The good news about having a large tax bill is that it demonstrates that you had a large income. However, that doesn’t mean you should pay more than your fair share in taxes. It can be a wise investment to talk with a tax planning services professional throughout the year to ensure that your financial decisions won’t put you in a tough position come tax filing time. The biggest question you might have as you read this is, “How much can tax planning services save me?”

The answer is that it depends on your situation. You could stand to save thousands when you learn about strategies that work to lower your adjusted gross income (AGI), leverage your deductions, and alert you to tax credits you might not have known about.

• Lowering AGI- Clearly you wouldn’t go to your boss and ask for a pay cut just so you could pay less in taxes. However, you can consider contributing to an IRA, SEP, SEP IRA, or self-employed health insurance plan. You can also make HSA contributions and other above-the-line write-offs.

• Leverage deductions- Tax planning services can help you time the payment of deductions such as marketing expenses, insurance, maintenance, operating costs, technology purchases, and other expenses. You can also learn about deductions you may not have realized are legitimate business deductions. From a personal tax perspective, timing deductions can leave you to claim the standard deduction one year and itemize the next so you get the lowest taxable income possible in both years.

• Tax credits- With tax planning services, you can take advantage of tax credits you might miss otherwise. Some that are commonly missed include credits for energy-efficiency improvements, such as installing solar panels, and credits for higher education costs.

If you would like to see how much you can save with tax planning services as an individual, self-employed professional, or a business, reach out to us at TaxCom, LLC in Raleigh, North Carolina. We are an affordable option for tax planning, tax preparation & filing, small business taxes, bookkeeping, payroll, new business setup, and resolving tax problems. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you save money.