Your taxes are done and you're excited about getting a $3,000 refund. It's hard to resist thinking about a big-screen television, a mall shopping spree or a vacation.

Those temptations are one reason why it's a good idea to consider changing your withholding so that you don't get such a big refund.

"When it comes in one big lump sum people view it as a bonus and they spend it on something fun or a vacation, things that may be out of the norm," said Eleanor Blayney, a consumer advocate for the CFP Board of Standards Inc., which provides the professional certification for financial planners. Taxpayers are more likely to spend a big check on purchases they may not have made had they received the money in smaller amounts throughout the year. Read more >

Associated Press
David Pitt
April 7, 2011