For many, perhaps most of us, taxes are pretty simple, especially with the higher standard deduction.
So, did you prepare your own taxes, use a free tax preparation service, an accountant or fee base tax preparer?
Did you directly download 1099s for investments from your record keeper as opposed to manual entry?
Why did you make the choice you did? We’re you satisfied with results?
I have used TurboTax for several years. It works for me,

One option per the IRS –
Pay online and click on extension. Taxpayers simply pay what they owe using an online payment option, then click on extension as the reason for the payment. The taxpayer will receive a confirmation number of their extension for their records. There’s no need to file any additional forms.
https://www.irs.gov/payments
The failure to pay penalty is 0.5% per month. The failure to file penalty is 5.0% per month.

At a time when American society has become increasingly polarized, I can’t think of a more propitious time to look at an example of how respect, civility and friendship  can flourish and overcome dissenting factious opinions.
There is no finer example of this than the friendship that existed between former Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg,  who eventually became to represent two branches of the Supreme Court.  Affectionately known as R.B.G by her supporters,

From IR-2025-47, April 14, 2025
The Internal Revenue Service announced today tax relief for individuals and businesses in the entire state of Tennessee affected by severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding that began on April 2, 2025.
These taxpayers now have until Nov. 3, 2025, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
The full announcement IR-205-47 at the following link –
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?pli=1#inbox/FMfcgzQZVJzzFxfSCzRrbMsrFXCPDFTm
Imagine having worked long hours for months on end.

I’ve mentioned my dumb luck at having most of our money in cash, earning about 4% as of 4/1. My strategy is to dollar cost average back into the market between now and the end of the year. If you ask my reasoning on this, I’d just say that I don’t want to be late to the party that follows the end of trade war. I have begun the process with my IRA, and will soon start on Chris’s.

What do you look for when buying a car? Quality, reliability, safety features, good mileage? Yup all that plus I like technology and friendliness.
My new car has more cameras than Kodak. When I use the navigation it shows a live image of the turn so it’s hard to miss. It uses the cameras to find a space and park itself. If I get lost I just say, “Take me home.”
When I start the car it says,

A number of events over the past few months have me thinking about aging, mortality, legacy, frailty, and – of course – financial planning. These events included attending funerals, preparing tax returns (ours and dozens of others), visiting old friends and distant family, minor traffic accidents, winter doldrums, and the recent discussions on HumbleDollar on the unique estate planning needs of childless retirees. Recent market volatility may have played a small role.
My wife and I have a lot of real-world experience caring for aging and infirm parents,

The first Social Security retirement check was issued to Ida M. Fuller on January 31, 1940, for an amount of $22.54. She had paid SS taxes a little less than three years. She died Jan 27, 1975 at 100 years old. It’s a pretty good bet she didn’t pay for her own benefit.
But that is not the point. The point is Social Security has worked quite well paying benefits for 85 years. The is no justification to attack it.

Unfortunately I have had a lot of experience in this realm. In an 18 month period during 2017-18. I first lost my twin brother at 59 years old; then almost 1 year later my father, and six months after that my mother each on one side or another of 85. Unfortunately all of them suffered from some type of dementia. As a result at the time of their passing we were unable to communicate with them.

For more years than I remember I have saved my pocket change. Every day I put it in a tray on my dresser. When it overflows, Connie bags it and eventually rolls it for deposit. That happens at around $80.00.
I never pass a penny on the ground. In fact, on occasion I dig one out of the soft tar. Some coins are so mangled it’s hard to tell what they are at first. Sometimes people stare at me,

YOU MAY BE FAMILIAR with Peter Lynch. In the 1970s and ‘80s, he was one of the most visible figures in the investment world. As manager of Fidelity Magellan Fund, he achieved the best track record, by far, among his peers. He shared his wisdom in a series of popular books for individual investors.
Among the ideas for which Lynch is best known is the notion of “diworsification.” As its name suggests, Lynch argued that diversification simply for the sake of diversification isn’t always a good thing.

From looking at the forum posts, Most HD readers are calm and it seems not worried about the markets.  I really don’t believe that because what has happened in the last week and a half has been unprecedented and there is no end in sight.
Without injecting politics into the discussion how are we HD readers going to handle the next 45 months of this turmoil that is caused by the whims of one man who doesn’t understand economics and no one else in his cabinet no matter how bright and successful somehow agreed to be a yes man.

Many HumbleDollar readers have saved and invested regularly over their working years and were able to retire comfortably. Unfortunately, a lawsuit could threaten that financial security.
One possible scenario: If, heaven forbid, you are involved in a traffic accident resulting in severe bodily injury or loss of life, a legal judgement against you could destroy your nest egg.
The liability coverage on a home or auto policy may not offer enough protection. For this reason,

I’M ALL IN FAVOR of striving. But I’ve also belatedly come to see the appeal of acceptance.
Should we strive for more, or should we accept what we currently have and what’s currently on offer? As I’ve noted in earlier articles, there’s great pleasure in striving. We love the feeling of making progress, even if our achievements don’t make us happy for long. It’s an instinct we no doubt inherited from our hunter-gatherer ancestors.

I posted this as a follow-up question in another thread, but it more appropriately should be a separate thread, so here goes:
One reason often cited for not trying to time the market when it comes to stocks is that a large chunk of their gains comes during a small number of days. So if you’re on the sidelines then, you really miss out.
Is there a similar phenomenon with bond ETFs and funds? That is,