Should You Get a Tax Refund Loan?

When tax time arrives, you may be happy or perhaps you are apprehensive. You probably already know if you owe money or if you are going to get something back in the form of a tax refund. Some people have easy taxes and others spend countless hours gathering information, going over forms, and trying their best to fill out their taxes correctly. If you are one of the lucky ones with a lot of deductions, child credits, and have paid a lot in, you may be looking forward to a refund. If your refund is badly needed, you may be thinking about a tax refund loan. Is this the best option for you?

When you file your taxes in January, you probably do so because you have simpler taxes and you are anticipating a refund. Those that wait until April are the ones that have to pay in. It makes sense, as you may have to get money together to pay and it could take a while to sort out all of your taxes. No one is in a hurry to pay the IRS anyway. Most people who want a tax refund loan are the ones that are filing early. However, you can not file until the IRS accepts your taxes, usually mid-January. Don't worry though, those offering a tax refund loan are ready and waiting by then.

If you want your money in a hurry, a tax refund loan is certainly an option. This is typically a loan against what you expect to get back once you file. Many companies that do this will do your taxes for you so that they can see how much you are getting back and they can be sure that they are not going to get less back from the IRS than they loaned to you. At times, taxes can turn around fast, but they come back to you much faster when you use the loan process. You can usually get your money within hours, days, or in a few weeks at the most.

Those offering the tax refund loan are not doing it because they want to do you a favor. They obviously get something out of it. For one, they get your business if they are the ones filing your taxes for you. They can take the cost of your preparation right out of your loan so that you do not have to worry about paying it. They are also going to charge you a fee for extending the loan to you. This is where you want to pay attention. Find the company that you can trust, but that also has the lowest fee for a loan on tax refund amounts.

Once you have decided that you want your tax refund loan, be aware that you may also be charged a fee for cashing the check if you do not have your own bank account. The bank that the loan check was issued through will probably cash it for you if this is the case, but you could be charged fifteen, twenty five, or even more dollars to cash it. What fees you want to pay throughout this process depend on how badly you want your money up front. Remember, even without a tax refund loan, you can usually get your money within weeks if you file online. The choice is always yours.