What percentage should married couples have withheld? We both put "married" on our W-4s but still ended up owing this year.

There's no one perfect percentage that works for everyone, but for married couples with two incomes, a common issue is that both of you are having taxes withheld at the married rate, which assumes the other spouse doesn't work. If both of you select "Married" on your W-4 without any adjustments, you're essentially both claiming the full married tax bracket benefit, which results in underwithholding. In 2025, you should either select "Married, but withhold at higher Single rate" on your W-4s, or use the Two-Earners/Multiple Jobs worksheet (or your company's payroll system calculator) to determine the additional amount to withhold per paycheck.

Yes! This is the simplest solution. I use TurboTax and it lets you compare both filing statuses side by side to see which saves you more. MFS was worse for us by about $3k.

Thanks for sharing your experience. What kinds of deductions did they find that you weren't aware of? I'm trying to get a sense of whether I'm missing major opportunities by using TurboTax.

My CPA found several deductions I had missed completely. The biggest was properly documenting home office expenses since I occasionally work from home - this included a portion of utilities, internet, and even some home maintenance costs that I never would have thought to deduct. They also helped me properly categorize some of my investment expenses and found that some financial advisory fees I was paying were partially deductible. For your specific situation, they might find ways to optimize your stock grant taxation or identify deductions related to your attempted business venture that go beyond just the direct ad costs. A good CPA doesn't just file forms - they look at your whole financial picture and find optimization opportunities. The first year with mine, she saved me about $3,200 compared to what I would have paid using TurboTax, which more than covered her fee.

I've tried both and honestly they're pretty similar for stock stuff. The real difference comes with having someone who can give you planning advice BEFORE tax time. Software just helps you report what already happened, not optimize for the future.

That's a fair point about the planning aspect. I guess my experience was that H&R Block's interface specifically for stock grants and basis tracking was more intuitive than TurboTax, but you're absolutely right that neither one provides forward-looking strategic advice. For someone with the OP's income level, getting that proactive guidance could definitely be worth the CPA cost, especially with the mix of salary, stock grants, and trading activity. I still use software myself, but I'm also not dealing with $110K in stock gains!

This! I switched to an S-Corp last year and it saved me about $4k in self-employment taxes. Just make sure your salary is "reasonable" for your industry or the IRS might get suspicious. Also, you'll need to run actual payroll which adds some complexity and costs.

That's exactly right. The key is finding the sweet spot where the tax savings outweigh the additional costs and complexity. For my web development business, I waited until I was consistently making about $60k before making the switch. The "reasonable salary" part is crucial - you can't just pay yourself $1 and take everything else as distributions. I researched industry standards for my area and skill level, then documented why my salary was reasonable. Having this documentation is important if you're ever questioned. Also worth mentioning that with an S-Corp, you'll need to separate your personal and business finances completely, run payroll (usually through a service), and file more complex tax returns. There's software that helps with this, but it's definitely more work than a sole proprietorship.

I vaguely remember seeing something about this when I was researching, but wasn't sure if it applied to me since my income is relatively low. Does it work for all self-employed people or are there specific requirements? How complicated is it to calculate?

24 H&R Block's software isn't any better. I switched to them thinking they'd handle it correctly and had the same issue. I think the problem is that they don't have a specific input field for the amount already reported as income on your W-2.

18 Thanks for sharing that about H&R Block. I was considering switching to them next year but maybe that's not the solution. I wonder if the more expensive tax prep options like a CPA would handle this correctly. Seems ridiculous that we have to jump through all these hoops for something that should be straightforward.

Would replacing my old furnace with a heat pump qualify? How much of a credit could I get? My heating system is on its last legs anyway.

Yes, replacing your old furnace with a heat pump would likely qualify under the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit. For 2023, you could get up to 30% of the costs back as a tax credit, with a limit of $2,000 specifically for heat pumps. The great thing about this being a credit rather than a deduction is that it directly reduces your tax bill dollar for dollar. Just make sure the heat pump meets the efficiency requirements - usually the manufacturer or installer can confirm this for you and provide the necessary certification documentation you'll need for your tax return.

I did this last year! You can defer recognizing capital gains until 2026 by investing in Qualified Opportunity Zone Funds within 180 days of realizing the gain. Plus if you hold the investment for 10+ years, gains on the QOZ investment itself can be completely tax-free. But be careful - these investments can be risky and illiquid, so definitely do your homework.