Newspaper Page Text
6A
March 3, 2005
Business
Start your tax return now, procrastinating can be costly
By MARY DALRYMPLE
AP Tax Writer
WASHINGTON (AD) -
The deadline is the same every
vear and every year it sneaks up
on yotu.
(:cuing to work carly on that
tax return, due Aprl 15, wall
not only case some stress but
also prevent some costly mis
takes.
“Start now. Start carly,” sud
Mark Steber, vice president of
tax resources for Jackson
Hewitt Tax Service. “The later
you wait, the less opportunity
youre going to have to maxi
mize your tax position.”
It this is the yvear o finally
end the procrasunaung, stop
focusing on the April 15 dmxt«
line, suggests Michelle Tullier,
author of “The ('UIHPICIL'
[diors Guide 1o Overcoming
Procrastinaton. '
What kind of investor are you?
By CONSTANCE WOOD
Financial Consultant
Knowing vour tolerance
for risk and vyour invest
ment objectuves will help
vou with vour overall finan
aal planning and deter
mine what kind ot invest
ing risk vou're comtortable
taking. Your choice ranges
Serving the
investment needs of
~ the community.
i ‘Financial Planning
Money Management
¥ . Estate Planning
e
e~ | IRAs and Pension Plans
=
- { overnment Securities
: ‘Tax-Free Bonds
‘Comporate Bonds
Constance L. Woods tocks and Bonds
Financial Planning Specialist Mutual Funds
Financial Consultant
nvestment Management Specialist Annuities
Retirement Plan Consultant
One Tenth Street. Suite 600
- Augusta Ga. 30901
(706) 823-8144
www fc smithbarney com/woods
THIS IS WHO WE ARE. THIS IS HOW WE EARN IT."
SOMITH BARNEY
citigroup
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Think instead about break
ing the task down into smaller
juh\. Set a date and ume 1o do
each one.
“Don't wait for the motiva
ton or desire to do your taxes
because it may never come,”
she said.
It you are one of the millions
of taxpayers who ask the Inter
nal Revenue Service every year
for an extension, ask yourself if
vou really need the extra ume
or whether you are just labeling
vounselt a perpetual procrasu
nator when it comes to taxes.
The number of (xnplc who
FEQUCST N AULOMALC extension
creeps up annually, 0 more
than 8.5 mullion last year.
At the minimum, everyone
needs to start by pulling mgcth
er the paperwork that applies to
thetr tax sttuaton, \lu‘{x'r said.
”LH COVeNS Ihn\(‘ \\'hfl dn lllcil‘
taxes themselves or hand the
trom very little to a great
deal, with a broad middle
ground between the
extremes. Start here by
checking the description
that tits vou best.
Conservative: Empha
sizes principal preservation
OVer return on mvestment.
Moderate: Subjects a por
tion of a porttolio to
job over to someone else.
There are dozens of records
and receipts that might yield
tax benefits, induding unreim
bursed work expenses, charita
ble donations, rtuition pay
ments, morii:agc and home
equity loan documents, med
ical bills, home office expenses
and union dues.
Assembling these documents
can get your tax preparer start
ed carly. For the do-it-yourself
types, avoid the tempration to
gather all the documentation
and plow through your entire
job in one, miserable Sarurday.
“Focus on do dates, as in -
O, not due dates, as in D-U-
E,” Tullier said. “Schedule actu
al dates and umes to tackle each
stop in the process leading up
to Aprl 15.
It you are really stuck, Tullier
suggested,
fli'hink about the conse-
increased risk in order to
potentially generate a high
er rate of return.
Aggressive: Emphasizes
potential returns over prin
cipal preservation and s
willing to subject a greater
portion of a portfolio to
risk in anticipation of high
er return possibilities.
Speculative: Assumes a
higher than normal marker
risk with lhk‘ h()pc of com
mensurate gain.
To turther define a risk
profile, consider these four
basic investment goals.
Liquidity: Prefers to hold
cash and cash equivalents in
the porttolio,
Current income: Prefers
investments that generate
income rather than poten
tial capital appreciation.
Tax Deferral: Prefers
vehicles that generate tax
tree or tax-deferred income.
Growth: Prefers to
assume the risks consistent
with pursuing appreciation
in value.
Most experts suggest you
strive for balance among
the various risk categories.
With the markets in con
stant flux, let’s see if your
portfolio is compatible
with your needs and risk
tolerance
Constance Woods 1s a
Financial Consultant with
Smith Barney. For more
information, contact
Constance L. Woods at
(706) 823-8144 or con
stance.l.woods@smithbar-
ney.com,
AUGUSTA FOCUS
quences or rewards. We're each
mouvated differendy.”
The rewards migz:t be a sig
nificant refund, 0 save or to
spend. The consequences
could include penalties and
interest levied by the IRS and
the stress caused by waiting
unal the last moment.
Failing to file a return can be
quite costly, even more so in
most cases than failing to pay
taxes owed. The IRS encour
es taxpayers who cannot pay
?ficir taxes due to file a return
and then work out a payment
plan.
"Thereis no penalty for failing
to file a tax return if you are due
a refund, but taxpayers risk los
ing a refund forever if they wait
too long, The IRS, by law, can
not pay refunds claimed more
than three years after the tax
returns due date.
