Hopefully you filed your taxes on Monday, or at least filed an extension, but just because you’re done filing doesn’t mean you can forget about your taxes. There’s always the paperwork left behind. It’s probably taking up space in that old file cabinet of yours. If you’re doing some spring cleaning you might be wondering if you can get rid of any of those old returns.

The simple answer is that you need to keep tax returns for a minimum of seven years.

The IRS can audit an individual for any reason for up to 3 years from the filing date and it may go back further if there is a suspicion of fraud.

If you want to avoid an audit altogether, you should be aware of the things on your federal income tax return that can trigger an audit (but that doesn’t mean you should throw out your returns)

• Individuals with incomes of over $100,000 or under $20,000 are more likely to be audited
• If 1099s and W2 statements don’t match income that is reported on the form, your return might also be flagged
• If you do business or are linked with another individual whose return has been chosen for an audit, you might also be audited
• Your return might be also be selected for audit by a computer-generated random list

If you’re selected for an audit, you will be contacted by mail or telephone. The IRS, however, does not use email to correspond with taxpayers.

For more detailed information on audits, check out Publication 556, Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights and Claims for Refund, available at IRS.gov.

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Are you looking for a job? According to a new survey, so is the rest of the world.

The numbers are kind of bleak.

Last week, unemployment claims fell below 400,000 for the fourth week in a row. Which seems like good news, especially since the ranks of those receiving unemployment benefits declined to a three-year low.

But the U-6, which is the broadest measure of unemployment remains near 17 percent. And the reason the unemployment ranks are dwindling is that after three years, benefits are running out for a lot of people.

So goes the benefits, so goes the hope. And, that’s precisely the point of Joseph Quinlan, chief market strategist of U.S. Trust. He sees a global unemployment crisis brewing, and that has profound implications not only for the stock market, but for possible outbreaks of civil unrest.

After all, when folks are hungry, feel as though their government has forsaken them, and have lots of unscripted time on their hands, civil unrest is always a possibility.

According to the International Labor Organization, as capsulized in Alan Abelson’s excellent commentary this week in Barron’s, “The world must add 80 million jobs over 2012 and 2013 just to get back to where employment was in 2007.” Developed nations need to generate 27.2 million jobs in the next two years just to get back to where they were.

Will it happen? Probably only a fraction (perhaps nothing more than 10 percent) of these jobs will materialize and that’s the problem. If we don’t buy from abroad, they can’t buy from us. It’s a big mess and can easily cause civil and international unrest.

There’s a lot of talk about the Occupy Wall Street movement (which is now in something like 900+ cities around the world) and how it  is unfocused and doesn’t have a clear message or messenger.

I’m not arguing that point. But the vague unrest is coming into starker relief. All this movement needs is the leadership of an orator on the order of a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to really crystallize. Once again, if folks are hungry and have too much unstructured time on their hands, they’ll find ways to fill the time, and it might not be coming up with a solution to cold fusion.

We’ve relaunched the Equifax Finance Blog and there is absolutely amazing personal finance information written by qualified experts who will answer your questions and help you out – that’s especially useful as we head toward the end of the year, with all of the inherent tax and finance implications. Check it out – and recommend it to your friends.

The news of excessive radiation from a damaged nuclear plant in Japan has scared the pants off of many Americans – and prompted a run on iodine pills in California.

It’s difficult to imagine leaving your home and belongings because they were damaged by radiation. And yet, that could be what happens to thousands of Japanese who live near the damaged nuclear plant.

Watching this has terrified many U.S. residents: Many homeowners are wondering if their homeowners’ insurance policy will protect them in the event of a nuclear accident.

Unfortunately, it won’t. Homeowners’ insurance policies exclude damage caused by a nuclear accident or “event.”

However, it may surprise you to learn there are some financial protections for both homeowners and renters that were created by a law that has been on the books since 1957.

The Price-Anderson Nuclear Industries Indemnity Act (commonly called the Price-Anderson Act) is a United States federal law, first passed in 1957 and since renewed several times, which governs liability-related issues for all non-military nuclear facilities constructed in the United States before 2026.

The Price-Anderson act was proposed by the Federal government as a way to encourage companies to pursue nuclear power as a resource by limiting possible liability.

