Seven WaysTo Save by Jeff Schnepper (NAPSA)—Tofile a few dollars off your tax bill, consider these seven suggestions: 1. Save with home equity interest: Pay off debt with a home equity loan rather than credit cards. The interest on up to $100,000 of debt is deductible as home equity interest. 2. Generosity gets repaid: Contribute old clothes, other items to charity. You can deduct the wholesale fair market value of non-cash contributions to any qualified charitable organization. You can also deduct your mileage—at 14 cents a mile—if you use your car for charitable purposes. Get a receipt. 3. Let the IRS subsidize your job search: Job hunting expenses—including resums, phonecalls, postage, travel costs and the like—are deductible as miscellaneous itemized deductions. 4, Invest some time in tracking investment expenses: They’re allowed as miscellaneous deductions. Such expenses include investment publications, payment for investment advice, calls to your broker and other expenses related to producing investment income. 5. Keep receipts on any business supplies or businessrelated gifts you make: The key is that you use the items in the business, not that you necessarily need them. 6. Get help with your future taxes: Tax planning advice is deductible. 7. It’s a healthy idea to deduct medical expenses: Any It can pay to know what you can deduct, so you don’t make a non-deductible contribution to the IRS. special equipment or treatments you receive are also deductible. If you have a medical condition that can be helped by a sauna or a whirlpool, those items are deductible. In addition, if you have a bad back and yourdoctor says you need a daily massage or other type of treatment, that’s deductible, too. Get a written note from your doctor saying you need those services. To prepare and file your taxes, visit www.money.msn.com and click on Taxes. Or check out MSN Money Plus, the finance channel on MSN8, and use the Tax Export tool, which automatically consolidates banking and brokerage data into one place, allowing for quick and easy export to tax software programs. e Mr. Schnepper, MSN Money tax expert, is a tax attorney and author of How to Pay Zero Taxes.
