When Mary Catherine Fontenot received a 1099-C form in the mail listing almost $30,000 in canceled debt income, she was alarmed. Would she owe taxes on all that income? But then she went into high gear and began researching her options. She came across a story about how discharged student loan debt can trigger a… Read More

If you received a 1099-C reporting forgiven or cancelled debt, you may be grappling with how to minimize the taxes you may have to pay as a result. Some taxpayers will be able to avoid paying taxes on part or all of the amount listed as discharged on the 1099-C if they qualify for an… Read More

Are you going to file your tax return on your own this year, or will you need a little help? Even if you are doing your own taxes you may find yourself stumped, if for example; There have been some major changes in your life during the last year: divorce, marriage, adoption of a child,… Read More

If you have received one or more of the estimated 5.5 million 1099-C forms being sent to taxpayers this year, then you may find yourself wrangling with Form 982. That’s the form that taxpayers who qualify to have the income listed on the 1099-C form excluded from their debt should fill out and include with… Read More

“What is a 1099-C?” That’s the question millions of taxpayers will be asking as these forms land in their mailboxes this year. An estimated 5.5 million 1099-C forms will be filed for the 2012 tax year. If you received one of these forms, your first reaction may have been one of panic. “Why did I… Read More

Taxes are my personal finance Achilles heel. Every year, I promise myself I’ll be better organized than the last. With freelance income and a rental property — in addition to the usual stuff (mortgage and charitable deductions, for example) I generate a fair amount information that needs to be sorted and organized so that my… Read More

You’ve heard the adage about not looking a gift horse in the mouth. But what if that “gift” comes with a hefty tax bill? That’s what can happen in the case of homeowners whose lenders offer them incentive payments to complete a short sale. Our reader “Mitch” wrote: I received $3,000 in HAFA funds but… Read More

It just may become the latest outrage during a year of outrages. At the precise moment when the federal government finally delivers a modicum of justice and some economic relief to millions of homeowners victimized by the nation’s largest banks, the government threatens to beat those victims over the head with a punitive old favorite… Read More

Getting a call from a debt collector is never pleasant. But Credit.com reader Sara Shannon is getting a double threat. Not only is a collections agency threatening her with a lawsuit, it also plans to sick the IRS on Shannon’s disabled, 84-year-old mother. “He is threatening to file a 1099-C and said the IRS will… Read More

It’s a truism of the U.S. tax code that a simple question usually begets a complicated answer. That’s certainly the case for Sylvia, a Credit.com reader with a simple question about an increasingly common situation. “My credit card company just sent me a letter that they will charge off. . . or they will forgive… Read More