1. Increase your withholding. About.com suggested this easy tip to get you started. More money will be taken out of your paycheck, but you will get a bigger refund when you file your taxes. It's like forcing you to save.
2. Sell losing investments. Personal finance magazine Kiplinger says that capital losses are first used to offset capital gains, and then up to $3,000 of the net loss can be deducted against income, such as your salary. Any excess loss is carried forward to future years, the magazine says.
3. Increase your contributions to your 401(k) or IRA retirement investment plans. You can start now and keep building for the the rest of the year if you’re not doing so already. Saving for retirement is one of the easiest ways to bring down your taxable income.
4. See if you can deduct any medical costs. You have to itemize to qualify for this and expenses have to be more than 7.5 percent of your adjusted gross income. If you have a lot of doctors' visits and medical procedures it may be worth checking out. Need surgery in near future? Try to get it in before the end of the year. Check out Kiplinger for more information.
5. It’s too late to qualify for a tax credit for buying a new home. But you can get some money for buying an energy efficient appliance. And that’s a lot cheaper than buying a house. Tax credits are up to $1,500. Check out this site for more details.
6. Give to charity. Give to your favorite non-profit by Dec. 31 and you can deduct it from your taxes.
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