Less than one percent of individuals receive a notice from the IRS that they are being audited; however, nothing seems to fill people with as much dread as the prospect of being targeted. If it happens to you, do not panic.

One of the most common misconceptions about the auditing process is that they are “out to get you,” In reality, it could mean something as simple as a computer randomly selecting you for an audit.

The Best Defense Is a Good Offense

The best way to cope with an audit is to always be ready for one. By keeping meticulous records you can justify any number the IRS may question on your return. This level of organization will help your audit process go quickly and hopefully painlessly as you will have records to support your claims.

If you are past this point, though and the auditor is knocking at the door right now, here are some tips:

1. Be polite. It is a stereotype to not like the taxman, and you are probably not happy you are being audited – but being rude will not get the IRS to leave you alone, and it could make the situation worse. Make it clear that you want to be cooperative and resolve the audit quickly for both your sake and the IRS agent’s. Failure to cooperate with an audit can lead to an expansion of its scope because the IRS agent assumes you have something to hide – or the IRS agent can even conduct the audit without you and effectively pick numbers based on whatever limited documentation he has. As an aside, do not enter a heated argument with an IRS agent over any items. It will not serve to help your cause.
2. Answer questions honestly, but never volunteer any information that is not necessary. Avoiding idle conversation will help. Why be so sparring with your words? Often times an auditor is only interest in a particular item on your return, but you could accidentally offer an auditor hints to other areas that should be examined – effectively expanding the scope of your audit. This is why you should not be hostile to your auditor while keeping in mind that he is not your friend.
3. Never give an IRS agent the only copy of a document or the original. If the document is verifying a claim on your return, make copies and keep the original in a secure place. Though an IRS agent should not have malice, they are only human and can misplace paperwork just like anyone else. The difference here is if they misplace your only copy of a document, you will be the one to pay – literally.
4. Know your rights. If an auditor is being unreasonably hostile or you disagree with his decision, you have the right to go to a supervisor. Furthermore, if you are not satisfied with the supervisor, you can go the office of appeals. Finally, as a very last resort there is the U.S. Tax Court.

Two-thirds of undergraduate students have some college loan debt at graduation, but despite being so commonplace there is still a lot of confusion regarding the various loan options and their terms.

Let’s quickly look at government sponsored loans. There are four basic types:

Stafford Loans

Stafford loans are borrowed by the students themselves. A fixed interest rate of 6.8% is levied on all loans given after July 1, 2006. The maximum loan amount is fixed at $2,625 for the first year, $3,500 for the second year and $5,500 for the third, fourth and fifth year of undergraduate education while $8,500 is available for each year in graduate school.

Undergraduate students can borrow up to $23,000 total while the total limit for graduate and undergraduate borrowing for any student is $65,500.

Some students also have the option of getting their loans subsidized, meaning while in school the government pays the interest amount due. The students start paying off the loan, without having accumulated interest during school, six months after graduation.

Perkins Loans

Perkins loans are solely a government subsidized student loan. They have a stable interest rate currently at 5% which is suspended from when students are in school until nine months after they graduate. Undergraduate students can borrow up to $4,000 yearly while graduate students can borrow $6,000 yearly. A student can borrow no more than $20,000 as an undergraduate and $40,000 total including graduate school.

PLUS Loans

PLUS loans are loans the government gives to parents for use in their child’s education. The rate of interest applicable on PLUS loans is 8.5% after July 1, 2006. The advantage of this kind of loan is that there is no existing upper limit for the amount parents can borrow; however, parents have to start paying the money back immediately - though some lenders also allow the students to pay back the loan.

Besides not having an upper limit, meaning a parent can borrow the full cost of education including books and room and board, the IRS allows tax deductions on the interest paid on these loans.

Despite these benefits to the PLUS loan and even if you want to pay for your child’s education, have them take Stafford or Perkins loans before you take a Plus loan. Financially it makes much better sense because your child can defer the payments until after graduation and will also be charged lower interest rates.

Graduate PLUS Loans

These loans are available only to graduate and professional students, and allow the student to borrow up to the full cost of their education excluding financial aid. The general terms of the PLUS loans for undergraduates apply, except here the student borrows the money instead of the parents.

If instead you’ve decided on going through a private lender to finance college, look at the terms carefully to get the best deal. Here are some of the most important questions to ask:

• How frequently is the interest on the loan calculated? The more often the interest is calculated the bigger the loan will be when it comes time to start paying because all the interest is just tacked on to principal while the student is still in school.
• Are there any payment rewards? Often lenders offer incentives for payments that are made on time with education loans – from reduced interest rates to lowering the original principal itself.
• Is there a consolidation plan?  Though loan consolidation is rightly viewed with suspicion in general, it is a very good way to save money after graduating with college loans.

