2018 Taxes - Did the tax cut hurt or help you?

[brutal]

HR Block called my wife back. They said that when we filed our taxes there was a system glitch (unclear if on theirs or IRS) and wasn't calculating the child tax credit, so the IRS has been correcting this before sending returns. So, according to them, we indeed have a return which is much higher than we originally thought. However, it comports much more with what I'd been calculating w/ the help of online calcs prior to filing.

I plan to go into the office today to try to get something amended/in writing, so if there are any issues in the future we have proof of what we were told.

Any idea how long it takes to get the IRS explanation letter for refunds?

My experience is they'll claim they sent you two letters that were ignored and the third will be a demanding letter threatening asset seizure or wage garnishment.

[CS1983]

My experience is they'll claim they sent you two letters that were ignored and the third will be a demanding letter threatening asset seizure or wage garnishment.

Buddy reminded me that Credit Karma has a tax filing service for free. So I just went through and entered in all my applicable info, dependents, etc. -- essentially did the same thing HR Block did, and the return amount is estimated at the exact amount we had deposited.

I went by HR Block today and they said the glitch was related to child tax credit (confirming what they said on the phone).

So, at this point I think I'm out of the woods on this.

This money will go towards our mortgage payment's monthly nest egg. As of now we have 5 months of mortgage payments saved for when we move. That way, if the house doesn't sell or is delayed, we aren't tight on our budget at the new place due to paying rent/mortgage or mortgage/mortgage. If all goes quickly and well, we'll shift it to paying off any vehicle debt we may have at that time.

Once we do that, the only debt we will have is a house, when we decide to buy again.