Effectively preparing your personal finances should enable you to tackle tax time with a lot less stress, and hopefully, get the job done a lot quicker. Even if you use the services of a tax professional to help you, they will want certain information that you could provide them with far quicker if you’re organized and begun prepping your personal finances in advance.

Here are some tips for effective personal finance preparation:

Go through your bank account records:

It’s often be your primary checking account or money market account with check-writing capabilities that will include any deductible expenses, and so going through the records of these accounts to be sure that you can substantiate your deductions, is very important. Some banks enable you to look at a year-end summary of expenses, which can be very helpful.

Look in detail at you credit card expenses:

Nowadays, life is made much easier by being able to use credit cards to make donations or pay for deductible expenses; rewards are often given in the form of air miles or cash back and many credit card companies provide you with year-end summaries. So, take a closer look at your credit card statements to see what you can find there in relation to your personal expenses.

Collate your investing records:

Putting all the documentation in one place that’s related to any investments you might have, makes very good sense. Gather together your year-end account statements and other documents and make them readily available when you’re getting ready to file. You should be able to get all the necessary information from a 1099 form given to you by your bank or other financial institution, but it can be helpful to look at your own statements rather than having to scrutinize an official tax form.

Be sure to have proof of all the income that your investments have generated, along with any purchases and sales of investments made during the year.

Be prepared!

If you do owe taxes, you should do everything within your capabilities to pay them before the deadline, since the penalties for not filing at all, can far outweigh those given for late filing. If you’re struggling with your taxes, don’t hesitate to seek professional help, otherwise you may find yourself landed with penalties for inaccurate and late filing, both of which can be avoided if you use the services of a tax professional.

Prepping personal finances need not be a headache if you get organised and seek professional help whenever needed. Never leave things to the last minute, and never delay seeking help because you think you can’t afford it; the cost of not getting your taxes right can be much higher than that of a tax professionals fee.