Identity theft is when someone acquires your personal financial information like Social Security Number, date of birth, and credit card numbers in order to take on your identity for financial gain. It is one of the fastest growing crimes today, particularly with technological advances that make stealing your personal information much easier.

Identity theft can happen in a number of ways:

A criminal can open credit card accounts in your name and then quickly max out the cards. The charges will turn up on your credit report, often ruining your credit. To avoid detection, criminals often change the billing address on the credit card so you don’t find out about the charges and they can open more accounts in the meantime.

More advanced identity thieves will even get ATM or debit cards for you existing accounts in order to withdraw your money directly.

Finally, and most frightening, there are instances of identity thieves using Social Security Numbers to obtain duplicate birth certificates. Once in possession of this key item, they can get a new driver’s license with their picture but in your name. Now the criminals can take personal loans under your name and even get benefits from the government.

Identity theft is a very acute problem because unlike your car being stolen, it can often take months to find that you have been victimized. Also, once you have discovered the crime it is a long agonizing process to try to rectify your credit. There is no worse feeling than reporting identity theft yet still being hounded by creditors who believe the debts are legitimate.

Unfortunately there is no magic bullet to prevent identity theft, though there are simply ways to make yourself a harder target. Always stay alert in matters concerning your personal information. People who are unsystematic and muddled about their private financial transactions are more likely to become prey to identity thieves.

Here are a few simple steps to make you less vulnerable to identity theft:

Protect Your Personal Information

Be paranoid about divulging personal information to people. Ask yourself, why is it necessary? Never give out personal information over the phone unless you are the one who originated the call. Also, your Social Security Number is your most sensitive piece of private information, so be most concerned about parties asking for it.

Shockingly, many people still carry their Social Security Card in their wallet! If you do this and lose your wallet, a thief now has all the information he needs to steal your identity. Do not write your Social Security Number down and carry it with you either.

Shred personal documents before throwing them away – and this includes “junk” credit card offers you receive in the mail. Thieves can retrieve these offers from your trash and apply for them without your knowledge if they are not shredded.

Keep Credit and Debit Cards Safe

Do not carry cards you do not anticipate needing in your wallet in case you lose it or have it stolen.

While shopping online verify the credentials of the people you are dealing with and only purchase from reputable websites.

Also, carefully look over your credit card statements. Too many people do not go over the itemized list of charges.

Finally, in the event you lose a card or have it stolen, immediately notify the credit card company or bank so that no one has an opportunity to misuse your account.

Protect the Identity of Your Deceased Family Members

Identity thieves do not allow even the dead to rest in peace. They use the identity of the deceased in committing a fraud in the same way they would use your identity so be sure to alert all credit companies and banks to remove the deceased from joint accounts. Also, contact the three credit reporting agencies and ask for a “deceased alert” which is a notice placed on the deceased person’s credit report informing companies that the person has died and therefore cannot be given credit. This is very important because depending on your relationship to the deceased or his status on your accounts, you may be responsible for debts incurred in their name.

Review Your Credit Report

Everyone is entitled to an annual credit report from each of the three credit bureaus, meaning you can receive a free credit report every 4 months. It is wise to review your credit report at least once every six months to check for activity that you are unaware of – especially because thieves will often open new accounts in your name. If you have an account you do not know about, just checking your bank and credit card statements is not enough.

To realize your retirement goals it is recommended that you start by saving money in specialized retirement vehicles. These are the most common and some of the best ways to financially secure your future. The two most common categories are:

1. IRAs – personal retirement accounts
2. 401(k)s, 403(b)s and 457s – employer sponsored plans
   

Before going into the details of these accounts, it’s crucial to understand how retirement accounts work and why are they the best modes of saving for your future.

Retirement accounts are the most effective way of saving money for retirement because they combine the benefits of compounding interest, consistent savings and tax savings if used properly.

There are two basic types of IRAs:

1. Traditional IRAs: this plan allows individuals to contribute $4,000 if they are under 50 and $5,000 if they are 50 and over yearly with the contribution qualifying as tax deductible (in 2008, each of those contribution limits will increase by $1,000). The money invested in this IRA is not taxed until withdrawal, and withdrawals can be made without a 10% penalty beginning at the age of 59 and ½.
2. Roth IRAs: this plan is usually designed for people who have a backup of a company retirement plan or whose income exceeds the deductibility limits of the IRA plan. The contribution limits are the same as with a Traditional IRA; however, the money invested in a Roth IRA is not tax deductible, but in return you won't have to pay taxes when you finally start withdrawing from the account.
   

