Tax help please! UK pension, mortgage, foreign tax credit, new health form

Hello fellow Yankees! I'm hoping there's someone out there that can help a very exasperated and stressed me! 

My taxes are due, and for the time first time I am attempting this on my own, as the US embassy in London no longer offer IRS help. And little did I know that professional tax help can cost between £300-£800. Insane!

-I'd like to think my situation is pretty straightforward:
-I am a US Citizen living in London. 
-I actually work for a US company, though I got the job in the UK, I did not transfer with the company.
-I have a UK pension - but not being used, just money going in.
-I participate in the company's employee stock purchase program - meaning I contribute a certain amount of my income to a stock program and every 6 months I can sell that stock. The gains from the stock are then taxed in pay slip at my normal tax rate.
-I own a property - which I live in - this just happened in 2015.
-I am married to ta UK citizen and I file married filing separately.

Based on the above, I have the following questions:


1. Do I need to report the money I contribute to my pension? or the money my company matches? I am not currently using any of the money, just contributing.
2. Do I need to report the ownership of property? Is there anything related to my property that is pertinent to completing my taxes?
3. When do you file a foreign tax credit vs. a 2555? For some reason I filed both last year (the IRS consultant the the embassy did this for me).
4. Is it true that all US citizens living abroad need to file the new health form: Health Coverage Exemptions (8965)?
5. Would time spent out of the UK for holidays count against my Bonafide Residence Test or Physical Presence Test on the 2555? Do you need to qualify for both?
5. These are the forms I will be filing - am I  missing anything important?

1040
1040 Schedule D - capital gains and losses
1040 Worksheet - Qualified Dividends and Capital Gain Tax Worksheet
8949- Sales and Dispositions of Capital Assets
2555 - Foreign Earned Income
8965 - Health Coverage Exemptions

Sorry for the long post. I really hope with the collective knowledge of this group I can get some much needed help.

Thanks in advance,
Maria

My taxes are due, and for the time first time I am attempting this on my own, as the US embassy in London no longer offer IRS help. And little did I know that professional tax help can cost between £300-£800. Insane!
Given that you appear to believe that charging such modest amounts for a professional service is insane, why not renounce the US citizenship & stop the insanity? Your tax affairs look - incidentally - highly complicated; it would be a surprise if the folks at the US Embassy would have given you the best advice in the past.

Thanks for the advice Guya. I understand that tax knowledge is a very niche area (especially when dealing with the US) and it's a professional service that requires extensive knowledge, and should be rewarded. I was just taken aback by the cost, and can't personally afford it. UK Yankees seems to have some very knowledgeable people, so I was hoping I could get some guidance here. I apologize if I've offended you in some way. Thanks anyway. 

There is good advice here. I was somewhat lucky in that my taxes aren't that complicated....but I was still just a bit thick on figuring things out....I have trouble keeping all the details straight. But with help here.......it was easy enough to do them myself. I have since made things even simpler and do not plan to use a paid tax preparer.....although a couple of years ago before I got things straighter in my head I paid somebody to answer about 10 questions I had that I wanted answers to.

Your taxes are not as simple. I have since come to the conclusion that with some research almost anybody can learn to do their taxes. If you have the time....going through a bunch of the old threads here should help. It might help getting help with a couple of the people who do have good memories/knowledge on this site if you can do a bunch of research and maybe just get info and questions ready on one topic at a time. It kind of sounded to me like you have a reasonable grasp of what you are trying to do......and kind of like on the visa section were just after some confirmation if you have most of it correct....and if not what had you missed. I am not knowledgable enough to want to give advice and my efforts to get my taxes straightened out and were limited to someone who is here retired and not working.

Something you might try.....call HMRC. I was concerned that I needed to submit a self-assessment this year to meet the UK rules......turns out that I didn't need to until I go on social security in about 3 years. They were very helpful and very pleasant when I dealt with them. I called right when they opened (8am?) and didn't have to wait too long to get a human.

But.....if you need professional tax help......it isn't cheap.

There is good advice here. I was somewhat lucky in that my taxes aren't that complicated....but I was still just a bit thick on figuring things out....I have trouble keeping all the details straight. But with help here.......it was easy enough to do them myself. I have since made things even simpler and do not plan to use a paid tax preparer.....although a couple of years ago before I got things straighter in my head I paid somebody to answer about 10 questions I had that I wanted answers to.

Your taxes are not as simple. I have since come to the conclusion that with some research almost anybody can learn to do their taxes. If you have the time....going through a bunch of the old threads here should help. It might help getting help with a couple of the people who do have good memories/knowledge on this site if you can do a bunch of research and maybe just get info and questions ready on one topic at a time. It kind of sounded to me like you have a reasonable grasp of what you are trying to do......and kind of like on the visa section were just after some confirmation if you have most of it correct....and if not what had you missed. I am not knowledgable enough to want to give advice and my efforts to get my taxes straightened out and were limited to someone who is here retired and not working.

Something you might try.....call HMRC. I was concerned that I needed to submit a self-assessment this year to meet the UK rules......turns out that I didn't need to until I go on social security in about 3 years. They were very helpful and very pleasant when I dealt with them. I called right when they opened (8am?) and didn't have to wait too long to get a human.

But.....if you need professional tax help......it isn't cheap.

Well said.

Our affairs are complicated enough that despite all the time I've spent here I'm going to pay to have our returns this first time (or 2) done by a professional.