Layoffs at John Wieland today

I have heard some of you were laid off today and I am truly sorry. There are posts throughout this blog that will help you locate resources and provide miscellaneous tidbits of information, such as job search expenses that are tax deductible.

All of us want and need for the housing market to rebound for a multitude of reasons. Not the least of which was my personal hope that no one else at Wieland would have to lose their job for anything other than voluntary reasons.

A speaker at the jobs ministry at my church gave us the advice that "any incident only has the importance we attach to it". For instance, if you decide the loss of a job is the end of the world for you then it may indeed be a cataclysmic event. If you decide the loss of a job is an opportunity to find something you enjoy as well or better than the job you lost, a chance to change careers, pursue education, etc. then they lay off will represent an opportunity. How you view your unemployment will affect how you perform in interviews and likely how quickly you will find another job.

Please look back through the posting archive at the very bottom and locate the post on social networking. Networking is key to locating another position and the Roswell United Methodist Church has a VERY active jobs networking group. Please check them out for moral support if nothing else.

I wish you all the best. Please post any comments you wish or email me.

Resources to help you Survive a Layoff

You may click on the picture above to enlarge the information. All the information above is listed under the Georgia Department of Labor under "Surviving a layoff". The link is: http://www.dol.state.ga.us/js/survive_layoff.htm

And there are live links to each resource listed above on the webpage.

Tax Returns Free and Refunds Quicker

Remember your job search expenses may be tax deductible, see prior information from Tracy Lee Yates.

If your adjusted gross income was $54,000 or less in 2007, you can use Free File to prepare and e-file your taxes online. You will also receive your refund faster.

http://www.irs.gov/efile/article/0,,id=118986,00.html

Tax appraisal for your home may be too high

Once again from Clark Howard:

Jan 17, 2008 -- Hints for appealing your property tax reappraisal
A lot of us got a lump of coal from our own government this past year. Your home may have gone down in value in 2007 and may continue to do so this year. But talk about rubbing salt into the wounds; people are getting property tax reappraisals that are way up from where they were before. The Washington Post reports that Maryland residents are seeing property tax increases of 33 percent, yet property values are down in much of the state. This scenario is being repeated all over the country. The appraisals are out of date and use faulty data from boom-year sales. The net effect is that your local government is ripping you off. There's no other way to say it. Do you have to take it? No, you can appeal your appraisal. The rules for appeal vary by jurisdiction. There may be an informal process before the formal one. Never gripe about the government during the process, just present the facts about recent sale prices of homes similar to yours. These figures, often called "comps" in real-estate lingo, are the smoking gun that will help you get an appraisal price rollback. Search out comps on the Internet or consult a local real-estate agent for help. If you can get comps for foreclosures in your neighborhood, that's like having extra ammunition. Clark suggests dressing business casual if you have to appear before a panel as part of the process. The idea is to dress nicely -- but not too well -- and people will respond to your appearance

Links from the Wall Street Journal

This link addresses online tools to assist with money management
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120036745653590459.html?mod=money_page_left_hs

This link concerns a new tax deduction:

"Homeowners with a new mortgage that is covered by insurance can claim a tax break on the insurance for the first time this year."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120045166939593341.html?mod=money_page_left_hs

Job Search Expenses are Tax Deductible

Tracy Lee Yates was kind enough to tip me to this. I am not a tax expert by any stretch of the imagination so please verify this information through an accountant or with the IRS. Here is some information Tracy was kind enough to provide:

Track Your Expenses
If you are searching for a job in your current (or recently current) field, your expenses are tax deductible. Even if you don't get the job you seek, you can still deduct the expenses related to your search.

Internet service, newspaper subscriptions, trade journals, self-help books, professional resume writing services, career counseling, schooling, memberships, and anything else that you use to search for a job or assist you in getting a job is tax deductible. This also applies to the clothes you need for interviews. Once you get the job, uniform or wardrobe expenses can be deducted as well.

http://jobsearch.about.com/od/salary/a/taxdeduction.htm