Only if you become disabled can you access the account before you turn 59 and ½ without penalty. Also, were you to die, your beneficiary can receive the accounts funds without penalty.

Finally, Roth IRAs don’t have a compulsory withdrawal condition. A Traditional IRA requires you to start withdrawing from the account at age 70 and ½ but a Roth IRA will allow you to continue making contributions even after that age.

401(k)s, 403(b)s, and 457s

These plans are sponsored by your employer with the different numbers effectively just being different tax code depending on whether you work for a corporation, non-profit, or the government. These plans fall are considered “defined contribution” because you know what is being added to your account but you are not guarantee a particular return at retirement. This is different than a “defined benefit” plan such as a traditional pension where an employer promises to pay a certain amount to you at retirement assuming you meet certain criteria – typically being over a certain age and having worked for the employer for at least a certain period of time.

With these types of plans, the value of the benefits you receive at retirement depend on the value of your particular account, meaning two employees at the same firm could have vastly different 401(k)s due to different contribution amounts and management of funds.

These accounts make retirement saving very easy because you elect to have your employer automatically put a portion of your pay into the account. Not only does it help you prioritize your retirement saving, but it also means your contributions to these plans are tax deferred.

Currently, you can contribute no more than $15,500 to one of these plans a year, though there are exceptions if you are over 50 years of age.

If you must withdraw from one of these plans before you reach 59 and ½ you will be penalized 10% except under certain tax code exemptions.

Finally, you must begin withdrawing from these accounts by the year after you turn 70 unless you are still actively working for the employer that is offering the particular plan. Failure to withdraw from these accounts results in an incredibly harsh IRS penalty.

Retirement as a concept is not very old. It can largely be traced back to the creation of Social Security in 1935. At this time Social Security was used to guarantee a fixed basic income for older workers so that they would leave their jobs and create vacancies for younger workers.

Now that retirement is taken for granted, most people wonder if they are saving enough to take care of their needs when they stop working. Though there is a lot of dispute regarding the issue, many financial experts believe that you need approximately 70% of your pre-retirement income to allow you to continue living your same lifestyle after retirement.

The ability to live the same general lifestyle on 30% less money hinges on decreased expenses that come with retirement and an increase in age. According to a study by the U.S. Census Bureau from 2002, people between the ages of 45 and 54 spend approximately $15,000 on housing while people 75 and older spend only about $8,000. Also people between 45 and 54 spend more than $9,000 every year on transportation while those above 75 and older spend only about $3,000. This reflects a drop not only in the cost of buying a vehicle but also maintaining one - the money spent on gas and repairs – which often comes with not having to commute to work among other things.

Though retirement does not bring only savings, people between 45 and 54 spend $2,550 on healthcare a year while those above 75 spend $3,584 on average.

Significantly, this same study points out that income before taxes for a household kept by a 45 to 54 year old person is $64,974 while for people 75 and above it is only $23,890. The ability for many retirees to survive on a significantly reduced income points to other fundamental, or sometimes forced, changes in expenses.

As a person gets older there is a decrease in the number of dependents in the household which leads to a reduction in food costs and other household expenses. Also, with the kids moved out, maintaining a large house is not only an extra expense but also impractical. Many retirees downsize their homes and can use some of the excess proceeds to add to their savings.

The money that you spend on entertainment in retirement is difficult to predict or find reliable statistics on (though the Census Bureau does report on it – its methodology is too vague). Some people end up spending more because they have more time and the freedom to do what they please with it. The only difference might be that your definition of entertainment might undergo a transition. You might now be going to yoga classes instead of a concert – or you might go to more concerts and less yoga (now that the stress of work is gone)! But these are largely personal choices and difficult to speak generally on, but if you plan on traveling the world when you retire, save accordingly.

The only real answer to the question of how much you need to retire is “how ever much you plan on spending.” The answer depends on how you intend to spend your time as a retiree. Examining these important categories, you can see that generally retirement comes with some inherent savings related to not having to go to work any more as well as usually no longer have children in the house; however, there are those that retire and actually spend more money than before. How you plan on living during retirement is a uniquely personal choice – perhaps you are planning on taking advantage of the time to take the trips you’ve always wanted or maybe you are content to read the great novels you never had time for before. Both choices sound great but each comes with very different financial costs.

Whatever your vision of the perfect retirement is, start planning for it sooner rather than later - because you do not want to reach your golden years only to find that you do not have enough gold to live the years comfortably.

