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This is how Drake's discount period has been structured in prior years, and I'd expect it to be the same or similar this year. Pricing is for months of purchase as follows: April & May- $1095; June & July- $1195; Aug & Sept- $1295; Oct & Nov $1395; Dec 1 and after- $1495

Yes, the early renewal for Drake is still $1095. If you prepare only a few returns, you can purchase on a pay-per-return basis for $300 that includes the first 15 returns without additional cost, and $20 per return after that. Once 85 returns is reached, it can be converted to unlimited. http://kb.drakesoftware.com/Site/Browse/Pay-Per-Return-Package-Pricing-and-Details

It sums up my season perfectly.

This is sec 133 from HR bill1628: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/1628 Yes, I think your thinking is correct, it increases the premium for a full 12 months, charged by the insurance company. From what I've read, there are no exemptions for hardship. I really think it's too early to discuss this since the Senate is working on their own version of the law.

Yes, I've been leaving it as long as the topic stayed with taxes. "Don't make me pull this car over..."

Good to hear that.

Roberts, not true. Take a look at the chart on this page from the Dept of Education and look at the various types of loans and reasons they may be cancelled, forgiven, or discharged. https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/forgiveness-cancellation#when

It populates any state included in the original file, and you can make any changes to the state returns, can add or delete states as desired. You should really ask for a free copy of the program. It will be a prior year because Drake won't give you a 2016 copy until after 10/15, but the back year program you receive is a fully functional one without the ability to e-file until you set up an account with the company, but you could actually use it for paper filing back year returns.

I think it works really well, and once I saw how it worked, I really like it too. If all you want are estimate calculations in less complex returns, Drake has an adjustment screen that will allow adjustments to the current income for purposes of calculating the next year's estimates. It will then carry those figures over to the worksheet from the 1040-ES package. If you do nothing else and are satisfied with those figures, it will try to use the safe harbor and does take into account the 110% requirement for those with current year AGI over $150K. As a default, it will produce the estimates based on these calculations if no other input is made on the ES screen. You still have the ability to change the estimates to any figures you want. I don't usually use this as I find it easier and get something more to my liking for printouts with the other method. For more comprehensive planning and the method I mostly use even for just the next year's estimates: Finish a return and with it open, click on the "tax planner" icon and select the current return. You'll understand this once you are using the program and see the screen that appears. The program gives you the choice of another current year scenario or the next year's projection, in this case would be either 2016 or 2017, and you name the scenario. It is possible to have many different ones that you can choose 2 to compare later on in a simple one-page format, or print (hard copy or pdf) of selected pages or an entire planning return with a "tax planner" watermark across each page. Basically, with this second method, for the first projection it replicates the file and input screens from the current year's original return with all of the data pre-filled that allows you to change any of the input in the new scenario. With additional scenarios from within the planner section, the program allows you to choose which scenario to replicate as a starting point. As Catherine said, once that file is replicated, any changes to the file used as a starting point do not carry over to the replicated one. For my clients that I calculate estimates each quarter, I start with the original and replicate for the next year's 1st quarter as a starting point and make my adjustments to that. With each subsequent quarter, I start with the one immediately preceding it and don't go back to the original file each time. It isn't much different than the way ATX allows creation of duplicate files that are renamed and would appear in the return manager except that all the named scenarios are within the one client file and then accessed by clicking on the tax planner icon to see the list of planning scenarios for that particular client.

Yes, pretty much unchanged. I don't use it except for filing 1099s, W-2s, and the 940 series, and only because it is provided free with the tax program. I use QuickBooks with payroll set to manual for write-up. Drake was supposed to be working on a new accounting program to replace the current old CWU program, but I'm not sure of its status.

My condolences to you and family, Gail. Now is time to take care of yourself and let yourself grieve and heal from your loss.

I also have a client that accumulated ~ $400K in debt going through undergrad, medical school, then double majors in specialties.

Love those. That was really sweet of her.

Who are we bashing?

Jack, I agree with you that this is taxable income. The only carve-out for not being taxable income is for loans forgiven under 108(f) where the student works in certain professions or classes of employer for a designated period of time, or for certain refinancings, and obviously these aren't the case with your client. One of those is the link that ILLMAS provided. I would treat this as any other cancellation of debt that is taxable AND has the potential for exclusion under the rules in sec 108(a) to the extent the person is insolvent. Do the worksheets to determine the involvency and go from there. In other words, treat it like any other 1099C and include the student loan debt in the liabilities on the worksheet. Found this on the Nelnet website related to Student Aid, says it's an Office of the U.S. Dept of Education. Re: cancellations due to Total and Permanent Disability: A notation in the U.S. Federal Register, 2012, Title 34 for Dept of Education, on pg 4 of the linked pdf, righthand column, says : "The treatment of loan amounts discharged based on the borrower’s TPD as income for Federal tax purposes is governed by the Federal tax code, not the HEA." Again, the IRC addresses only those discharged under 108(f), and makes no mention of discharge for TPD as an exclusion.

