It's hard to wait for your tax refund to come from the IRS. Tax preparers know that, and they have plenty of programs that can give you your tax refund even faster. But in many cases, the cost you pay is far greater than it's worth.
In the following video, Dan Caplinger, The Motley Fool's director of investment planning, looks at the various ways you can get your refund. Dan notes that the best way is to file your return electronically and arrange for direct deposit of your refund to your bank account, which the IRS says can take as little as 10 days. By contrast, many tax preparers offer immediate tax refunds through a variety of financial products. But what many people don't realize is that the fees and charges on you'll pay to get your refund just a week or two earlier can be huge, making even payday loans look benign by comparison. Dan concludes that the better choice whenever possible is to be patient and refuse to allow preparers to take a big piece of your tax refund for themselves.
