Hello! I'm so glad I stumbled upon your site. Here is my situation:

I live with my boyfriend. We started renting our apartment in May (possible California Renter's Credit there). He has been separated from his ex-wife going on 4 years now, we have been together for 2. He is now going through the divorce process but should be able to file separate from her this year. His gross income for this year should be < $30,000 and for me < $13,000 (possible Earned Income Credit). We had our first baby in August (possible Child Tax Credit).

How would we get the most back out of our taxes? Should/can we file jointly? Are we even able to file jointly if he is still legally married? Who should claim our daughter? Who should try to claim the Renter's Credit? Am I able to claim it if he actually paid it but I paid all other expenses (so it was basically 50/50)? Neither of us attended college this year. Are there any other credits I should be aware of that I haven't mentioned?

Any advice you can offer would be very much appreciated. I have so much to worry about with a new baby and definitely don't want to leave this up to the last minute!

Thanks!
Jessi