A tax refund is essentially an interest-free loan from you to the government.

Tax refund time is a major cash-flow event for many U.S. households. Past JPMorgan Chase Institute (JPMCI) research has shown that a tax refund was “the single largest cash infusion of the year for 40 percent of American families”.

More than three in four taxpayers get refunds, and the average amount they get back is close to $3,000, according to IRS data. That means that for many Americans, their annual refund is the biggest single check they’ll get all year.

Key tax season takeaways ascertained from JPMorgan Chase Institute research entitled “Will this tax season be a boost or bust?”:

• Roughly four out of five (~78%) of filers receive refunds during tax season.
• The average tax refund is equivalent to nearly 6 weeks pay.
• Tax refunds are essentially zero interest loans by taxpayers to the federal government.
• Tax refunds are perceived as forced savings (at zero interest) by most taxpayers.
• Taxpayers spend tax refunds differently than they spend regular salary and wages.  Studies show that many taxpayers use refunds to pay off high interest credit card balances.
• Historically, families depend on the cash infusion from tax refunds to fuel spending. Cash withdrawals, durable goods purchases, and credit payments all increase by 85 percent or more in the week after a tax refund.
• Families use their tax refunds to meet basic needs, such as healthcare expenses and groceries. Families increased expenditures on out of pocket healthcare costs by 60 percent in the week after tax refund receipt.

Diana Farrell, founding president and Chief Executive Officer of the JPMorgan Chase Institute

It’s important to understand that the tax refund check you receive from the government is the byproduct of your overpaying on your taxes. Getting a refund means that, throughout the year, you paid more of your income in taxes than required by law to the IRS, and after you file your tax return, the IRS returns your money (or overpayment) back to you.

But losing that money for months and months cost does you something — goods and services you were not able to buy (and hence benefit from), investments you didn’t make, debt you didn’t pay down, savings you did not accumulate, etc.

Nearly 40 percent of American households carry a credit card balance, and those loans carry high interest rates. . . If instead of getting a $3,000 refund come April, you’d been able to pay off $250 in credit card debt each month (or put $250 a month less on your card), you would have avoided more than $300 in interest expenses by Tax Day.

A tax refund is essentially an interest-free loan from you to the federal and state governments.

References:

1. https://www.jpmorganchase.com/institute/research/household-income-spending/tax-time-fy22
2. https://fee.org/articles/tax-refunds-your-interest-free-loan-to-the-government/

Theodore Roosevelt, known as “Teedie”–later “Teddy”, was frail and sickly as a boy. As a teenager, he followed a program of gymnastics and weightlifting to build up his strength.

Roosevelt, not quite 43, became the 26th and youngest President in the Nation’s history (1901-1909). He brought new excitement and power to the office, vigorously leading Congress and the American public toward progressive reforms and a strong foreign policy.

Early in his presidency, Theodore Roosevelt sparked a scandal when he invited the African-American educator Booker T. Washington to dine with him and his family; he was the first president ever to entertain an African American in the White House.

During the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt was lieutenant colonel of the Rough Rider Regiment, which he led on a charge at the battle of San Juan. And, as President, Roosevelt held the ideal that the Government should be the great arbiter of the conflicting economic forces in the Nation, especially between capital and labor, guaranteeing justice to each and dispensing favors to none.

Roosevelt steered the United States more actively into world politics. He liked to quote a favorite quote, “Speak softly and carry a big stick. . . . ”

Aware of the strategic need for a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific, Roosevelt ensured the construction of the Panama Canal. His corollary to the Monroe Doctrine prevented the establishment of foreign bases in the Caribbean.

He won the Nobel Peace Prize for mediating the Russo-Japanese War, reached a Gentleman’s Agreement on immigration with Japan, and sent a fleet of sixteen warships on a world tour. The ships were painted white to symbolize peace, and eventually they became known as the “Great White Fleet.” Roosevelt viewed the tour as part of his “Big Stick” diplomacy.

Theodore Roosevelt believed that we should all work hard and devote ourselves to a worthwhile cause. He showed incredible wisdom and insight. His quotes continue to inspire many Americans to work hard on their dreams:

“The person who succeeds is not the one who holds back, fearing failure, nor the one who never fails but rather the one who moves on in spite of failure.”

“Dreams are a dime a dozen. it’s their execution that counts.”

“If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn’t sit for a month.”

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

“Nobody cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.”

“The chief factor in any man’s success or failure must be his own character — that is, the sum of his common sense, his courage, his virile energy and capacity. Nothing can take the place of this individual factor.”

“To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”

“A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education.”

“We must dare to be great; and we must realize that greatness is the fruit of toil and sacrifice and high courage.”

“It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.”

“The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first and love of soft living and the get-rich-quick theory of life.”

“Believe you can and you’re halfway there.”

“Never throughout history has a man who lived a life of ease left a name worth remembering.”

“We cannot do great deeds unless we are willing to do the small things that make up the sum of greatness.”

“Get action. Seize the moment. Man was never intended to become an oyster.”

“Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.”

“Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.”

Roosevelt was big on taking full responsibility for your life and making a valuable contribution to the world. Nothing worth having comes easy but if you’re working toward a purpose and love what you do then you’ll enjoy the journey. For success is a journey.

References:

1. https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/theodore-roosevelt/
2. https://www.nps.gov/thri/theodorerooseveltbio.htm
3. https://succeedfeed.com/theodore-roosevelt-quotes/
4. https://www.history.com/topics/us-presidents/theodore-roosevelt
5. https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/44567.Theodore_Roosevelt