Purchasing a home often means that you ll save money if you itemize such deductions as mortgage interest, real estate taxes, state income taxes and charitable gifts instead of using the standard deduction. You may also want to change your withholding amount at work after you re married. When you re single, you are automatically taxed at the single rate, although you can specify how many deductions your employer should use when calculating the amount withheld. When you marry, you can either maintain the same withholding amount or change it to reflect your married status less will be withheld from your paycheck. Whether couples should change their withholding depends on what their salary is and whether they have outside income, Ondik said.
Many people don t want to owe money at the end of the year.
If you both claim at the higher single rate and have maximum withholding, you re going to get a refund unless you have a lot of outside income like interest and capital gains. However, if you do have sizable itemized deductions, it s probably unnecessary to have so much withheld from your paycheck. Filing married and 1 or married and 2 on your W-4 form should be sufficient to cover you. But, again, it depends on whether you have other income. And remember, if you have questions about changing your withholding and about the consequences that getting married will have on your April 15 bottom line, talk to an accountant.