Storytelling Festival, Clearfield, Utah

Makes plans to attend the FREE 9th Annual Storytelling Festival this Saturday, 7 p.m. Fourteen of Northern Utah's finest professional & local novice storytellers will present at the Clearfield Community Arts Center. For all ages!

The tax man cometh...here are some tips to get ready for him!

6 things to do in January to prepare for tax time

The good news, bad news and worse news about your 2014 taxes

You will be facing a lot more documentation challenges this tax season, so it’s time to get started on your January to-do list.

Make a list of all the places from which you are expecting to receive documents.

Employers (W-2), customers (1099-MISC), merchant banking and PayPal (1099-K), investments (1099-INT and 1099-DIV), pension and IRA accounts (1099-R), sales or dispositions of real estate (1099S, 1099-A, 1099-COD, etc.), mortgage lenders (1098), state payments and refunds (1099-G), and so forth. Using last year’s tax file will give you a starting point. Make note of sources that you have closed out during the year. Though they may still issue reports for the few months’ worth of activities. Add the new income and expense sources to your list.

Note: If you had taxable gambling winnings, you would have received the W-2G form from the establishment on the spot. It will not be coming in the mail.

Did you move?

If you moved at any time last year, your employers, banks, etc. might have the wrong address for you. Send them updates this week — call them and fax or email the information so they get your correct address as soon as possible. One of the most common complaints TaxMama.com gets is that people didn’t receive their W-2s and 1099s — because they moved and forgot to notify the relevant issuers.

As a business, do you need to issue a Form 1099-MISC to anyone?

If you don’t already have each vendor’s name, address and tax ID number (especially via a Form W-9), get on the ball and start collecting that information immediately. Beware: vendors and freelancers who were not planning to pay taxes on their earnings may get hostile when you ask for their tax ID numbers.

You need to send the 1099s to recipients by Jan. 31 — even though you may not have to file the forms with the IRS until March 31. The penalty starts at $100 for each late 1099-MISC you issue. You know how antsy your vendors, affiliates, and freelancers get when the forms arrive late.

In fact, establish a policy for 2015. Before issuing a check to any freelancer or service provider, have them provide you with a signed Form W-9. It will save you a lot of trouble — and fights — next January.

Get proof of your health insurance coverage.

And that of your family members. Along with this, you will need to know the income of all members of the household in order to compute the health care credit or penalty. You’ll find new lines on your Form 1040. Line 61 deals with the tax/penalty for not having health care coverage. Line 69 is for the additional tax credit from Form 8962. Wow! You must see this form. In addition to household income, it asks about your monthly health insurance payment, your monthly premium tax credits…and so much more. (You will want to read the instructions.) This is the most complicated form that the IRS has ever issued for individuals to fill out. And it’s still in draft form.

Note: Administration of this new program will overtask the IRS, which is understaffed and will thus be hard-pressed to verify the information you provide this year. Since there may be refunds involved, this is ripe for fraud. Expect the IRS to be slow in issuing these refunds, while they try to insure the filings are valid.

What’s your name?

Did you get married or divorced last year and change your name? Or did you simply change your name, officially, because you didn’t like your old name? Update your name on your Social Security record. Until you change the name on your Social Security card, use your previous name on your tax return. Don’t worry about the name on the W-2 or 1099 not matching the tax return.

Do you own rental real estate or a business that depreciates its assets?

There is a raft of new rules about depreciating vs. capitalizing property that takes effect for the 2014 tax returns. They are called uniform capitalization rules. What does that mean to you?

The good news:

If you have not claimed depreciation on assets, but should have, you will be able to catch up on all the lost depreciation at once. That could mean a generous tax deduction on your business or rental. For rentals with suspended losses, don’t worry, you won’t lose this additional deduction. This will simply increase the losses you will be able to use when you finally sell the building.

The bad news:

Practically everyone who is now, or should have been, depreciating anything will have to attach a Form 3115 to make an election (a declaration) that they will be opting into the IRS’s new capitalization rules. It’s complicated. Tax professionals, researchers and writers have been discussing this for over two years and we still have many open questions. Don’t tackle this alone. Having a tax professional work with you on this improves your chances of getting it right. If you still get it wrong, you can avoid the penalties because you tried to get professional guidance.

