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Oh, and I'm charging her $275 for a correct return. Five rentals, plus I figured the non-taxable part of her new husband's retirement that the same preparer missed on his return last year. Next year I'll feel great about it. The return. Not the sloppy, corrupt competition.

So, they are in Wisconsin with Marilyn, a gold medal preparer. That's all I wanted to know. Heehee. Lord, have mercy.

Not really logical. The audit that is being conducted in my office is a case in point. The auditor claims it was a random pick. However, the client had major medical bills that would raise a question. They were legit. This auditor has already spent two full days in my office; traveling 30 miles one way from her home and who knows when it will end. In the meantime, we sit here watching our tax dollars going up in smoke. Once they start, they look at EVERYTHING and she is waiting for the subpoena of his banking records to be revealed to her. This fellow is phasing out of his small carpentry business as he is already receiving SS. Wouldn't you think that they would stop beating a dead horse. At best, they could never collect as much as this is costing. This is a 2013 tax return. Bah Humbug!!!

I have one that has been here on and off for one client going on two years now. It is one of those comprehensive audits where he is required to look at every line and justify the number. Started off as a 2012 audit and the scope was broadened to include 2011 and 2013. I will gladly send the auditor to Tennessee, Wisconsin, Timbuktu...........no wait, I live in Timbuktu, I don't want him there. I will gladly send him anywhere and I will even pay the transportation costs. Any takers?

Yeah, about two miles from my office, I can hook her right up with a doozy. Give her something worthwhile to do. 15,000 miles on 500 tax returns would make a dent in the national debt. And there's no telling how much EIC is involved. She gets a lot of likes on Facebook...

I would just add that I am not even sure what taxpayer owes IRS for 2013 and 2014. I suspect it's not a tremendous amount. The EIC was $181. The SE tax exceeded that. Preparer ignored depreciation completely, but made up vehicle expense that pretty well neutralized that. Oh, and we don't need no Sch A if we put donations on the back of Sch C. And even label them "donations". The point of the original post was to convince you that I was not nitpicking, that there are LOTS of errors for IRS to pick up on, and to bitch about IRS letting this go through. The 2013 and 2014 preparer completed a Sch C and ignored depreciation for five rentals. It was easy for her because the taxpayer puts her crap on Quicken (why God why) and it's all tallied up. Preparer is doing crap like this, setting world land speed records churning out incorrect returns, while the rest of us keep our heads down and plow. It does not sit well with me, when a lender can see a problem and IRS ignores it. That's what I was trying to say. I had already called her to pick up when I posted.

Rita, I do like your response here and do agree you did the right thing. Yes, there are crooked preparers everywhere. The taxpayer, while ultimately responsible for every line on the tax return, will usually place trust in the person who is preparing their return. In your situation it appears your client was confused and became concerned about the situation and sought your services. I also agree different areas bring different pricing. Penalizing the crap out of this client for another preparer's inadequacy by raising fees on them would likely chase them away. The approach you took will guarantee a repeat client in the future. Frustrating and a lot of work I know, but good call on this one.

Yes, and I really want this client. She has been a jewel getting me information, extremely cooperative. I'm not giving her ultimatums or asking for retainers. I've prepared the 2015 correctly, and yes, it was torture getting the depreciation right. Next year will be very smooth. I will tell her the other three years need to be amended, and I will spend a lot of time showing her the errors. It will be up to her.

New client with five rentals. NOT a real estate professional. Came to me because HER LENDER told her that her 2013 and 2014 tax returns were not prepared correctly. Boy, that is the understatement of my short, illustrious career. Preparer put the rentals on Sch C, charitable donations on Sch C, made up 14,685 business miles, completely omitted depreciation (but the mileage made up for it). Lo and behold, we have EIC! The rentals are in a trailer park. Taxpayer lives in the last trailer in the row. There is NO travel. WTH? I also looked at what the preparer before this inept person did in 2012. She used Sch E. Good call there. However, two rentals, that had been depreciated for 16 years, were sold. Not a peep about accumulated depreciation on Form 4797. Taxpayer had gains of 32,000. Tax return comes out that she made 1,200. Where is IRS? These errors are GLARING. Stuff like this kills good tax preparers. In general, people here are not well off. They go to the preparer they can best afford. They either think all preparers know what they're doing, or they don't care if it's correct. This 2013 and 2014 preparer charged $150. It's worth nothing. She is making twice as much as me per hour and producing crap. How is a good preparer going to compete with these bad preparers if nobody is minding the store? I realize that many of you have all the business you want and/or have clients that will never leave you, no matter what. It's not like that in Rural, TN. C'mon, IRS, help a girl out.

I charged her 275. Previous "preparer" 150. The returns are not remotely similar. The other preparer made at least twice as much per hour as I did. No, clients don't usually understand that. She may when I show her. She already has the lender's opinion after all.

