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How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

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Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#21

Post by gav »

k3n wrote: post #9
seivan wrote: post #6

Hmm. How good is Turbo Tax, I mean I can tell it's horribly coded, but does it have automated features/recommendations that will help you earn more? Or is it basically what the tax system does in Swede/Finland etc?

They usually have a free version that is adequate for the most basic of returns, and then all others require you to purchase something in order to file through them. If you actually want the value-added services (such as the recommendations you mention), then you pay even more. The situation is a farce and a disgrace to our country; the pockets of a few are getting lined at the detriment of the many. Wait, are we dis…

The free version is just for Federal, you have to pay to file your state tax return.

What I find insulting is having to pay to file my taxes, then having to pay sales tax on top of that.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#22

Post by danielweber »

LarryMade2 wrote: post #3

This is why the US can't have shiny things. I've always thought the IRS should provide us with a lot of the tax info, since it gets reported to them so regularly.

Partly they want to see what you say, to see if you are lying.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#23

Post by jleard »

mcenedella wrote: post #12

The choice is between letting the government do your taxes for "free", versus having a company whose reputation rides on getting your taxes done as efficiently as possible with the least tax burden to you. Anybody who would choose to have the government complete them, hasn't been paying attention to the lengths revenue-strapped states will go to maximize their tax collections. It's a bit like letting the user car sal…

You're employing a logical fallacy (argumentum ad metum).

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appeal_to_fear

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#24

Post by themckman »

seivan wrote: post #6

Hmm. How good is Turbo Tax, I mean I can tell it's horribly coded, but does it have automated features/recommendations that will help you earn more? Or is it basically what the tax system does in Swede/Finland etc?

I've used the web version of Turbo Tax the past 2 or 3 years and it's actually pretty nice. It feels a little heavy at times, but for the most part it is pretty responsive. As to how the code actually looks, obviously I can't speak much to that, but from a user perspective, I'm quite pleased with the experience.

It does try and help you find more things that you might have missed, walking you through a series of questionnaires to try and uncover deductions you might not have known about or forgot you could take this year. And, like another reply to this comment, a basic 1040 is free to file. You have to pay if you want to file your state return through it.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#25

Post by clarkevans »

MatthewPhillips wrote: post #18
rm999 wrote: post #11

This stuff aggravates me. My taxes aren't abnormally complex (single, one state, very few deductions, one w-2), but I get several 1099s for my investments and end up spending an hour filling them in manually, importing CSV files from my brokerages, and double checking the numbers. What annoys me is all the forms clearly state the IRS has also been sent this information; I'm literally filling out forms in a slow, erro…

The government is not bad at code because of lobbying, they're bad at code because of fluctuating budgets, low salaries, and ridiculous processes.

Yet, Government programs have excellent customer service as compared to corporate equivalents. I use one example: student loan servicing. My loans were serviced by the largest company in the business for years, it was pure torture. When the department of education offered to assume the loans, I was happy to have the pain gone. They have been absolutely lovely to work with, clear, transparent and... helpful.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#26

Post by ScottWhigham »

raverbashing wrote: post #14
mcenedella wrote: post #12

The choice is between letting the government do your taxes for "free", versus having a company whose reputation rides on getting your taxes done as efficiently as possible with the least tax burden to you. Anybody who would choose to have the government complete them, hasn't been paying attention to the lengths revenue-strapped states will go to maximize their tax collections. It's a bit like letting the user car sal…

This is total BS Go reread the article, unless you're really in pro of companies charging for what should be free. Pro-tip: if the government thinks you owe X, it's not Turbotax that's going to change that.

No need for the hyperbole. OP's question is logical. On one hand you have a company who is taking your money and has a reasonable expectation that, as a result of using their software, you will save more money because they will help you find deductions and tax credits that you would've been hard pressed to find yourself. These companies compete in a free market for your money, both with other software companies and with CPAs/CPA firms. The "winner" (for a particular user/client) is the one who (a) has the best reputation of not getting you audited, and (b) who gets you the best price:deduction ratio.

On the other hand, you have a government entity whose sole charge is to collect revenue. Is their system going to be designed to help you get as many deductions as possible? Are they going to prompt you to deduct moving expenses (just to pick one example)? Maybe, maybe not. The question is legit though and thus causes us all to say, "Wait a minute... maybe, since there is a financial incentive for them not to show me deductions, that they will hide some of that (or make finding it as complex as the tax code)."

If Intuit/et al help you save $5000 in taxes this year by helping you deduct all that you can, Intuit/et al do not make one penny more - that money simply stays in your pocket. If the IRS helps you save $5000 that you would have otherwise paid (b/c you did not fully deduct all that you could have), then the IRS loses $5000. That in and of itself highlights the problem.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#28

Post by niggler »

ScottWhigham wrote: post #16
niggler wrote: post #10

FYI: this exists: https://www.freefilefillableforms.com/ I haven't used this personally for filing because it doesn't handle certain forms like 1128, but I'm told it's pretty good for basic stuff

I think you're missing the point. The IRS has already received your 1099/W2/etc and thus it knows (a) your income, and (b) how much in taxes you've already paid. By then having the IRS start your tax return for you, you would no longer have to fill in that info. The IRS makes free forms available already. Besides, are there actually people so stupid that they would give their SSN/info to a site like that?

I think many of us here don't get paid by W2 or by 1099. We are compensated in different ways which don't require those types of filings (e.g. K1), in which case we do need to fill out forms.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#29

Post by ScottWhigham »

seefoma wrote: post #17
mcenedella wrote: post #12

The choice is between letting the government do your taxes for "free", versus having a company whose reputation rides on getting your taxes done as efficiently as possible with the least tax burden to you. Anybody who would choose to have the government complete them, hasn't been paying attention to the lengths revenue-strapped states will go to maximize their tax collections. It's a bit like letting the user car sal…

I disagree. We are talking about instances where both you and the government have all the information necessary to compute your tax exactly. It doesn't matter who does the calculation, the rate is fixed in advance. Even if you let them calculate the number for you there is no reason you can't double check it. For more complicated tax situations where you are trying to minimize your tax based on information not availa…

Your (and others) comment is about income and taxes paid only. However, the US tax system is not just about income and taxes paid; it is also about deductions and tax credits. Yes, the IRS can calculate accurately (based on company reporting/history) what you've earned (income) and paid into the system for the tax year (taxes paid). Is that all you want them to do though? Of course not. Anyone who says, "Yes!" to that simply hasn't either thought this through or doesn't understand the concept of tax deductions and credits. See my comment above for more detail.

Re: How the Maker of TurboTax Fought Free, Simple Tax Filing

#30

Post by eli »

MatthewPhillips wrote: post #8

The IRS switched to an xml file format a couple of years ago for e-filing, which broke the first week of the tax season. They were unable to accept any returns for around a week, IIRC. This article is a little overly optimistic about their chances of fully replacing tax prep, in my opinion.

It already exists and AFAIK works fine for state taxes in California.
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