J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2004 [Paperback]

J.K. Lasser Institute (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0471451258 | ISBN-13: 978-0471451259 | Publication Date: October 20, 2003 | Edition: 1

The Most Trusted Name in Tax

For over 60 years, more than 38 million Americans have trusted J.K. Lasser to help them save money at tax time

"The granddaddy of all ‘do-it-yourself’ tax guides."
——Accounting Today

"Rated #1. . . Winner and still champion . . . The best balance of thoroughness, organization, and usability."
——Smart Money

Benefit from These New Tax Law Changes for 2003!

• Larger tax credits for families
• Lower income tax rates
• Lower tax rates for dividends
• Increased expensing and bonus depreciation for business owners
• Lower capital gain rates

Save Money by Taking Advantage of These Tax Laws!

• Home office deductions
• Special capital gains rates
• Roth IRAs
• Tuition tax credits
• Family gift and estate tax savings plans
• IRA deductions
• Tax-free home sales
• Medical expense deductions
• Filing options for married couples
• Education savings plans

Easy-to-Use Format Explains Complex Tax Laws

• FILING TIPS and FILING INSTRUCTIONS help you prepare your 2003 return
• PLANNING REMINDERS highlight year-end tax strategies for 2003 and planning opportunities for 2004 and later years
• CAUTIONS point out potential pitfalls to avoid and areas where you might expect IRS opposition
• LAW ALERTS indicate recent changes in the tax law and pending legislation before Congress
• COURT DECISIONS highlight key rulings from the Tax Court and other federal courts
• IRS ALERTS highlight key rulings and announcements from the IRS

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

The Most Trusted Name in Tax

For over 60 years, more than 38 million Americans have trusted J.K. Lasser to help them save money at tax time

Now with

• USABLE FORMS
• FREE ONLINE BONUSES
• GUIDANCE FOR ALL YOUR TAX NEEDS
• COVERS ALL 2004 TAX LAW CHANGES

Basics of Filing (Chap. 1) including:
Which form to file – Chap. 1 Filing as Head of Household – Chap. 1
Filing for your children – Chap. 1 Filing for married couples – Chap. 1

What Must You Report as Income? (Chaps. 2–11) including:
Dividends & Interest – Chap. 4 Capital gains & losses – Chap. 5
Traditional & Roth IRAs – Chap. 8 Rental income – Chap. 9

What Deductions Can You Claim? (Chaps. 12–21) including:
Moving expenses – Chap. 12 Medical expense deductions – Chap. 17
Charitable deductions – Chap. 14 Who is a dependent? – Chap. 21

How Much Tax Do You Owe? (Chaps. 22–27) including:
The AMT – Chap. 23 Your child's tax – Chap. 24
Personal tax credits – Chap. 25 Estimated taxes – Chap. 27

Strategies to Save You Taxes (Chaps. 28–39) including:
Tax free residence sales – Chap. 29 Investing in securities – Chap. 30
Armed forces rules – Chap. 35 Tax breaks for education – Chap. 38

Planning Ideas for Your Business (Chaps. 40–45) including:
Home office deduction – Chap. 40 First year expensing – Chap. 42
Auto expenses – Chap. 43 Self-employment tax – Chap. 45

Now That You're Done (Chaps. 46–49) including:
Electronic filing – Chap. 46 Filing extensions – Chap. 46
IRS Audits – Chap. 48 Amended returns – Chap. 49

Easy-to-Use Format Explains Complex Tax Laws

• FILING TIPS and FILING INSTRUCTIONS help you prepare your 2004 return
• PLANNING REMINDERS highlight year-end tax strategies for 2004 and planning opportunities for 2005 and later years
• CAUTIONS point out potential pitfalls to avoid and areas where you might expect IRS opposition
• LAW ALERTS indicate recent changes in the tax law and pending legislation before Congress
• COURT DECISIONS highlight key rulings from the Tax Court and other federal courts
• IRS ALERTS highlight key rulings and announcements from the IRS

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 797 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (October 20, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471451258
• ISBN-13: 978-0471451259
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,101,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The King Of Income Tax Guides!, March 10, 2004

By 

Robert I. Hedges - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2004 (Paperback)

This is the most wonderfully complete and comprehensible tax preparation guidebook on the market, and I buy the new edition every year. It never fails help me with the tortures of tax season. My favorite features are the wide margins that allow me to make notes in the book as I go. I also like the 'Caution' and 'Law Alert' notes in the margins pertinent to the matter being discussed. These clarify confusing issues (particularly about deductions) and make the tax code a mite more comprehensible. Other good features are the complete tax tables in the back of the book, a planning section, and a set of tax forms, although I personally don't use them as I traditionally use TurboTax.

My one minor critique is that sometimes an entry will refer you to a website to find the ultimate answer to a question. This is very rare, but does occasionally happen, for instance in this year's edition I needed some information on per diem reimbursement rates, and they weren't in the book, which was a mere annoyance, but at least the book told me where to get the information.

As tax preparation software becomes more all encompassing I use this book a little bit less every year, but at some point it always bails me out without fail. I highly recommend this book to anyone, especially people with moderately complex returns or small business owners filing Schedule C.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Saved Me Thousands by Replacing My Accountant, March 30, 2005

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2005: For Preparing Your 2004 Tax Return (Paperback)

This year I decided to go cold turkey and prepare my own tax returns, something I haven't done for many years. Instead, I have been using a bookkeeper to put my records in order and a CPA to prepare the actual returns. That's been expensive.

I decided that I should save the money this year and do the returns myself. Naturally, it helped to look back at what my CPA did last year. But a lot of new questions came up. This wonderful guide cleared them all up . . . and I double-checked the answers with the IRS instructions. No problems! It was a piece of cake.

If you only find one deduction you wouldn't otherwise remember to take, this guide will more than pay for itself. Buy it today!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thanks in Large Part to this Book our Returns are DONE!, February 28, 2005

By 

Peter V. Cannice "Peter Vincent Cannice of Sc... (Scottsdale, Arizona USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2005: For Preparing Your 2004 Tax Return (Paperback)

Each year I find myself buying the latest and greatest Income Tax Preparation books, often I'm let down by them for a number of reasons. I had to write this review as this is the very FIRST preparation book that answered every single question that I had. And since I do a diverse array of income tax preparations, finding a totally comprehensive book is like finding a hair in a shagged carpet.

Without going into great detail, the guide is designed in ways that make it very customer friendly. I'm the type of person that likes to make notes or comments on changes in tax law, items I want to refer to again, and I also like room for my tiny "post-it" notes. I deal with people from every possible tax category, from the very wealthy to family and friends that are disabled and have minimal income.

As far as I could tell, all of the most recent tax laws are found (easily) in this extremely comprehensive 2004 Income Tax Preparation Guide. They even reference applicable case law and Court Decisions, hot tips from the IRSinformation,planning alerts, and the latest breaking tax news.

Like previous years, you'll find all of the many forms you'll need. If something is not available in the book, you'll be directed to a location on the internet where you can find the precise information that you're looking for. This is tremendous guidance for the most recent tax law.

I'm someone who reviews the index in almost every book that I purchase. When I saw the extensive index, found in "J.K. Lasser's Your Income Tax 2005: For Preparing Your 2004 Tax Return", I was extremely impressed and later found it to be as helpful as it appeared when I first glanced at it.

I've not covered everything in this review, however I hope that I've given you at least a little more insight into this tax guide and whether or not you should choose this one over another. Thanks for taking the time to read this and good luck to you.

Best Regards and Happy Reading!

Pete Cannice
from Scottsdale, Arizona
email: [e-mail]