During your working years, you probably don't need or want taxable income from your investments, because it can significantly increase your income tax bill. So, invest in real estate, stocks and small business investments. These offer the best long-term growth potential. They are a tax-friendly option as well, because you're in control and can decide when to sell and when to realize your profit. As long as you can hold on to these investments for more than one year, your profit is taxed at the lower, long-term capital gains rate.

When you funnel your savings dollars into retirement accounts, such as 401(k), 403(b), SEP-IRA or SIMPLE IRA, you can earn substantial up-front tax breaks on your contributions. Advisors spend a great deal of time lecturing clients about the upcoming retirement crisis, but they also need to remember to take a few moments to ensure that their own situation is squared away as well—and hopefully reap some income tax benefits in the process.

HSAs hold promise for people to put money away on a tax-advantaged basis to pay for health care–related expenses. Money contributed to an HSA is tax-deductible, and investment earnings compound without tax and aren't taxed upon withdrawal so long as you use the funds to pay for eligible health care costs. So, unlike a retirement account, HSAs are actually triple-tax-free!

In the wake of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, taking the standardized deduction is the correct choice for the vast majority of people. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t hidden value to be found for some in taking the time to itemize. In 2019, single people qualify for a $12,200 standard deduction, and married couples filing jointly get a $24,400 standard deduction.

Itemization is more of a hassle, but if you can tally up more than the standard deduction amount, itemizing saves you money. Your personal property and state income taxes are still itemizable, up to an annual cap of $10,000. Further, if you pay a fee to the state to register and license your car, you can itemize the expenditure as a deduction. (However, you can deduct only the part of the fee that relates to the car's value.) Because you can control when to pay particular expenses that are eligible for itemization, you can shift more of them into selected years to take full advantage of itemizing.

Suppose you own real estate but haven't borrowed as much money as your lender allows. And suppose you've run up high-interest consumer debt. In that case, you may be able to refinance your mortgage (borrowing at a lower interest rate than your credit card bill) and pull out extra cash to pay off your consumer debt. You may even get a tax-deduction bonus, because while consumer debt isn't tax-deductible, mortgage debt usually is.

However, remember that refinancing your mortgage and establishing home equity lines involve fees and charges. Keep these expenses in mind when weighing the pros and cons of this strategy.

When you itemize your deductions on Schedule A, you can deduct contributions made to charities. Most people already know that when they write a check to a college or house of worship, they can deduct it. Yet many taxpayers overlook the fact that they can also deduct expenses while performing activities for charitable organizations. For example, when you go to volunteer at a soup kitchen, you can deduct your transportation costs getting there. You can also deduct the fair market value of donations of clothing and other goods to charities; just keep your documentation of donated items. Finally, you can deduct contributions to local schools, including youth sports programs, as long as the money goes to the overall team rather than being earmarked for your child. You can even deduct the cost of driving your kids to school events.

If you're self-employed, you already deduct a variety of expenses from your income before calculating the tax that you owe. When you buy a computer or office furniture, you can deduct those expenses. Employee salaries, office supplies, rent or mortgage interest for your office space, and phone expenses are also generally deductible.

Although more than a few business owners cheat on their taxes, some self-employed folks don't take all the deductions they should; be sure you take full advantage of deductions for which you are eligible.

About 5 percent of married couples file their federal income tax returns under the status of "Married Filing Separately." Most do so to save money, but there can be other reasons, such as each spouse not wanting to be liable for their spouse's tax transgressions. To know if you should consider this option, crunch the numbers. Couples with the following characteristics may benefit:

-If one spouse owns a pass-through business that is eligible for the 20 percent pass-through deduction but loses that deduction due to the combined income of their spouse.

-If one spouse has high medical expenses, which can be written off when they exceed 7.5 percent of adjusted gross income, but loses that deduction due to the higher combined income with their spouse.

-If the couple lives in a state that has a tax code that may favor spouses who file separately.

-If you have a tax preparer, be careful to understand their additional fee for filing separate returns as that cost may wipe out the potential tax savings.