The North Carolina Bankruptcy Information Blog

The U.S. has always been a nation of givers. Despite the recession and high unemployment, approximately 80% of Americans continued to give to religious and/or secular charities.

That trend has continued in earnest following the recent earthquake catastrophe in Japan.

According to a Chronicle of Philanthropy report, as of March 14, 2011, $24 million in donations has already rolled in to charitable organizations like The American Red Cross, Salvation Army, Save the Children, and more.  But while American hearts appear in the right place during this trying time for the Japanese, according to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), so are the con artists and scammers, all working hard to part you with your donation during this and any other global natural disaster.…

It’s coming up on tax season folks, so that means it’s time to start thinking about ways to make those deductions count.

Too many people, especially those who have had a rough financial year or are coming out of bankruptcy, believe that tax benefits are just those things wealthy people talk about. Well, that’s pretty far from the truth. In fact, even though the IRS comes off as meticulous and bureaucratic, they do allow a number of deductions for every financial demographic.

Before we get into the basic deductions you can claim, hear us out on a couple of tax preparation tips.…

The United States has always been a nation of givers. Despite the recession and high unemployment, approximately 80% of Americans continued to give to religious and/or secular charities. This trend has continued in earnest following the recent catastrophe in Haiti. A new survey released by Zogby Interactive found that 64% of Ameircan adults have given or intend to give to relief efforts to aid to the earthquake-ravaged nation. The survey, released on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, found that 33% of respondents have already made a donation.

Perhaps you’re worried that declaring bankruptcy means you cannot donate. But, in fact, bankruptcy laws protect both debtors’ rights to give back.…