Tax Season 2013

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So it's that time of year again... Tax Season! I honestly always enjoy this time of year because filing our taxes is like a game for me to see how much we can get back.
Every year I have just used TurboTax online to file and it has been a piece of cake. Unfortunately this year, they were wanting to charge me double the amount from last year on the Home & Business edition. I'm sorry but spending $75 to file my taxes is so not cool!

My mom recommended I file on my own like she has done every year. At first that seems super intimidating. But I went through last year's forms, printed what I had done on TurboTax and consulted the IRS website to download the forms I needed.
In the end it took me less than 3 hours and my figures perfectly matched what TurboTax had figured. The instructions are pretty easy and the IRS now let's you personally e-file for free with fillable forms. 2 weeks later our refund was directly deposited into our checking account and tax season was over for us.
I have been using Outright for over a year now to keep track of my business accounting and it is the easiest, most user-friendly program I've come across. I love that everything is online so I can add and check my accounts from anywhere. And the reports they generate for you made the business end of my tax process super easy. Everything was already sorted into the appropriate line items, so I just had to transfer it to the IRS forms.
Moral of the Story: If I can file my taxes myself, anyone can. The instructions are very clear and as long as you keep good records throughout the year, filing will be a breeze.