Does anyone have $18,000 I can borrow?
Has anyone ever hired one of those companies who can lower your tax debt? Most likely called something like "The Eagle" or "The strong arm" or some equally lame catchy name?
The short story is that we apparently missed something on our 2008 taxes from when we remodeled our house in Phoenix and now we owe an additional 18k. We have a tax attorney and it's all been checked out and yes we infact do owe this money. Mother Fucker!
We had to tap into our IRA's, 401k's and retirement to finish the remodel because we hired a contractor who went out of business after ripping up our house and taking 90k of our money...leaving us with no money except the stuff you should never touch...aka the money we HAD to use. Resulting in the IRS thinking that money was "income" etc...
This has been a complete and total shit storm and it just got like 18k times worse!
And no, there's nothing we can ever do about the 90k lost...gone. POOF, you're poor!
Welcome to my 2.2 weight gain this week. Stressed much?
I promise, some day very soon, I'll be talking about weight loss, but recently my life has sort of exploded.
I suppose I shouldn't complain though...after reading this post. I have a great husband, the best friends anyone could want. We live in an awesome house in an even awesomer city (Denver). I get along great with my parents, my mom is so amazing and supportive of everything I do. I love my bicycle (I know, random, but true) I really love my life. 18k is just a hiccup in our life and will hopefully be resolved in 1-2 years. We've been through worse and can take on anything!
ReplyDeleteWow holy crap. I like the fact that you added the follow up comment. That is a good attitude to have after a crappy situation. hope all gets better soon.
ReplyDeleteKeep your chin up!
ReplyDeleteOMG.
ReplyDeleteYour post is very close to the one I just did on my blog. My fiance owes taxes, unemployment from an injury years ago, and he pays almost a thousand a month in child support. We are way over our heads in bills and it just doesnt get any easier does it?
We have not contacted anyone either (yet) but I just wanted you to know. you are not alone :(
They don't expect you to pay it off right now, right? There is a several year payment plan? That's what my co-worker had happen to her and she had several years to pay it off (plus they took her tax refund money).
ReplyDeleteWhen I changed jobs, I took over a $20K hit in my salary. So that's per year. As in, per-year-never-going-to-end-as-long-as-I-have-this-job type of cut. The pay cut was worth the job change, but it still sucked.
And you know what? I did it. You can too.
It wasn't easy and it wasn't fun. It involved me creating a budget and sticking to it. Anything "extra" didn't have a place in the budget...from pedicures, fake nails, hair highlighting and expensive make-up. I grew my hair out so I could have it cut less often AND I stopped getting waxed (hello tweezers and shavers!).
I shopped on the sale racks only (even at TJ Maxx) and only when absolutely necessary.
Gone were trips to Starbucks, drinking with friends (for the most part) and going to movies? FORGET IT. Redbox became my new splurge.
I looked at grocery store inserts to see what was on sale and that's how I decided what I would eat that week. I didn't buy organic and sighed wistfully as I drove past Whole Foods.
Again, it wasn't fun, but you can do it. Especially since there will be an end in sight.
In the end, I decided that I didn't want that lifestyle all the time so I moved, took a loss on my house, and decreased my mortgage by quite a bit. I sold my car and got one that was cheaper and had better gas mileage. I got a part time job. Doing all of those things meant that I could start adding little splurges into my life.
I'm proud to say that while my salary hasn't changed AT ALL in three years, I had paid off all my debt and had started to live within my means even before joining households with Joe...and that's really what you all may have to do.
Reassess your budget to include the payment to the government and then live within those boundaries.
You can do it. You won't want to, but you can do it.
Happy Fun Pants has so much willpower. (Katy, is this the fun gal you call Mizz Pants?) Happy Fun Pants, congratulations on wanting to get out of debt. I hear about so many horror stories of friends and family who either get carried away or just don't know about financial repercussions, or experience tragedy, and end up in over their heads. Katy and Scott have worked so, so hard to take control of their financial situation and it's so discouraging to be hit with another blow like this one.. just when things were looking up, the cats piss on the mattress and the IRS comes a'knockin'. So annoying that if you withdraw from your 401K, you have to claim it as income. Uncle Sam always finds a way to get his piece of the pie. Hang in there, Kitty Kat. You're right. You have a pretty amazing life. You've been through worse, this is a little kink but nothing major. I love you, and know you and Scooter can pull out of this. :)
ReplyDeleteAlso, now you have answers! You're going to give the furry babies (Artie & Tick) more constrictive boundaries to live within, and you know for sure what/who you owe with the tax nightmare. Now you can work on healing and focusing on yourself again. Don't give up! the very, very minor setback is a blink in the journey of your weightloss and health goals. You can do it!
I hope I didn't come across as preachy or anything...I wanted to help you see that you can do it.
ReplyDeleteI remember when I felt like I just couldn't do it, my best friend sat down with me (and with a pencil, paper, and a calculator) and we crunched numbers again and again until we figured out what I could do.
Realizing that I could do it was empowering - and I guess I just wanted to shed light on the fact that it CAN be done. Because that's what helped me the most.
When you have wave after wave of crap hit you, it's hard to keep going...and I know that's where you are with this - things look bleak and unhappy. They ARE unhappy. I mean, you thought you were done...and now this! Again!
So if I didn't offer as much shoulder as I should've on my first post, sorry.
I didn't mean anything bad by it.
This sucks. So sorry to hear about it.
ReplyDeleteDid anyone ever tell ya LIFE IS NOT FAIR.....this is horrible....the IRS - needs to go after the real tax cheats...You have been so responsible, you finished off the house here...when the easiest thing would of been to just walk away......UGH...wish there was something someone could do -- it is not fair...and it should not be happening to you...you guys have had more than your fair share of crap.......the amazing part, is no matter how bad it has gotten for you...you both are super positive, and you get it worked out! Here is hoping that after this mess is cleared up...there is smooth sailing ahead for the rest of your entire life~
ReplyDeleteWell Shit, eh? Sucks does not being to explain that information.
ReplyDeleteWhat a f***in' doozy! (Wasn't sure if I could say fuckin' on your blog) Keep your chin up, dear!
ReplyDeleteFuck, dude. Totally sucks. I have a story of my own undeserved financial ruin as well. I guess the bright side is that you were able to handle it, and you are secure with your man. Money problems can shake a couple to the core. Love how you came back and added some light at the end of the tunnel.
ReplyDeletejust another big test in this thing we call life. although it majorly sucks butt!!! karma thats all i got to say to those people that screwed you over. *hugs*
ReplyDelete