Give Yourself a Pay Hike

— -- Refunds will be bigger than ever this year. They could average almost $2,500. And while that refund check might be a godsend now, it means you've been overpaying Uncle Sam all year long.

"You'd be better off giving yourself a pay hike," said Kevin McCormally of Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.

"If you're one of the 100 million taxpayers who get a check from the IRS, get a W-4 form from your employer," he added. "That's the one that controls withholding. Run through the instructions and see if you can cut withholding. I'll bet you can, and doing so will automatically boost your take home pay."

If your refund is of average size, you could probably get an extra $150 or $200 every month in your paycheck.

Don Roberts of the IRS says that extra money now being withheld is yours.

"The government doesn't pay you interest on that. They're just giving you your money back. You've loaned it to the government, interest free, for as long as a year," Roberts added.

So by filling out a W-4 at work, you can start getting next year's refund in installments beginning on your next payday.

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