Worse news:

You see, you just might get audited over this change. Or not. In March 2014, before the IRS was hit with the Congressional budget cuts, they updated their audit guide on Capitalizing vs. Expensing Repairs.

The Form 3115 will have to be filed with the relevant 2014 tax return and sent in to a special IRS unit as well. It will require the taxpayer’s signature.

Is there any good news in the tax world for the month of January? Well, we’re expecting to see a lot of funny and exasperating antics from taxpayers, celebrities, and tax professionals as we try to muddle through the new rules. So, stay tuned for humorous stories.

Eva Rosenberg is a tax columnist for MarketWatch. You can follow her on Twitter @TaxMama.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/6-things-january-prepare-tax-110136585.html?utm_content=buffer4e89c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Ice Castle!! Midway, Utah

Have you been to the Ice Castles?? They look pretty awesome! Might have to bundle up & brave the cold to check them out!!

For more info & to purchase tickets, click here.

5 Things to Consider before tapping your home for cash!!

During the housing bust, many homeowners were cut off from a popular source of funds: their homes.
But as home prices recover, more people have been able to tap their home's equity to pay for renovations, consolidate debts or help pay for other big ticket items.


Home equity lines of credit were up 27% during the year ended June 30, according to financial services company Experian and consulting firm Oliver Wyman. And more people are expected to follow suit.
But does that mean a home equity loan (HEL) or home equity line of credit (HELOC) is right for you? Here are five things you need to consider.

1. Rates
In recent years, mortgage rates have hovered near historic lows -- with nearly 9 million borrowers getting 30-year fixed mortgages at or below 4%, according to CoreLogic.
Now rates are expected to rise.
"We may be in for a more volatile period," said Keith Gumbinger, of HSH.com, a mortgage information firm. Coming to an end next month are several of the Federal Reserve's efforts to keep rates low under its quantitative easing monetary policy, he noted.
So if you are one of the borrowers who locked in an ultra-low rate in the past few years, a home equity loan or HELOC could save you more money than refinancing the entire mortgage through a cash-out refinance.

If you refinance your loan now, you're likely to pay a rate that is as much as a percentage point higher than your original loan. And you will be paying that rate on the entire loan balance.
"Somebody who has a 3.5% first mortgage is not going to do a cash-out refinance at 5.5% unless they absolutely have to," said Greg McBride, senior financial analyst for BankRate.com.

While rates on home equity loans tend to be a couple of percentage points higher, you will only be paying that higher rate on a fraction of your total loan balance.
HELOCs tend to offer competitive rates, but they are often adjustable, meaning there is a risk they will rise. Again, you will only pay the higher rate on the amount of credit you've taken out.

2. Costs
The price you'll pay upfront to get a home equity loan or HELOC is far cheaper than refinancing.
That's because many lenders make you go through the full underwriting process when you refinance -- and they charge all the fees that go along with that process, too.

You can expect to pay inspection and attorney review fees, for example, and you will have to get a new title search and insurance, which can typically cost $1,000 or more, depending on the size of your mortgage. In total, all of those upfront costs of refinancing can put you back two to three grand depending on the size of your loan.
Meanwhile, some lenders issue home equity loans or lines of credit with no upfront costs; borrowers pay for their application, appraisal and other fees by paying a higher interest rate.

3. Time
When you take out a home equity loan or HELOC, you keep making your payments on the same payment schedule.
When you refinance a loan, however, the clock resets.

So even if you've paid 30 months on a 30-year loan and then refinance, when you make your first payment on the new loan it will be like starting at day one of the 30-year term.
However, if you opt to roll the 30-year loan into a 15-year one, that would then reduce the number of payments you make but increase the amount of your payments each month.

4. What the loan or line of credit is for
The best reason to take out a home equity loan is when it has some positive impact on your finances. Using it to pay for a renovation that adds value to your property, for example, or to pay for an advanced degree that can increase your earning power.
Of course, there are times when borrowing against your home doesn't make sense.
It can be foolish to tap your home's equity for nonessential spending, for example. Using home equity to buy a Mercedes, pay for a luxury vacation or make some other discretionary purchase can be a foolish move. The money will be gone and you will be paying off the debt for years to come.
Draining your home of equity can also put you on the road to foreclosure. Run into unexpected expenses and there's one less source of funds to tap.

