Web Wealth: Tax help for those who wait till the last minute

Very last-minute tax help for the DIY crowd is abundant. So, don't panic, even if you've waited until now to start the paperwork. Check out these sites and pages to get the job done.

Reasons to wallow. Why do people procrastinate on doing their taxes? This post at Time.com offers some of the reasons. Among them: laziness, a mistaken impression that it'll get done faster and better under pressure, and having gotten away with it in the past.

http://ti.me/153uh5c

Can't pay the tax? If you haven't got the money to pay what you owe, the IRS says don't be afraid, but don't delay action, either. Pay something anyway and contact the agency. The guidelines here from the IRS tell how to arrange an installment agreement. To minimize penalties, you might want to consider paying with a credit card - though, depending on your interest rate, a credit payment could cost you more than an IRS penalty. Remember, too, that filing for an extension doesn't let you off the hook on payments you owe.

http://1.usa.gov/14hIs7s

An IRS compromise? When you owe, but can't pay, there is a chance of negotiating a deal with the IRS, and this article at aarp.org describes what the IRS calls an "offer in compromise." It's one of the extreme measures you might consider - including bankruptcy - if your tax bill is overwhelming. The article notes that self-employed people who should be making quarterly tax payments are the most likely to get in a bind because they fail to make those payments.

http://bit.ly/12UkmLi

Last to-dos. Last-minute tips from Kelly Phillips Erb at Forbes.com note options for smoothing out the final hours before the filing deadline. Suggestions include slamming some deductible cash into your IRA to reduce your tax bill, paying attention to the difference between a credit and a deduction on education costs and some other items, and taking advantage of free help available if your income is low or moderate.

http://onforb.es/16SbpVd

Form factor. Since you're flying by the seat of your pants, stay near a printer and be ready to go looking for IRS tax forms. Here's the place to find them:

http://1.usa.gov/158wj4l

Who are you? Has your identity been stolen by a fraudulent tax filer who got a refund in your name? It's a huge and growing problem costing billions. The IRS is being criticized for not keeping up, but, as you might guess, it has a special form (214039) for reporting ID theft:

http://1.usa.gov/ZRj3J7

ID tool kit. For more on what to do if you think you're the victim of tax-ID theft, see this page at the IRS site. It includes an "ID theft tool kit" with phone numbers, links to the credit bureaus, and other resources.

http://1.usa.gov/10QJj8A

at 215-854-5114, rkanaley@phillynews.com,