Spring cleaning & taxes

Hi everyone! 

I've been busy with school and some spring cleaning. I'm trying to get rid of things I don't necessarily need, whether that be eBaying them or donating. I've come to learn that if you don't have room in your house, dorm, whatever for everything you have and your room is always cluttered, you need to part with the things you can do without. :-)

I finally also got to filing my taxes using the IRS's Free File service. One of the companies they list in their directory is Tax$imple - Deluxe Version. Let me tell you, do not use this service, as it is anything BUT simple! I went through with them because I had already put my sensitive personal information in, otherwise I wouldn't have continued. They also nicely fill out your State Income Tax form for you, but later tell you that you'll be charged $7.95 for it. 

Don't worry, though, there are many others to choose from.

The taxes deadline is April 17th I believe. And yes, even students have to file if they made any sort of income!! If you made $54,000 or less in 2007, you can file electronically using the Free File service like I did.

Concerning the free rebate most people will be getting to "jumpstart the economy", use this calculator to estimate how much you (or you and your spouse) will be receiving this April. I don't understand the logic behind this rebate, do they care about the financial woes we are all experiencing? It seems to me they just want us to be able to spend more money... it's not even really free. It's our money from a future tax return. :/

I recommend saving the money and investing in an online savings account! That's what I plan to do anyway.

The best advice for 2008?

Don't buy crap you don't need! There, I said it! :-)

Beware of Amazon's "Deal of the Day"

While Amazon usually has seemingly great deals on their "Deal of the Day" listings, a lot of times it's not much less than their price every other day. They list the list price, what other retailers charge for the item, or should charge, and then what they are charging and the percentage of how much less it is to buy from Amazon. However, that percentage is not changed for the Deal of the Day, to tell you how much percent-wise is off Amazon's list price. It's based on the original list price of the item, so it may be misleading. I hope this makes sense!

I'll give an example of how I fell for the DotD. There was a cookingware set that had a list price of $700+. On its sale day, it was listed at Amazon's price of $119. I thought heck, that's a great price! I have to order it right now, or I'll lose that great price! I checked the same cookingware set a few days later, and the price had only gone up to about $180. :/

I found a great site that helps you find real deals on Amazon. It only shows items that have been discounted from the Amazon price by 70% off or more.

http://www.junglecrazy.com/

Happy new year!

i hope everyone's new year wishes come true. my boyfriend and i plan to start fresh and re-evaluate our financial situation. :-)