Rock and a hard place, Jack. ES didn't give the worman any work product, and is required to give back the original documents, if asked. It is an ethical violation for CPAs to hostage a client's original records for a fee. ES, I'd let it go and never do business for this family again. Others here have laid out the path if you decide to try to collect, but I think you may rack up more in aggravation that it may be worth.

I'm done for the day except for waiting on one elderly woman to tell me if she paid the federal estimates I set up, and she called to tell me that she has to do her in-home exercise therapy first, and then she'll call me back. She's pretty hard of hearing, so I hope that she understood that I need her to call back today. Other than her return there are a few that are on extension that are either done or almost so. All extensions done except for the one federal.

I think you might be out of luck on adding that back to arrive at modified AGI. I haven't dealt with this waiver specifically, but that waiver falls under sec 131 of the code, and sec 36B includes only the 3 lines of items to add back to arrive at modified AGI: income excluded under sec 911, the t/e interest, and the portion of n/t social security. The income waiver under sec 131 isn't one of them. Sometimes the tax code isn't logical, and even when we wish the outcome to be different, we can't make it come out to a fair outcome. I think it is the case with your client, just like those taxpayers that accept the APTC and then receive a lump-sum payment social security settlement that has a cascade effect on the return and causes the credit's disallowance and payback of the credit.

Is this a very simple return that you spent little time on? Or is it a return that you prep'd on another machine and transferred the file over to e-file it? I'm just guessing, but it looks like too little time is tallied to me. That error code is used for a variety of things that aren't proper for the place they appear it, such as a stray character that isn't allowed in a city's name where the system bounces it back. You may have to call support if you can't figure it out. Sorry, I've tried looking for that code with the exact followup comments and haven't come up with anything yet.

It looks like the IRS system thinks you didn't spend enough time on this return and is rejecting it. One of the security features that came out the the security summit was that total prep time would be transmitted to the IRS so that scammers couldn't populate a fake return and submit it very quickly. Somehow I think that value of "-000003" is the problem. Have you tried to recreate the return and resubmit it?

Shouldn't be a problem to install on another machine. MeF did away with the DCN when it started using the submission ID numbers but some states were still using them. ATX (I think in '15)may have removed the DCN from the e-file manager, but it might still be in the setup somewhere. You know I don't use ATX any more, but if I recall correctly, the DCN starting number was in the preparer setup/preparer manager area. IF it's still in the program's setup, then all you should have to do is to tell the program to start the DCN series with a number higher than the last return you filed through the old computer so that there isn't an overlap of numbers used for filing. If you don't know the last number, but know that you usually file about 300 returns, just start the new machine with something like '400' and you shouldn't have a problem.

Yes, in the daughter's case, she will start over depreciating the property from the date of the inheritance and using the FMV at DOD as the total basis. From there, split out the value of the land from the structure and begin depreciating it. There are more complications when a person takes over the second 1/2 of a rental from a deceased spouse, and there are also differing rules depending on whether in a community property state, but you don't have any of that. Just mentioning for anyone reading in future. I'm having trouble with the link a pdf from a gov't website on my tablet right now, but here is a link to a previous topic with the same discussion on here if you need the reference:

Yes, welcome to the group. We hope you will like it here. It does scale down with much less activity off season, but there is a core group that is here all year. I'm sorry to hear that anyone or a company hosting a professional forum would allow the behavior you mention re: the comments about women. We don't have that here, and really hardly any foul language at all. Is that on the ATX forum or some other place?

BHoffman, vent away any time you need to. You are among friends here that understand the stress, and it's better to not hold that in. And then there's this: *spins around to see if someone is behind me* Is there someone back there that you are speaking to, surely not me! Grace under pressure?! I have to say, that actually made me laugh out loud because I'm a stubborn Taurus, blunt and with a bull in a china shop attitude that pops out, usually at the worst moment possible. Thanks for the chuckle. If I didn't like my current avatar so much I should change it to something much more representative, perhaps something like this:

Well, I'm sorry to hear what you go through, B. I don't sleep well either, but nothing like that. My comment was in response to what Rich said after I made the comment saying my husband said I should scrap the biz and do something else and Rich replied that his wife has learned not to suggest a different job because this is his career, blah, blah, blah. Well, this is my career too, been doing this since '81 and don't see that changing any time soon. I was venting one night and husband understands that, even if I described it wrong on here. Sorry I even mentioned it at all.