Just in case you ever run into this again....I just filed one of these for the first time because the client never received her refund check because she moved and apparently never reviewed her return prior to signing the 8879. The IRS agent I called said if the individual called the IRS herself with the amount of the refund, her SSN and something else (listed on the IRS website) then they could make the change on their end and resend a new check to the new address. I filled out the 8822 for the client anyway in case she was asked to fax one over.

If it is a Husband and Wife, Wife/Wife or Husband/Husband situation, filing a joint return, you just go with the disregarded Single member LLC. Then no extra tax return. If they change to MFS, or get divorced then you make the election to file 1065. If they elected 1065 when getting the EIN, then elect back to SMLLC. Keep it simple. Rich

Yes, I know. But when the examiner pulls it because she went from Sch A, two pages of Sch E, and five Forms 4562 to Sch C without selling anything, they will see it. Oh wait, they're not trying to do anything logical.

It may have changed with MeF, but the old e-file protocols did NOT transmit any of the details on "Other Expenses" on the back of the C, only the total. So the IRS never saw the word "donations".

Abby, I don't know of any problems this year, but there were problems in the past with trying to change the location for the automatic back up. I would not advise it.

I can't remember the last time I filed an 8822. Most clients don't inform us they've moved until they come in for tax prep anyway. Just correct the address on the 1040.

Marry me.

That's correct. Ironically, that person has stronger chances that Rita's return be audited than 2012, 2013, 2014. This is the main problem, decent preparer's return have the same chances of being audited than crook preparers'. How many times have you gotten a new client that walks away when you tell him/her that this year he/she is not getting a refund and that they should amend the previous year and return that money? In my case it is about 99.99%.

Seen em? I'm living em. Your post was just fine. I'm just messing with you cause you can take it.

Took a hard look at this (price is sweet) ----- However given the IRS REQUIRES a signing done such as is done here have a security feature that has the recipient verified BEFORE they can even see the form being signed (such as the 8879) (not required with PDF, faxing, etc., just this type of signing) the regular version ($36.00) for three years does NOT support this. The PREMIMUM version does but starts at $1,000 a year (10 users and a bunch of other extras, etc.). To rich for me ---------- However because the person at support answered promptly and even after I gave this reason I could not use ------ went above the normal "customer service" and followed up a few days later with what they had found that MIGHT help me. Therefore, if you might use this, please consider contacting Mellissa Pottle (CudaSign (formerly SignNow)) @ cudasign.com. Mellissa Pottle (CudaSign ) <[email protected]> Thanks, EasyTax

I haven't done it but seen it done with the mother & son owning the home and mother taking out the mortgage due to son's credit. Search on Equitable Ownership. At least one good Tax Court case about this issue. Did the son act like the owner, paying all the bills, maintaining the home, working on his credit to be able to refinance in his name only, etc.?

Rita, You greatly underestimate your value and worth as a tax professional! I had the same fears as you express before I made major increases in my price schedule starting with 2013 tax year. My prices are now 33% higher than 2012. Lost 3% of my clients, make 30% more income and retained 225 clients. I have already gained 5 new clients for tax year 2015. None of them batted an eye at my pricing structure. You are worth FAR MORE than you charge.

I used Carbonite for over 10 years. I know how it works. Yes, you can add some folders but you cannot add all. And, unfortunately for ATX users, you cannot add the Program Data folder. I called them two years ago and that sealed my decision to find a new backup company. The other main reason I left them is that frequently changed files, like ATX data files, only get backed up once a day. So you start on a return and the first time you save it, Carbonite backs it up. The second time you save it, Carbonite says, whoa this is a frequently changed file, and it marks it to be backed up next 24 hours after your first save. That's not good enough of for me. I don't like to go home at night until I'm sure all my work has been or will be backed up shortly. That never happened with Carbonite. CrashPlan defaults to backing up every 15 minutes, but I found that to be too much, so I set it to 1 hour. We're basically always backed up. I haven't felt the need to back up internally to a network drive, but I haven't ruled it out. You can't have too many or too frequent backups. In ATX, I like to backup a return I'm working on every 30 minutes at the most.

But you might need to look at FBAR requirements to see if this triggers a filing requirement for her.

This old discussion popped up on my screen this morning for some unknown reason. I agree with Catherine that cloud-based software isn't a good idea, especially with tax preparation. The mention of the demo not going well reminds me of a friend who was showing a new high-tech medical device at a trade show years ago. When a potential customer would show interest, he would always mention that the only sound you hear is the cooling fan when you start it up. As he was doing the demo for a doctor, the unit malfunctioned and the doctor commented that he didn't hear the fan. Without halting his presentation, my friend replied "This one has a solid state fan."

There was a bug in the form. They updated it and now it works! I posted on the other forum and at first they tried to tell me it couldn't be done that they had to file jointly and his wife couldn't be found, but after explaining to them that IRS had an example in their instructions that matched my situation exactly, they decided to take a second look and have now removed the error message!