You need to keep a close eye on your credit score because it can affect your life in surprisingly diverse ways. Besides the obvious, making it difficult to get loan approval, it can even sometimes affect you getting a new job. Many prospective employers now screen job applicants using credit reports based on the idea that someone with good credit will make a more responsible employee.

The bottom line is that poor credit can cost you both money and opportunities.

Whether your credit is great and you want to keep it that way or you need to start rebuilding poor credit, here are some easy tips:

1. It is obvious but very, very important: make sure that you pay your bills on time. The most important factor in determining your credit score is how you pay your bills, meaning whether you pay them at all - and if you do pay them whether you pay them on time.
2. Order a copy of your credit report at least once a year and carefully go through the contents. Everyone is entitled to one free credit report each year from each of the three credit reporting agencies. Annualcreditreport.com, the official site run by the agencies, is the best way to access your credit report for free, though these reports are without an actual credit score (which can only be obtained for a fee). The important thing is having the credit report itself, not the score, because the report is what is used to generate your credit score. So if you find any errors report them immediately to the credit bureau that you got the report from.
3. Don’t make the error of opening a lot of accounts within a short span, that is to say that there should be some time gaps between the openings of two credit card accounts for instance. Suddenly making a lot of credit available to yourself is bad for your score because it gives you the room to generate lots of debt quickly. This becomes especially important if you have a short credit history.
4. Do not open credit accounts that you do not need. Try to avoid opening that store credit card just to save 10% on your first purchase.
5. Make sure that your balances are always low when compared to your available credit. For example, if your total credit limit is $10,000, then your balances should be below about 25% of your credit limit - that is, you should owe no more than $2,500 total in order to help improve your credit score.
6. Don’t close paid-off credit cards. That’s right; do not close paid-off credit card accounts. It may sound crazy, but instead keep the account open and just stop using it. The reason for this relates to the last point: you want to keep your balances below 35% of your available credit and closing an account could prevent this. Let’s look at an example. If you have two credit cards with $5,000 limits and owe $2,500 on one card and nothing on the other card you are using 25% of your available credit – a very good ratio. This is because you have $10,000 in available credit and are using $2,500, or 25%. Now, if you close the paid-off card, you suddenly have only $5,000 in available credit but still owe $2,500 – meaning you are now using 50% of your available credit. This means closing the paid-off credit card actually hurt your score.
7. Get installment credit. Installment credit – a car loan or personal loan – is a great way to build credit and compliments revolving credit, like credit cards, leading to a higher overall credit score and a more complete credit history.
   

If you are reading this now not worried about having poor credit but instead trying to build a credit history, here are some tips to establish yourself:

1. Have a family member make you an authorized user of his or her credit card. This adds an entry into your credit score and works for minors too. A warning though, make sure the credit card has a clean history or your first credit report entry will be a negative one.
2. Open a checking or saving account if you do not have one already. Lenders often view these as a sign of financial stability.
3. Apply for a student credit card because they are usually fairly easy to get – but be smart using it! (They are easy to get because they often have very high interest rates.)
4. Apply for a store credit card.

There are several tricks that credit card companies can use to hike fees and potentially lead customers into an endless cycle of debt. One such practice is known as universal defaults and enables companies to increase interest rates if a cardholder makes just one late payment to another credit card company or even pays a phone or utility bill late. This means that if your credit card payment arrives past due, you risk having interest rates on all of your other cards rise. The trouble is that nearly half of all US banks use universal defaults, enabling them to raise interest rates as high as 40%. Nationwide, banks collected a record $17.1 billion from such penalty fees in 2005, a 15% increase from 2003. Meanwhile, late-fee charges increased 160% over a 10-year period to an average of more than $33 per late payment in 2005. Clearly this is a problem that needs to be addressed, but sadly it may be a reality until lawmakers decide to change the laws.

Unpaid medical bills do not go on your credit report unless the hospital or doctor to whom you owe the money subscribes to at least one of the three major credit reporting agencies (Experian, Equifax or Trans Union) or the debt is turned over to a collection agency. Moreover, if you dispute the validity of the debt within 30 days of receiving a payment notice, a creditor or debt collector cannot place the account on your credit report without a notation that you are disputing the debt.

Once a medical bill is recorded on a credit report it still can be removed if you agreed to pay the debt and negotiated to have the account removed from your credit report. Be sure to get any such agreements in writing, however, as otherwise it will not be legally binding. Do not only rely on the debt collectors oral promise that the account will be removed!

