Things To Do In SW Florida

By Sabrina Parys | NerdWallet

Wondering which tax breaks you might be able to take advantage of this year? It might help to first take stock of any major financial decisions or changes you made last year.

Home upgrades, a new electric vehicle purchase or paying down some student loan interest are just a few activities that could equal some serious savings this filing season.

1. Get rewarded for going green

If you decided 2023 was the year to tackle some home improvements, you could reap the reward of tax credits worth up to $3,200 or more on your 2024 tax return.

The Inflation Reduction Act, a tax bill passed in 2022, expanded the energy efficient home improvement tax credit through 2032. The law also eliminated the lifetime limit clause, meaning taxpayers can now take advantage of the credit annually, if eligible.

If you purchased energy-efficient windows, doors, insulation, air conditioners or even paid for a home energy audit in 2023, you may be able to snag a credit of up to $1,200 for those updates. On top of that, if you purchased heat pumps, water heaters or biomass stoves, it could get you up to $2,000, for a total of up to $3,200. read more

By WAYNE PARRY (Associated Press)

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — America’s commercial casinos won $66.5 billion from gamblers in 2023, the industry’s best year ever, according to figures released by its national trade association Tuesday.

The American Gaming Association said that total was 10% higher than in 2022, which itself was a record-setting year.

When revenue figures from tribal-owned casinos are released separately later this year, they are expected to show that overall casino gambling brought in close to $110 billion to U.S. casino operators in 2023.

That all happened in a year in which inflation, while receding, still kept things like grocery and energy costs higher than they had been.

“From the traditional casino experience to online options, American adults’ demand for gaming is at an all-time high,” said Bill Miller, the association’s president and CEO.

Early last year, when the group gave its annual statistical assessment, “inflation was high, uncertainty was in the air. Forecasters couldn’t agree what these challenges might do to discretionary income,” Miller said. read more