Are you ready? Tax season is rounding the corner

Start getting your tax information ready throughout the year.

That's the No. 1 piece of advice local tax preparers give with tax season upon us.

"They should start the year before," said Susan Betsworth, a certified public accountant, in Le Mars.

People need to keep information like receipts for mileage, charitable donations and medical bills that may help them during tax preparation.

To help with keeping track of those receipts places like H&R Block offer consumers a checklist and provide people with record books, said Harvey Taubert, manager of H&R Block in Le Mars.

"They need to make sure they keep track of their income from somewhere else," Betsworth said. "In January, this is the time to make sure they keep all their W-2s and 1099s."

The 1099s are tax forms that show income and interest paid throughout the year.

Betsworth said people should also keep track of statements received from the Internal Revenue Service during the year. They should also keep track of employee business expenses and daycare expenses because all may possibly save the taxpayer money.

Waiting until the last minute not only makes it hard for people, but also for those preparing their taxes, Betsworth said.

She suggests people hire a tax preparer to help file their taxes because those people are trained and may be able to find deductions the average person wouldn't.

"We know how to ask the right question," Betsworth said.

Taubert said employees at H&R Block are not licensed accountants, but they have to take and pass a test to do tax preparation.

As for Internet software programs that millions of people use, Betsworth said they only work for the simplest of federal tax returns.

"It's possible to do on the Internet," Betsworth said. "The State of Iowa tax is nearly impossible to do online."

And as to the cost to consumers of having their taxes figured by a professional, it varies.

"There's no dollar amount defined," Bestworth said. "It depends on how much time it takes, how much information is involved and how many forms are filled out."

The same goes for how much money consumers will bring home or pay out during tax season because it makes a difference if you are a business owner, homeowner, renter or have a lower than average income, Taubert said.

Betsworth emphasized, "Don't wait" to start gathering your yearly tax information.

"It is very hard for people if they wait until the last minute," Betsworth said. "If they wait until the last minute, they are more likely to forget a deduction or an income."