Garnishing wages is one of the only ways that creditors can get access to funds owed to them by their customers. Federal laws regulate just how much of a persons wage can be garnished and outlines several other restrictions that are in place to ensure that people are still able to make a living. Below is the actual federal law regarding wage garnishing:

UNITED STATES CODE: TITLE 15, CHAPTER 41, SUBCHAPTER II

§ 1673. Restriction on garnishment

(a) Maximum allowable garnishment

Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section and in section 1675 of this title, the maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek which is subjected to garnishment may not exceed

(1) 25 per centum of his disposable earnings for that week, or
(2) the amount by which his disposable earnings for that week exceed thirty times the Federal minimum hourly wage prescribed by section 206 (a)(1) of title 29 in effect at the time the earnings are payable,
whichever is less. In the case of earnings for any pay period other than a week, the Secretary of Labor shall by regulation prescribe a multiple of the Federal minimum hourly wage equivalent in effect to that set forth in paragraph

(b) Exceptions

(1) The restrictions of subsection (a) of this section do not apply in the case of
(A) any order for the support of any person issued by a court of competent jurisdiction or in accordance with an administrative procedure, which is established by State law, which affords substantial due process, and which is subject to judicial review.
(B) any order of any court of the United States having jurisdiction over cases under chapter 13 of title 11.
(C) any debt due for any State or Federal tax.
(2) The maximum part of the aggregate disposable earnings of an individual for any workweek which is subject to garnishment to enforce any order for the support of any person shall not exceed
(A) where such individual is supporting his spouse or dependent child (other than a spouse or child with respect to whose support such order is used), 50 per centum of such individual's disposable earnings for that week; and
(B) where such individual is not supporting such a spouse or dependent child described in clause (A), 60 per centum of such individual's disposable earnings for that week;
except that, with respect to the disposable earnings of any individual for any workweek, the 50 per centum specified in clause (A) shall be deemed to be 55 per centum and the 60 per centum specified in clause (B) shall be deemed to be 65 per centum, if and to the extent that such earnings are subject to garnishment to enforce a support order with respect to a period which is prior to the twelve-week period which ends with the beginning of such workweek.

(c) Execution or enforcement of garnishment order or process prohibited

No court of the United States or any State, and no State (or officer or agency thereof), may make, execute, or enforce any order or process in violation of this section.

§ 1674. Restriction on discharge from employment by reason of garnishment

(a) Termination of employment

No employer may discharge any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for any one indebtedness.

(b) Penalties

Whoever willfully violates subsection (a) of this section shall be fined not more than $1,000, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.

§ 1675. Exemption for State-regulated garnishments

The Secretary of Labor may by regulation exempt from the provisions of section 1673 (a) and (b)(2) of this title garnishments issued under the laws of any State if he determines that the laws of that State provide restrictions on garnishment which are substantially similar to those provided in section 1673 (a) and (b)(2) of this title.

§ 1676. Enforcement by Secretary of Labor

The Secretary of Labor, acting through the Wage and Hour Division of the Department of Labor, shall enforce the provisions of this subchapter.

§ 1677. Effect on State laws

This subchapter does not annul, alter, or affect, or exempt any person from complying with, the laws of any State
(1) prohibiting garnishments or providing for more limited garnishment than are allowed under this subchapter, or
(2) prohibiting the discharge of any employee by reason of the fact that his earnings have been subjected to garnishment for more than one indebtedness.

While it may be tempting for college students to whip out a credit card and simply charge their expenses, experts warn that that kind of mentality could end up hitting students harder than they think. For all the benefits of building a credit history early in life, there are many more drawbacks for not meeting monthly payments on credit cards. Nationwide, elderly and younger people are facing increasing amounts of credit card debt because they don't understand how credit cards work or fail to correct their spending habits. According to www.creditcards.com, 83% of college undergraduates have at least one credit card with an outstanding balance of more than $2,300! Meanwhile, the combination of credit card debt and student loans can be crushing to students looking to find a career and build a life after college. How can this be avoided? Simple, just remember to spend less than you earn, diversify your investments, save regularly and often, and remember rule number one.

Soon Americans may be able to push back even the most basic forms of spending: parking meters. Wisconsin is testing the waters in the capitol city of Madison with new meters that will accept credit cards. The city said it would begin testing the new meters next month and leave them in operation for 90 days. Instead of a line of gray meters, the new system will use a single battery-powered box that controls up to 14 spaces. While each system costs $10,000, the city hopes to recoup the costs with collection and maintenance savings. The spaces will cost $1.25 per hour but the city could change the rates at different times of the day depending on demand. Some see this move as yet another move towards a cash-less society that further leverages itself with debt in order to cover even more of our daily lives.