With the tax filing deadline rapidly approaching, doing your taxes yourself may seem like a great way to save money, which touches on a big debate when it comes to budgeting and products and services in general: to make or to buy? The Equifax Finance Blog explores the question in the recent article “

DIY: Make It or Buy It—How to Decide” which applies to taxes and so much more!

There are certain questions that you’ll want to ask yourself when deciding whether to DIY or not:

• Does it require a lot of ingredients or tools you don’t already have? If the cost of investment is high, you may want to consider buying.
• How much time will the project consume? Will you enjoy the work? These are two very important questions when it comes to do it yourself projects, since you will have to make the time to devote to the project. When the project has a definite deadline, like with taxes, you may find it’s a lot more like a second job rather than something to do that you can enjoy.
• Which version is cheaper? This is a key question, especially from an economic standpoint. While some people may speak of ‘sweat equity’ rather than cash, you should still recognize that your time and energy have a value.

The Equifax experts have more key information about personal finance, from taxes to

kinds of identity theft on the Equifax Finance Blog.