I'm always stressed by the year-end deadlines for things like my IRA contributions, so I'm taking proactive steps to get ahead.
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Courtesy of Rebecca Chamaa
If you're like me, the year's end can be stressful. In past years, it has taken me the first six months of the new year to catch up financially. It's not just the holiday gifts, meals, parties, outfits, and decorations. It's also the looming deadline for getting the most out of your tax deductions, like donations to non-profits and contributions to IRA accounts.
Coming up with thousands of dollars at the end of the year is something I'm giving up in 2024. It is too stressful and draws down our emergency fund too much at an already expensive time of year. Instead, I'm using the second half of the year to get ahead, which means doing three things starting this summer.
My partner and I are creating an account just for funding our IRAs and for donations at year-end. Deposits to the account come from our discretionary pool of money, so we are not short-changing any bills, savings, or our much-needed emergency fund. This year, our microwave, washer-dryer combo, oven, and tires all blew out at about the same time — a perfect example of why an emergency fund is critical in our household.
Another way we stay organized all year is to keep a large manila envelope and put the receipt in the envelope when we purchase or do anything that is deductible. This practice of maintaining receipts would come in handy during a possible audit, and it also helps us remember all the little things we purchased over the year, like new glasses or prescriptions. Instead of starting our taxes in January — or rushing to get them done next April — we're starting now and spreading out any pain involved.
First, we have a business credit card that we only use for deductible work expenses (like subscriptions, books, classes, conferences, and workshops). There is no guessing around our spending with this card.
Our general credit card, which we use for gas, groceries, travel, and restaurants, comes with a year-end statement that breaks down our spending into categories like restaurants, medical, vehicle (transportation), groceries, and others — making it possible to print out the report and highlight all the deductible items.
Lastly, a service with our bank account is a monthly breakdown of all spending that we can access and filter to include the year. Once we have the list for our whole year of expenditures, we can sort it alphabetically, making it easy to find recurring bills like our phones and internet to record all our home office expenses.
Between these three tactics for tracking expenditures, we'll be organized when 2024 ends. Eliminating the need to contribute large sums of money into IRAs and donations will reduce the stress of starting a new year.
