With just under a month left to file taxes, Cheddar News is keying in on freelance workers and wants to provide some tips so those Americans maximize either their refunds or what they have to pay back to the IRS.
Matthew Frankel, CFP and writer at the Motley Fool, joined Cheddar News to dish some insight into what freelancers can expect at filing time and how they can better plan in future filing years to avoid paying huge sums to the government.
"Freelancers are more responsible than the average person for keeping track of their own taxes and part of that requires putting money aside," he said. "It's important to know that you need to set money aside if you're just starting out as a freelancer or you will possibly get caught owing money."
The landscape of the U.S. labor market has shifted since the onset of the pandemic. 39 percent of Americans were freelance workers last year, which was a three percent jump from 2021.
Frankel noted that there are some breaks available to freelance workers that the general public is not allowed to take advantage of. Some of those include home office deductions, retirement accounts, self-employed health insurance and using your own vehicle for work can also be deducted.
"Honestly, the biggest mistake I see is people not asking for help when they need it. Not everyone is certified financial planner or tax attorney or anything like that," he said. "Being disorganized is definitely a big problem. I found this out the hard way early on in my career: to keep important records."
Cheddar News takes a peek at another day of earnings, this time from Roku, Shopify, Twilio and Kraft Heinz along with a look at January retail sales numbers as well as other economic data.
Airbnb topped estimates in the latest quarter and reported its first profitable year. The company also gave a favorable first-quarter outlook, citing strong travel demand.
Mark Walker, co-founder and CEO, Direct Digital Holdings & Keith Smith, co-founder and President, Direct Digital Holdings, join Cheddar News to discuss the meaning behind launching just the ninth black-owned company to ever go public in the U.S., how Black History has impacted their careers, and how they plan to grow the company.
Lorenzo Esparza, CEO of investment firm Manhattan West, joined Cheddar News after a mixed day on the trading floor after the release of CPI data and his thoughts on what lies ahead with inflation.
Emily Irwin, managing director of advice & planning for Wells Fargo’s wealth & investment management arm, joined Cheddar News to discuss financial red flags when finding a partner.
Shai Eisenman, founder and CEO at Bubble Skincare, joined Cheddar News to discuss the company's product line geared for younger skin and how it's expanded its footprint with some big-name retailers.