U.S. stimulus check...

PNA · Jul 17, 2008

Wow....I do feel for you, my friend. My Godson in NY had just about the same problem with his house. Very little insulation in a 45 year old house. What you're doing will definitly save big bucks......:thumbup:

Hope that nail wasn't rusty.

mrodgers · Jul 17, 2008

PNA said:
Hope that nail wasn't rusty.

Updated not too long ago with the tetanus shot a year or so ago.

Worst part is, after spending 10 hours or so on the house, I wanted to chill out a bit with the guitar. No guitar playing with this hole in my hand....

Senor Hound · Jul 18, 2008

My money went towards a new set of tires and an alignment on my car.

We could argue all day about how much this stimulus check actually works with all the outsourcing, but since even people with PhDs in Economics can't agree, its obviously not something with a clear-cut answer.

BTW, the stimulus money from this year is taxable for next year, it'll count just like you made (insert check amount here) from a job or something. As it was said before, there is no free lunch. They teach you that in Econ class even before they teach you supply and demand. It may be free to you, but its not free to the system.

GermanyBert · Jul 18, 2008

I ain't getting one since my German wife and kids have an ITN instead of a SSN.

What was meant as a rule to stop illegals from getting the stimulus check has prevented people with legitiate foreign spouse and dependents from getting one.

Oh well.

royalWITHcheese2 · Jul 18, 2008

spiffybeth said:
thats not true.
i graduated college, i live on my own, i have a full time job, i pay all my own expenses. he paid my expenses for 4.5/12 months...........he paid for a semester's worth of school that he claimed for tax reasons. had he not, the check would have been mine.

How sure are you about that? Correct me if I'm wrong but the document I read on the IRS website said if you were "able" to be claimed you weren't eligible, and since you were in college for part of the year, and he supported you, he could claim you, whether he did or not wouldn't matter.

nealjpage · Jul 18, 2008

I spent mine on a part of the down payment for my house.

spiffybeth · Jul 18, 2008

royalWITHcheese2 said:
How sure are you about that? Correct me if I'm wrong but the document I read on the IRS website said if you were "able" to be claimed you weren't eligible, and since you were in college for part of the year, and he supported you, he could claim you, whether he did or not wouldn't matter.

i never saw any such document. can you find it for me? i just went through a handful of IRS pages regarding stimulus eligibility and saw nothing related to that

usayit · Jul 18, 2008

BTW, the stimulus money from this year is taxable for next year, it'll count just like you made (insert check amount here) from a job or something.

Nope. stimulus check is not considered taxable income for the next year.

usayit · Jul 18, 2008

nealjpage said:
I spent mine on a part of the down payment for my house.

Congrats to home ownership.

royalWITHcheese2 · Jul 18, 2008

spiffybeth said:
i never saw any such document. can you find it for me? i just went through a handful of IRS pages regarding stimulus eligibility and saw nothing related to that

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=179181,00.html

It's a question towards the bottom, it says "I know some people won't get a stimulus payment. How do I know if I'm one of them." The answer is in the 3rd bullet.

Helen B · Jul 18, 2008

spiffybeth said:
i never saw any such document. can you find it for me? i just went through a handful of IRS pages regarding stimulus eligibility and saw nothing related to that

Here is the exact wording from the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008:

(3) Eligible individual.--The term `eligible individual'
means any individual other than--
``(A) any nonresident alien individual,
``(B) any individual with respect to whom a
deduction under section 151 is allowable to another
taxpayer for a taxable year beginning in the calendar
year in which the individual's taxable year begins, and
``(C) an estate or trust.

spiffybeth · Jul 18, 2008

thanks, i must have skipped that bullet point... how would they know i was in school for part of the year if it's not mentioned when i file my taxes?

thanks, helen

Easy_Target · Jul 18, 2008

Senor Hound said:
We could argue all day about how much this stimulus check actually works with all the outsourcing, but since even people with PhDs in Economics can't agree, its obviously not something with a clear-cut answer.

You do know that economists NEVER agree, right? They're almost always spread between multiple camps on EVERYTHING.

royalWITHcheese2 said:
How sure are you about that? Correct me if I'm wrong but the document I read on the IRS website said if you were "able" to be claimed you weren't eligible, and since you were in college for part of the year, and he supported you, he could claim you, whether he did or not wouldn't matter.

You're correct, that's the reason why I didn't get one. It's such BS.

royalWITHcheese2 · Jul 18, 2008

Easy_Target said:
You do know that economists NEVER agree, right? They're almost always spread between multiple camps on EVERYTHING.

You're correct, that's the reason why I didn't get one. It's such BS.

It really is, and I don't understand why it's like that, because my girlfriend and I both missed out on it.

I think they would be able to know if they really wanted to, like if you got audited, and I'm really not sure about this, but I think you can claim the interest on loans, so if you do, then they would probably know that way too, but I'm just taking a shot in the dark on that one.

PNA · Jul 18, 2008

spiffybeth said:
thanks, i must have skipped that bullet point... how would they know i was in school for part of the year if it's not mentioned when i file my taxes?

thanks, helen

They know only what you tell them.