Need your advice

[jainen]

Oh my God--I don't owe anything! I try to tell myself that I am always open to new experiences, but I am totally unprepared for such psychological trauma. What do I do now?

[mcb39]

File the return and go out and smell your roses.

[Lion EA]

File the return and buy us all a drink with your extra money.

[rfassett]

I will send you my information and you can pay some of mine. Always willing to help a fellow soldier to keep from being traumatized.

[Margaret CPA in OH]

Maybe, to reassure your nerves, check again that you didn't omit that $20 you received for the ride to airport you provided and the $5 bill you found in the park. If you're lucky, you might end up owing a dollar or two to ease your mind. If not, then figure out what you did wrong to allow the gummint to hold all that money instead of having in your pocket! Or, just relax, breathe a deep sigh, smile, and, yes, smell those roses....

[JRS]

Oh my God--I don't owe anything! I try to tell myself that I am always open to new experiences, but I am totally unprepared for such psychological trauma. What do I do now?

Quit deducting your Rose food as a business expense.

[kcjenkins]

Clearly you made a mistake somewhere. Go back and look for transposed numbers, or duplicated expenses. Maybe you put Supplies on page 1 AND page two? Or else you just forgot to raise your fees enough last year!!! :spaz:

[BulldogTom]

Did Jerome do your taxes? You know he is very smart.

Tom

Lodi, CA

[kcjenkins]

I sure do miss Peggy Sue and Jerome!

[Catherine]

Oh my God--I don't owe anything! I try to tell myself that I am always open to new experiences, but I am totally unprepared for such psychological trauma. What do I do now?

You can always make a voluntary donation to the Treasury.

Or to Eric and the ATX Community Forum! Maybe lower your estimated payments, too, so that you don't suffer this horrible trauma again next year.

Happy rose bush sniffing!

[OldJack]

You forgot to calculate the Alternative Minimum Tax!

[jainen]

>>calculate the Alternative Minimum Tax<<

My friend who is in law school set up an LLC for that so I am not personally liable! He said that since it is a church and technically owns the house I can deduct all my utilities and food etc. as charitable contributions, which are also allowable under AMT! The best part is that he says a church is not even required to file a tax return, so I am actually audit-proof!

Of course, I don't allocate all my income to the church because I still have to support my three kids, which according to the IRS tables for EIC takes $12600. They are actually my girlfriend's kids but she doesn't need to file because she gets welfare. I am very honest so I am not claiming Head of Household. In fact, I give her a rent receipt so she can claim Head of Household on her Food Stamp app. Since the rent is less than the utilities I don't need to report it because personal losses aren't deductible anyway.

We have to change for 2011, though. My girlfriend turns 18 and will start getting her trust money, so no more welfare. We are going to say the church runs a day care program for the three kids. She will donate $12600 and the church will issue a W-2 for employee wages which are eligible for the EIC. Then I can take Head of Household for my higher income. This is all perfectly legal because my friend knows someone who has done it for years and never had any problems with IRS.

[mcb39]

Sounds like you have been sniffing more than roses! BTW, I just got mine filed and I don't owe anything either; for none of the reasons that you cited in the previous post.

[joanmcq]

You can pay my estimate for CA! Wait, I already did that. Well, if I still owe when I finally get my bookkeeping and returns done, you can pay the rest.

First time in years I didn't look for that penny when making sure the bank accounts were somewhat close to what I had on the balance sheet. $8.76 off? close enough, onto the rentals. I'll look for the mistakes later!

[Margaret CPA in OH]

Jainen, now _that_ is tax planning extraordinaire! You didn't gain guru status fer nuthin'! Just watch out as the housing allowance exclusion is being challenged now. But you and your legal beagle will surely manage to find any other loopholes available. I am in awe of the prowess...

[Gail in Virginia]

Jainen, I would laugh at your post if I weren't paying for that kind of taxation. What a commentary on our system! :wall:

[JohnH]

The housing allowance is being challenged?

I thought the Rick Warren case pretty much cleared up the confusion and actually reaffirmed it.

But if the ninth circuit persists in this silliness, I wonder if they will try to invalidate the benefit for military officers as well. Given their political leanings, it wouldn't surprise me if their hostility extends beyond religion to the military as well.

[jainen]

>>it wouldn't surprise me if their hostility extends beyond religion<<

Unless you can cite some background for this idea, it rather looks like YOU are the one with hostility.

[JohnH]

Unlike many in the media and the courts, I acknowledge my biases and freely admit to being hostile toward certain ideologies. As for evidence to support my accusation, exhibit 1 would be the Nedow case. It's hard to find a more convoluted decision, clearly motivated by hostility toward religion.