Determining whether or not a husband-wife LLC is a disregarded entity is a matter of state law. If the LLC is formed in a state that is NOT a community property state, the LLC defaults to a partnership unless an election is made to be treated as a corporation. The exception is where the LLC is set up in a community property state and meets the exceptions in Rev Proc 2002-69. If it meets the criteria, it is considered a "qualified entity" and may be treated as a disregarded entity for federal tax purposes. The IRS will accept this position for federal tax purposes. Likewise, LLC may file as a partnership for federal tax purposes and the IRS will accept that position also. Consistency in filing from year to year is key, otherwise a change in filing is considered a conversion of the entity. The requirements under 2002-69 for the LLC to be a "qualified entity" are: The business entity is wholly owned by a husband and wife as community property under the laws of a state, a foreign country, or a possession of the United States; No person other than one or both spouses would be considered an owner for federal tax purposes; and The business entity is not treated as a corporation under the applicable Treasury Regulations. None of the above addresses state reporting. Please check your state's law to verify that filing as a disregarded entity is acceptable.

Yes, you only need the 8822 when the client moves after filing, but there are communications going on over some issue.

Even if the person is a foreigner, I don't think it would be taxable in the US. If anything, it's a gift and falls below the gift threshold. In the US, gift rules are part of the estate tax rules. If there was going to be tax - it would be taxed back at the home country at her estate level - not at the recipients level. JMO

Once in over 30 years of practicing. And that one paid me the initial $500 and I never heard from them again. I school all of my clients about paying their fair share. It is not about increasing refunds in my office. It is all about preparing a return that is in line with the law. If the present prospect had no interest in coming to the party, which I truly suspect would not be the case, I can still sleep well at night.

Yes, correct. No need for the 8822. IRS will update their system to the new address.

JKL...what you're saying is simply reflect the "new" address on the front page of the 1040? No need to file the form if you do that?

Do this year correctly since s/he hired you for that. Let the client know that you can amend but s/he will have to return money to the IRS. Do you really think the client will pay you $1000 so you can help him/her to return money to the IRS? According to the user, 2014 and 2013 are a done deal and maybe he/she is right. I have had clients going for 12 years to those preparers and they have never being audited. I just let them know the consequences of their actions and I prepare the current year correctly. 99% of my clients don't want me to amend and return money.

I have never changed the default backup file(s) location for ATX. Anything post 2012 I use export/import after unsuccessfully using the backup/restore function to move files to my laptop. The files I restored using backup/restore had random errors, but all files transferred using the export/import were fine.

I leave the ATX default alone, but I also back up to a folder on my desktop and to a thumb drive. I might be country as a turnip green but I can verboten with the best of em.

You haven't seen many WWII movies, eh?

Scenarios like these are why I have filed taxes in so many different states

The boiler makers work in several states for one employer one year and several states for different employers another year and one state for different employers another year. There is no rhyme or reason. I would not send your client packing too soon. Print out a couple of States filing requirements and show them to him. Most States, if not all, have a non-resident form or schedule. By deductive reasoning (if he is an IT guy, he should understand that term), that must mean the States want non-residents to report their income earned in that State. Here is a link to a place in my website where you can click on the different States to get some information. I would show him a couple of filing requirements and let him decide whether he wants to continue to be your client. http://fassettandassociatescpa.com/statetaxforms.php

Thanks, rfassett. My inklings were correct. Were those boiler maker clients (not sure what that is) W-2 employees for several different companies and sent to different locations? I suspect that there may be the comeback that no one else files other states but, of course, I don't really care what others do or not do. And, while I am always open to learning new things, I kinda resented that he would direct me to his HRB return to see 'how to do it.' He may not stay a client, sad to say. I really like him and his wife.

Thanks...That is what I was thinking...MFS unless they have a child that qualifies her for HOH.

If she has not lived with him for the last 6 months of the year, she can file single or HOH if she had a qualified child. Under the heading of filing status, check the rules for "considered unmarried" to find this. This has been in place for many years. Must be 6 full months and not one single night of being together during the 6 months.

Pete was nearly 14, and last year it was Tasha who I got in the same week back in 2002. Still around is Pete's twin brother, Repete. And Spot, my feral, and CJ, who my ex dumped on me. Plus Sweetie Pie, my EXTREMELY elderly dog - I have no idea of her age, but she showed up in 2005. Already old. My other dog died last July (yes it's been one after the other but I had a lot of seniors) and in November I went to the shelter and got Tiggy, a pit bull that's as bouncy as Tigger in Winnie the Pooh. And goofy, smart, and the instigator of many Viscous Pit Bull Attacks....most of which involve much licking

Thanks to Lynn! She is one of the best aspects of this great board. So sorry that she is in New Orleans, Mardi Gras central, and working. Let's hope she gets at least a little fun in yet. Lynn, thanks again for your assistance!

"Equitable Ownership"...that's the term I could not think of! I'll search on that. I think we are referring to the same court case. In this case, YES...son pays all the bills for the home just as if he owned it. Again...it is not going to help this year, but It peaked my curiosity....I'd like to be better equipped with precedent in case it is needed in the future.

This is one of the times that clicking a "Like" button just doesn't seem right. I don't like it, and I am sure you don't either. I am so sorry for your loss.

Form 4137