about how Texan Timothy Dale Edwards (profession: hobo) is using a website called PimpThisBum.com to attract more donations to his collection efforts. The key reason why he’s using a website in particular to get donations? Two words: credit cards.
Why are credit cards so important? Well, according to consumer psychology studies, we’re more likely to part with money if it’s done through credit cards – an “invisible” transaction, so to speak – as opposed to cash, where the money is literally leaving our hands. This lower psychological impact drives up our willingness to give more to a hobo.
A thought for the bums of Penn (and I’m not referring to some of the guys who go here…kidding!): find some generous web designer who will make a website for you to get better financial results than traditional can-shaking in front of Mickey D’s.
Because tax season is over for the majority of Americans, “Ask the Taxpert” is now on hiatus…but never fear! For the addicts seeking their weekly dose of tax-goodness, my favorite tax quote from the University’s esteemed founder:
“Certainty? In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes.”
In honor of Fling weekend, when I know levels of readership are so low that it’s only second to Spring Break, here is a lighthearted but real post on rising beer prices.
Many places around the world and some states in the U.S. have been considering hiking up excise taxes on beer and/or alcohol. An excise tax is a euphemism for a sales tax on specific items, often ones that the government would rather see you not partake in, such as alcohol and cigarettes.
This means that when you buy beer in one of these places, the price that you pay for the whole shebang just got higher, which leaves you, the student in want of beer, poorer.
Roll call of some places where beer just got more expensive or may get more expensive pending future legislation after the jump.
As a graduating senior, I’ve been endlessly hounded to “donate to the Penn Fund!” since the fall. The University as a whole has also been in the midst of a highly-publicized $3.5 billion capital campaign, which has been doing well, despite the economic conditions a majority of Penn alums are currently facing.
University funding is indeed a strange animal in economics. To paraphrase then-Lehigh University president, and former Penn Engineering dean, Gregory Farrington in his presentation to my Governor’s School class, “We call up our alumni and ask them for money, and they give it to us without expecting anything in return! No other for-profit business organization has this kind of economic model.” Granted, the alumni get a tax deduction for the amount they donate, but generally, the only thing donors get is that warm and fuzzy altruistic feeling that comes from “doing a good deed.” However, this feeling hardly puts food on the table or pays the bills. Read more…
Two months ago, this series began with the question, “Have you thought about your taxes?” Now, as we count down the hours to the midway point in April, also known as the dreaded April 15 deadline, I would hope that you, dear reader, have not only thought about your taxes but are also ready for your taxes.
So, here are the Taxpert’s five basic, last-minute tips on filing your tax return, after the jump. Read more…
Trapped with credit card debt? So's the rest of America.
“Never spend your money before you have it.” -Thomas Jefferson
Old T.J. got it right 200 years ago before the advent of credit cards, and on Wednesday, the Federal Reserve’s consumer credit report confirmed that Americans were finally beginning to follow this advice. Credit card debt is down 9.7% from $2.567 trillion to $2.56 trillion, or a change of $7.8 billion.
Why do Americans have so much credit card debt, even in this economy? The underlying theory of credit cards is that customers can spend money that they may or may not actually have.
Example: Your credit card limit is $1,000. As a student, you only have $500 in your checking account. Over the course of a month, you spend $500 on groceries, but then on impulse, you decide to buy a $500 Wii and charge it to your credit card because you figure, “Hey, I still have $500 on my credit card that I can spend (even though I might not have the same amount of money in my checking account)…let’s buy something with this money that I don’t actually have!” Read more…
Poor girl looks like how I’ve been feeling since April began.
And so another month has begun, which means it’s time for another edition of “Buy, Sell, Hold.” Missed the last one? Catch up on it here.
Buy
Housing in the high rises: The housing assignments for 2009-10 have been decided, and those who missed the boat on moving to the wind tunnel triad will be trying their luck elsewhere. Incoming freshmeatmen will have one less option among the three.
Allergy medicine: Spring is in the air…and so is pollen, along with other allergens. Stock up on Claritin, and while you’re waiting in line at CVS, consider buying stock in its manufacturer, Schering Corporation (NYSE: SGP).
Sell
Courses: No, seriously. Advanced registration may have ended for undergrads, but the MBAs over at Wharton will be busy “selling” their elective courses to each other through the course registration auction later this month. Pretty cool, huh? I think it overcomplicates life, but then again, I’ve always appreciated the relative straightforward aspect of PennInTouch.
Accounting 102 students with a propensity for hacking: Yes, I can appreciate the ingenuity and skill level it takes to hack into a professor’s email account and scare the living daylights out of your entire class. But, dudes, that’s just not a cool to do to people who have things like other classes and extracurriculars or that little thing called “a life” to deal with.
Hold
Another PennInTouch revamp: As a graduating senior, I won’t be here next year to fully benefit from the changes being made to PennInTouch over the summer. In any case, this stock has been upgraded to “hold” status by H&P’s rating to reflect the uncertainty of this venture.
Onto luxury: After Fashion Week’s panel on whether or not luxuries will survive the recession, the picture’s not looking too pretty. I’m reluctant to downgrade this to “sell” because we all need a thought of something to make us happy on those bad days, whether it’s that nice pair of Manolos or the latest Blackberry.
The standard deduction is a beautiful thing in the world of personal income taxes. According to the IRS, the standard deduction is “a dollar amount that reduces the amount of income on which you are taxed.” Here are my top three reasons why:
1. $5,450. That’s how much less income that you (U.S. citizen/permanent resident, single filer you) can be taxed on in the blink of an eye with this little puppy for 2008. For the eternally low-funded college student like many of us out there, the ability to not be taxed on a substantial amount of your income, thereby increasing your refund check from the IRS, is a wonderful power to have. Even if you were a hotshot i-banker this summer, that amount can represent upwards of 20%, if not more, of your summer wages that magically go “poof!” Read more…
As a graduating senior, I’ve been endlessly hounded to “
Two months ago, this series began with the question, “
The standard deduction is a beautiful thing in the world of personal income taxes. According to the
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