Lion EA

Wow! Client will need to ask his former employer where the money went, what agency in Texas. Follow the money!

From the forms in the 2018 return, MAGI does start the calculation for the PTC. I hope that's what she needs to report to the Marketplace, but I gave her Total Income, also, so she can guesstimate her 2019 income. (She's a nurse doing consulting projects.) In this client's case, she doesn't want to risk dipping below the 100%/ending up on Medicaid. (2018 was 133% as is, but I need to proofread.) And, she does have an insurance guy, so I wanted to give her the 2018 numbers he'd need to advise her for 2019. The IRA contribution is a good reminder. And, an HSA if a HDHP. Do the MEC choices on the Marketplace include HDHPs? This return has both the iterations for SEHI and QBID calculations for her SE. I no longer have any easy returns to ease me into tax season! Thank you, Deb.

What "income" number is the Marketplace looking for? Total Income? AGI? Taxable Income? I have a client with a Schedule C where we have some options re depreciation and itemized deductions/standard and IRA contributions and.... Her insurance broker told her to aim for a certain "income," but cannot specify which. She's about my only client with Marketplace insurance.

Ask your client. Look at his paystubs. Have client talk to his payroll department.

Did it sell at a profit? Look into the exact dates to see if it was a primary residence for two out of the five years prior to the sale date. It took over two years to sell, so the listing price might not have been the FMV on the listing date. If you're looking at a lot of money, then your client might want a qualified appraisal.

I don't use ATX, but my software does take care of most multi-state issues with needing the other state return or just federal. For some years back, it would print out a cover sheet to PA for me to fax the other state in, but that's now handled within the e-filing now. Call tech support.

https://bpd.cdn.sos.ca.gov/llc/forms/llc-1.pdf

https://www.sos.ca.gov/business-programs/business-entities/filing-tips/filing-tips-llc/

Gotta love a volunteer guinea pig! Keep us posted.

Lisa Ihm's BrassTax.com has free practice aids, such as COD worksheets: https://brasstax.com/practice-aids She used to offer a $20 textbook on Forms 1099-A/foreclosures and Forms 1099-C/COD income and exclusion. Don't see it today on her website.

There is some controversy about IRAs, but anything SE-related that already gets deducted above the line (1/2 SE tax, for instance) applies to all at all income levels. Look at other threads to see discussions re IRAs and QBI.

Rental as T/B is not the law. The burden of proof is on the taxpayer. The IRS did give a safe harbor, though, for those who qualify.

You deal with the sale of the rental in the year it was sold. You deal with Form 1099-C in the year on the form. How long mortgage holders have to write off their losses/issue 1099-Cs is state by state. So, warn your clients, probably in writing/email, that they may have income from forgiven debt in a future year.

No. the SE-related items come into play in calculating QBI at the beginning. Once taxpayers' AGI is in the phase-out range, then wages or wages/assets enter the calculation to re-calculate QBI.

Dead clients cannot vote (except in Chicago where I grew up).

No. My clients use to bury me about 22 February every year. This year, it was 12 February! I'm so backlogged.

PS FileShare is included with CCH's SiteBuilder website. CCH offers a more robust portal at extra cost, but FileShare has been simple for my clients to use. This year, FileShare added a new layer with a code needed to log in (just like my banks). Yeah, love those phone pics and emails and links to Google Drive/Dropbox/etc. and that one client who hangs her sack of stuff on my mailbox -- which is out on the street 100 yards away from my house! My low-tech solution is a large mail slot in my front door of my locked house.

I had a client who got that $0 bill every month or so, so she DID send them a $0 check. The bills stopped.

I use CCH's FileShare to upload and download.

The owner &/or his employees, agents, etc., together can add up to 250 hours for the safe harbor. Or, the rental must rise to the level of a trade or business...

I had a client call me about receiving an IRS letter for $0 owed. He was my first this year. But, not my first ever! He's a banker and figured out that it must have to do with rounding or such.

Won't get EIC or HOH. I always have to check the flow chart.

But did you stuff the chocolates in your mouth and shirt?! Hopefully, NOT the batteries.

Did he return the equipment when he left? If your client still has the equipment, then I agree it would be at FMV when he left.

You want to match the FICA/Medicare to the right spouse, too. But yes, we all make mistakes under this kind of deadline pressure. There was only one perfect person, and we crucified him! I wake up in a panic trying to remember if I did this or checked that, and get up and turn on my computer. But in my sleepy state, I probably don't do any better than I would waiting until the morning. Except that I wouldn't fall back asleep and would lay there with a knot in my stomach. (I guess a home office does save me time.) And then, I'm even more sleepy due to that middle-of-the-night working or due to that middle-of-the-night worrying, either way. It's only February, and I'm already sleep deprived. Hang in there. You're doing fine.