Home-Energy Credits Get Reduced 1/1/2011

Credits are extended into 2011, but aren’t as much of an incentive.

Forget holiday door-buster sales. For big savings, some homeowners are actually buying themselves new doors for Christmas this year, in time to claim the government’s tax credit for home energy efficiency on their income taxes.

http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/111656/credits-for-energy-upgrades-reduced?mod=realestate-homeimprove

IRS Audit Red Flags: The Dirty Dozen

Here are 12 hot spots on your return that can raise the chances of scrutiny by the IRS.

1. Failure to report all taxable income. …………

2. Returns claiming the home-buyer credit. …………

3. Claiming large charitable deductions. …………

4. Home office deduction. …………

5. Business meals, travel and entertainment. …………

6. Claiming 100% business use of vehicle. …………

7. Claiming a loss for a hobby activity. …………

8. Cash businesses. …………

9. Failure to report a foreign bank account……………

10. Engaging in currency transactions. …………

11. Math errors. …………

12. Taking higher-than-average deductions. …………

IRS audits jump by 11 percent; wealthiest targeted

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service is making it a bit riskier to cheat on your taxes.

The tax agency increased the number of returns it audited by nearly 11 percent this year, statistics released Wednesday show. Wealthy taxpayers and big businesses were most likely to be targeted.

The IRS also stepped up audits of charities and other tax-exempt organizations. story