Companies were afraid of taking on excess liability, especially after WWII (ironically, the bombings in Japan) and the inception of the atomic age. People were scared by the very thought of radiation. Government wanted companies to research how nuclear power might be harnessed to supply energy to U.S. residents, so they eliminated at least a portion of any future liability.

In a way, the Price-Anderson act works similarly to the FDIC insurance fund. Businesses that are involved with nuclear energy pay premiums every year that go into a giant fund. If something was to happen, and radiation was to contaminate an area of the U.S., nuclear power plant operators have contributed $12 billion into a giant pool which would be used for the claims.

It is worth noting that the Act protects all Americans, even renters, not just homeowners and provides comprehensive, “reasonable” coverage of the following in the event of a nuclear power plant malfunction: Bodily injury; sickness, disease or resulting death; property damage and loss; and reasonable living expenses for individuals evacuated from their homes.

That’s why insurance companies don’t have to deal with covering damage caused by nuclear accidents, says Chris Kissell, a spokesperson for Insurance.com.

Are Americans in danger of a Level 5 radiation leak like in Japan or Chernobyl? What about an even bigger accident? Kissell says there only a small chance of a grave problem.

“With more modern U.S. facilities, this is not a real danger. Some of the [nuclear plants] which go back 30 years or more could be a problem,” he said.

And yet, he acknowledges Americans are nervous. “It’s just human nature that when something happens, people wonder how it could affect them. And these things are often beyond government control. I think out in California where you have [nuclear] plants and earthquakes, people are more concerned,” he explained.

“People realize there are a lot of safeguards but they want to know how they’re being kept safe,” he added.

For more information about the Price-Anderson Act, go to the American Nuclear Society website.

The January unemployment numbers were released this week and in a word, they were confusing.

The official unemployment rate dropped from 9.4 percent to 9 percent. Which seems great, except that about 300,000 people decided to just give up and drop out of the job market. A meager 36,000 jobs were created, some of which was clearly the result of all the bad storms in December. But, everyone was expecting job creation at 140,000 to 150,000 – so, very big difference.

Also, the average workweek was off by one-tenth of one percent (0.1%) while the manufacturing workweek rose by that much, Barron’s reported.

The U-6, which is the broadest measure of unemployment, came in at 16.1 percent, but without seasonal adjustment, was really 17.3 percent.

The labor force has contracted by a massive 500,000 and Barron’s quoted Gluskin Sheff’s Dave Rosenberg who said “the participation rate continues to slide fully 19 months into the economic expansion, which is an off-the-charts development.”

Think about it – at 19 months into an economic expansion, we should have been creating 500,000 to 700,000 jobs per month, and instead, 450,000 people are filing for first-time unemployment claims. Not so good. The numbers are all over the place, but only 117,000 jobs were added, which is down from 297,000 jobs created in December. There was an erroneous AP report that claimed that 500,000 jobs were created, but if that were true, it would have been front-page news in the Wall Street Journal.

Fireplaces add warmth and value to an apartment, but they are also potentially dangerous when not taken care of. To keep your apartment safe, take a few precautions. You might have to bug your landlord to take care of some of these safety precautions, but it’s worth it to keep your place fire-safe.

1. Make sure your landlord has cleaned the fireplace. If you have a wood-burning fire, ask your landlord whether it’s been cleaned this winter. Experts recommend having a professional chimney and fireplace cleaning every year to prevent creosote build-up that can cause chimney fires.
2. Check your smoke detectors. If you’re not sure when the batteries to your smoke detectors were last changed, ask your landlord to replace them. If smoke began to build up in the fireplace, it’s crucial that all your fire alarms function properly.
3. Don’t leave the fire unattended. Never go to sleep with the fireplace still burning, and keep an eye on it while you’re in the apartment. Even with a screen, small paper holiday decorations, tinsel, and Christmas tree needles could get into the fireplace and spread the flames.
4. Keep fire extinguishers on hand. In the event that sparks leap onto furniture, decorations, or your Christmas tree, you’ll need an easily-accessible, functioning fire extinguisher. Your landlord should have provided your apartment with one, and you should double-check that it has been inspected recently.
5. Use only seasoned hardwood in your fireplace. Never burn cardboard, trash, or lighter fluid, and avoid wet logs that can accelerate creosote build-up. If you use artificial logs, only burn one at a time.

For more information on fireplace safety tips, check out the U.S. Fire Administration and Hearth, Patio, and Barbecue Association websites.