5.Tax benefits
Just like first mortgages, certain home equity loans and HELOCs are eligible for the home mortgage interest deduction. Borrowers can deduct up to $100,000 of interest paid on a mortgage's principal.
That's not always the case when you pursue a cash-out refinance.

http://money.cnn.com/2014/10/07/real_estate/home-equity-loans/index.html?section=money_realestate&utm_content=buffer9d2cb&utm_medium=social&utm_source=plus.google.com&utm_campaign=buffer

World Cup in Utah?? You bet!!

 Deer Valley Resort will once again host a FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup event Wednesday, January 7, through Saturday, January 10, 2015.

Please join Deer Valley Resort, the U.S. Freestyle Ski Team for an opening press conference on Wednesday, January 7, at 3:45 p.m. in the Bald Eagle room on the second level of Snow Park Lodge. Current members of the U.S. aerial and moguls teams will be on-site answering questions about their season and the week’s events at Deer Valley.

All FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup competitions will be held at night under the lights at Deer Valley®. Men’s and women’s aerial events will be held on the White Owl ski run on Thursday, January 8. Men’s and women’s moguls event is scheduled on the Champion ski run on Friday, January 9 and Dual Moguls will take place Saturday, January 10. Finals for all disciplines will take place in the evening, with a fireworks display concluding each night. Each discipline will also be filmed and televised on NBC and NBC Sports Network airing on Sunday, January 11and Saturday, January 17, 2015.

Monday, January 5, 2015:

4 p.m. to 9 p.m. – Press Center is open on the second level of Snow Park Lodge

Tuesday, January 6, 2015: 

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. – Press Center is open

Wednesday, January 7, 2015: 

9 a.m. to 6 p.m. – Press Center is open

3:45 p.m. – Opening Press Conference with the U.S. Ski Team and the Bald Eagle room on the second level of Snow Park Lodge

7 p.m. – A free live concert featuring Chris Robinson Brotherhood will take place on lower Main Street in Park City. The celebration continues immediately after the concert with a spectacular fireworks display

Thursday, January 8, 2015: 

Noon to 10 p.m. – Press Center is open

2:45 to 3:20 p.m. – Ladies’ Aerial Qualifications on White Owl ski run

5 to 5:50 p.m. – Men’s Aerial Qualifications on White Owl ski run

7:45 to 8 p.m. – Aerial athlete showcase

8 to 9 p.m. – Ladies’ and Men’s Aerial Finals

9 p.m. – Awards and fireworks in the competition venue

Friday, January 9, 2015: 

11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. – Press Center is open

3 to 4 p.m. – Ladies’ Mogul Qualifications on Champion ski run

5 to 6:25 p.m. – Men’s Mogul Qualifications on Champion ski run

7 to 8 p.m. –Ladies’ and Men’s Mogul Finals

8 p.m. – Awards and fireworks in the competition venue

Saturday, January 10, 2015: 

Noon to 11 p.m. – Press Center is open

4:55 to 6:40 p.m. – Ladies’ and Mens’ Dual Mogul Prelim Rounds on Champion ski run

7 to 8:20 p.m. – Ladies’ and Men’s Dual Mogul Finals on Champion ski run

8:25 p.m. – Awards and fireworks in the competition venue

All events are free to the public.

This year, all events will be streamed live at usskiteam.com. To follow the event on social media, please search #DeerValleyWC.

Organization?? What's that?!

January always feels like time for organization...what do you think about these ideas?? I'm not sure I have enough cabinet/drawer space for them.

Nice Spice
Most spice racks are corny — there, we said it. A better idea is to keep that jumble of little jars and tins off your counter and hidden away in a drawer. This clever spice rack insert ($60 for a 16-inch-wide rack) fits most standard drawers and easily can be trimmed to fit odd sizes. The angled shelves hold spice jars so it’s easy to read labels.


Check out the other ideas here!