The consequences of delay
Women selected as fifth anniversary GWEN
conference speakers powerful, successful, thriving
Athens GA - l.c.lding
women in business from
all over Georgia have
l)ccn sclcucd o spc.lk dat
the fifth anniversary
(;\X'I{N (f()nf‘crcn(c o
be held April 20 and 21
at the Renaissance
Pinelsle Resort, Lake
Lanier Islands, Georgia.
The Georgia Women
l'".mrcprcncur\ (GWEN)
is a division of the Uni
\'cr\i[y of (;cnrgi;l Small
Business Development
Center (SBDCQC). The
conference offers educa
tion, networking,
exhibits, and procure
ment contacts to help
build business skills for
women business owners.
Parucipants from past
conferences found it
valuable. “Taking the
time to attend the con
ference was the best
thing I have done for my
company and the most
valued money [ have
spent this vear” says
S}hirlc\' Gunn of THhe
Fuel Desk in Cdmming,
Georgia. “The conracts
that ? made at the pro
curement fair would
have taken me six
months otherwise,” says
Marilyn Childress,
owner of Duval of Geor-
Si;r n Norcross.
Exhibiting at the
GWEN conference has
made all the difference
in the growth of our
business. Thanks for the
opportunity,” says Leslie
Sperry and Lori Morrow,
owners of L.L. Beads in
Dallas, Georgia.
A number of successful
women business owners
and leaders will be fea
tured, including Ella
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also mi%trt include mistakes
made while rushing through
the task. That means more
ume and effort spent on tax
tasks.
Some of the most common
errors are simple ones, the IRS
says, but they can cause a return
to be rejected or can delay the
payment of a refund. They can
even tip the tax return from a
refund to a balance due and
lead to interest and penalties.
Bob Scharin, editor of Practi
cal Tax Strategies journal for tax
professionals, said one of the
most common mistakes is tak
ing the standard deduction
instead of calculating the bene
fits of itemizing, j‘uluuium,
which might reduce the tax bill
more.
“That secems to be the big
one that comes around,” \m,i
Scharin, whose journal is pub
lished by RIA, part of the
Koscik, owner of MDI,
Whn Wi” L()lltllltl d SES
ston on “From anhing
to Millions: Grow Your
Business Sll‘;r(cgie;l]»
ly.*What better way to
learn about sales “and
how to use those sales to
rtow a business than
hnm a woman whose
business has grossed
multi-million duh.rrx in
annual sales?” suggests
Carol McDonell, wfin IS
the newly appointed
Director tor the GWEN
Division.
“What better way to
learn the “Power of the
Balance Sheet” than
from Emily Sanders,
yrestdent of Sanders
anrn.niun.rl. Inc. that
handles more than S7O
Million 1n investment
assets, adds McDonell.
“What bertter way (o
learn how to write and
communicate than from
women who are experts
in communication? he
word artist Michelle
Lane, owner of Write (o
the Top along with
Donna &.n(hc”, owner
of Success! Can be yours
are gurus of communica
tton both written and
\puk('n,“ .lLL()rding to
McDonell.
Attendees can learn
from the session titled,
“Grow a Business That
You Can Sell!” to be led
by Julie Garella, an
expert in capital funding
and investment I).mkrng.
She helps women busi
ness owners find funding
to move their businesses
forward.
The GWEN Confer
ence 2005 is held con
currently with a South
Thomson Corp.
If you are going to itemize for
the first time, “Give yourself
enough tme,” Scharin said.
You will need to review the list
of expenses that can be item
ized deductions and gather
your paperwork to calculate the
deduction.
Among the most commonly
overlooked expenditures that
can mean tax {)cncfits, accord
ing to Jackson Hewitt Tax Ser
vice, are student loan interest,
alimony, personal propertz
taxes, work uniforms, jo
search expenses, professional
dues and a variety of medical
COSLS,
Next in the series: What's
New? People in states without
Income taxes get a new sales tax
deduction ;mfi more people are
being allowed to use simpler tax
forms.
cast Region Procurement
Fair: Contacts and Con
tracts co-sponsored and
umrdin.ncj by MARTA.
Women business owners
will have an opportunity
to arrange a 15-minute
individual Interview
with representatives
from large corporations
and government agen
cles.
Other sponsors for this
year’s conference include
women-owned business
es: Christy and Main
surpl\'ing embroidered
golf shirts, Digital Print
ing and Imaging supply
ing a tull»mh)rirocfiurc;
cßlZabilty.com supply
ing electronic promo
tion; Georgia Business
News of Savannah sup
lying media promotion;
i).rrcj Events Business
Promotions supplyin
name badges; Jm.r witE
public relations and
marketing supplied by M
Blackmon l’ui\lic Rela
tions and The Marketing
I)cp.rrrmcnl. Inc.
The sessions and con
tacts offer valuable infor
mation and business
lmilding tools for Geor
gia's temale business
owners. The conference
is affordable and a
sound investment for
business owners. Lori
Canterbury, Associate
State Director of the
Georgia SBDC Network,
will Tw the Mistress of
(tcrcmnn.\' for this
event.
For more information
about the conference,
visit the GWEN website:
call Carol McDonell,
GWEN Director, at
706.542-6048.