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Make the Most of your Paycheck

By , About.com Guide

When you receive your first paycheck you may be surprised at how much is being taken out. As a young single worker, you are at a disadvantage when it comes to taxes. You will have fewer deductions than those people who are married and have children will. If you do not own a home, then you will not have those deductions either. If you are in a higher tax bracket, you may be surprised to realize just how much is going to taxes each paycheck. You can make the most of your paycheck by taking advantage of these benefits offered by your employer.

Difficulty: Easy
Time Required: 20 minutes
Here's How:
  1. If you sign up for the benefits offered by your employer, you can reduce your taxable income and make your dollars stretch farther. It is important to carefully consider what you are signing up for and how it may affect your tax picture. You may be surprised at what you find.

  2. As you consider what benefits to sign up for, you may feel that you can not afford them all. However, if you check with a payroll calculator, you may be surprised to see that your insurance premiums and 401K contributions really do not affect your paycheck by much. This is because the amount you are taxed on decreases, and so the tax you pay also decreases.

  3. If you sign up for the benefits, be sure to take advantage of them. The eye insurance may be great, but if you never use it, you are just throwing money away. Similarly you need to make sure that you use all of the money in flexible spending account.

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