Joint vs Individual Taxes

[Stuck_At_Work]

Recently married (11/08). How do I determine which is the better way to go? Does TurboTax figure that out for me?

 

[Texas Wahoo]

In terms of tax savings, I'm pretty sure joint is always the way to go.

 

[BattleshipTexas]

In reply to:

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[LadyHornAustin]

Remember that because Texas is a community property state, pretty much everything is considered earned/spent 50/50 so unless you have a prenup it's not going to make much difference on your tax return. If you got married 11/08, though, you can count the income and expenses from before you were married as separate for tax purposes.

 

[dahorns]

it's extra work, but fill out out turbotax under both scenarios. Then, you have your answer. The extra time may be well worth if you increase your refund or reduce your bill.

 

[TexasEd]

If you are married and you want to itemize deductions you both itemize deductions even if you file separately. So one of you would claim all the qualifying deductions and the other would claim $0.