View Poll Results: What %age are you paying the IRS for 2011.
0%
3
6.25%
1-5%
4
8.33%
5-15%
14
29.17%
15-25%
7
14.58%
25-35%
15
31.25%
35%+
5
10.42%
Voters: 48. You may not vote on this poll
Your effective federal tax rate for 2011
#1
Your effective federal tax rate for 2011
Just for grins, as you finish up your taxes for the year... Figure out what you actually owe/pay the gov't for federal income taxes for the last year, and divide that by your total income.
I had another kid (3 now) and my wife works at home, I was shocked at how low my actual amount is given my income... I'm not done with my taxes yet, but its already looking like its going to be under 2%.
I had another kid (3 now) and my wife works at home, I was shocked at how low my actual amount is given my income... I'm not done with my taxes yet, but its already looking like its going to be under 2%.
#2
Boost Pope
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Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,057
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I haven't done mine yet, but I got my 1099 last week and just about fainted. I'm going to owe some money this year.
Effective tax rate will probably wind up at around 35-40%.
Effective tax rate will probably wind up at around 35-40%.
#5
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,057
Total Cats: 6,619
I was a good boy this year- did my estimated taxes conservatively and everything. I just happened to land a couple of big jobs that kinda paid more than I had anticipated...
So is there ever a year that you don't owe money?
#6
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,057
Total Cats: 6,619
Unfortunately, we're already deficit-spending as it is. Reducing the amount of money collected in taxes is not going to automatically decrease our spending.
#7
Elite Member
iTrader: (2)
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Central Florida
Posts: 2,799
Total Cats: 179
I would expect we will fall between 12% and 19% this year as measured above.
Last edited by Scrappy Jack; 02-03-2012 at 05:04 PM. Reason: Corrected to represent 2011 line numbers vs 2010
#11
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,057
Total Cats: 6,619
I am single, with no dependents and no mortgage.
I am self-employed, so I have to file Schedule SE and pay an additional 13.3% tax on my gross (sans deductions), above and beyond the normal income tax.
None of my income for 2011 was from capital gains.
#13
Boost Pope
iTrader: (8)
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Chicago. (The less-murder part.)
Posts: 33,057
Total Cats: 6,619
Nobody (except Buffett) is going to say "No, I don't think I pay too much in tax."
However, it's my personal opinion that it is unfair that I, a non-millionaire, have to pay considerably more (both as a percentage and in whole dollars) then anyone else who receives the same level of Federal services.
So in that way, it's not really a fair scenario to begin with.
Yeah, we're comparing two things that just aren't directly related. Tax revenue just doesn't affect spending in a meaningful way. If you fix spending (fix meaning that federal spending is less than tax revenue) then taxes will naturally tend to decrease. (There's no doubt that "we" would not tolerate the government racking up a surplus of tax dollars for very long.)
#18
I don't know how true it is, but I heard once that some big union like IBEW got all their members to claim 99(2-digit field max) deductions, so no tax was withheld all year. Instead, the workers put the money in a union-sponsored savings account and paid up on 4/15. The gov't freaked when they realized the cash-flow implications if this spread, and that's why there are now big penalties for underpayment.