In this second installment of “Why we’re still working in Colorado” we come to the conclusion that this month we are working to pay taxes AKA impuestos. No, not property taxes in Puerto Rico that we just paid. Those came in the mail this week and were a whopping $37.97 for the year! That’s awesome for 4 acres of land in Rincón with two structures on it! No, that we could handle quite easily even while we are living in Puerto Rico with limited income.

CRIM statement in the mail- Paid via Internet

In comparison, the property taxes on  just our own residence in Colorado is nearly $800 a year, but that’s divided and escrowed into our mortgage payment, so we don’t have to worry too much about that once the house is rented out here too. And as for our income taxes, for the most part they are being withheld from our paychecks so we don’t have to worry too much about that either (the money’s gone before we even see it).

So, what we’re really working for this month are the taxes on the property we sold at the end of May. We really have no idea how much those will be. We are assuming they will be capital gains taxes on the amount we made over what we paid for it in 2009. So it will be the long-term variety and not the short-term type which I think saves us quite a bit.

But we are bracing for the worst when tax time comes around, and hoping for the best. In either case, this month’s labor  is not as functional or even visible as last month’s intentional working to put on a new roof in Puerto Rico. But, sadly taxes and death are the only guarantees in life, so we might as well acknowledge and plan for them.