Leaderboard

Save me from these long and exasperating telephone calls with older clients that want to chat and can't grasp concept of the simplest of questions. Email with several clients isn't going much better. After a total of 7, yes 7, emails back and forth, I hope this one person knows that I now need the ONE 1099R for her ONE ira distribution. I kid you not! Seven!!!!!!! And then she asked where the distribution was from again! I know she had bad health issues last year...maybe she's on some medications that are affecting her brain! We should probably save my clients from me too. Yesterday was a wrap on another client that was making me crazy with numerous chatty emails back and forth, and then tried to fax me the e-file signature forms and had them in her machine backwards so that I got blank pages... I got the Fed fine and THREE TIMES she sent blank pages for the state form. THREE TIMES! Yes, I'm shouting now. I had to take an allergy pill this morning and that isn't helping either. An intervention may be needed later on today. One guy that I've told repeatedly how many different ways he can get his info to me then thought it would be ok if he just dropped by sometime today when I'm booked full with appts. This was after I told him my availability back two weeks ago and he never bothered to contact me again until yesterday. He's one that thinks he can tell me how this process is going to flow... I have other ideas about that, and no one is going to dictate to me how I choose to run my business. No one. I can't wait for this to be over. /rant

I just have to say that I am enjoying this tax season. So far I have prepared my return and my granddaughter's. I came into the office this morning at 9:30. I am still doing sales tax and payroll and a little bookkeeping. Semi-retirement is nice. I guess I really shouldn't post this, but I am. Rita may hug me.

I charge for every minute unless the notice was due to my error... or they're a great client and my response only takes 20 minutes or so.

for the night - 3:15 here. Finally got all those heavy-duty cases knocked out over the weekend. Now for some light-duty stuff coming up to hopefully cruise on lightly through the week. Just to finish off last week with a bang, IRS sent me a letter. To recap; back on October 15th I filed & sent in my tax due check (stop laughing - it's normal for carpenters to live in shacks and auto mechanics/body repairmen to drive unpainted junk cars; why should we be any different?). Anyway IRS cashed my check the next week (got a bank copy), but one month later sent a letter demanding I pay them that same amount again.. Abby Normal advised ignore and it will go away (said they don't need any more mail), however nothing would do me except to speed things up - I sent a full explanation. Result: Nov-Ist IRS letter (we need 45 days to check this out)/ Jan-2nd letter (need 45 more days)/ Mar-3rd letter (need another 45 days). To be continued...

If you spent 3 hours, bill for 3 hours. "My mind and my time is my merchandise". The good old "Billing Time" song.....

The phone call today with my 86 year old deaf client was worthy of an Abbott and Costello skit. "Who's on first?" This so I could answer his question on where his non-working, no income at all, stay-at-home daughter could get tax forms, and after shouting at the top of my lungs that she didn't need to file if she didn't have income. She wants to file, he said, because she has a child and believes she will get a big tax refund. I screamed out the local VITA phone number three times before he got it right, hung up, and then fainted from hyperventilating.

Bahahahaha, this morning I did the Sch A seminar for a new client. She had 14 noncash contribution receipts with nothing on them. She figured that those treasures were worth $2200.00 Me: Your standard deduction is $12,600. That's the amount the IRS will allow you to deduct without itemizing your deductions. Your mortgage interest is $2,500, your property tax is $500, and let's say these non-cash contributions that are blank amount to $3,000. (No I did not mention sales tax, stay with me here.) I write the numbers down and show the sum is $6,000. Do you want to take the $12,600 or the $6,000 deduction? She: I don't know, are you allowed to give me advice? ISTG (I swear to G**) this happened. You cannot make this up. I will be filling out the Sch A to show her, and I wasted fifteen minutes on the seminar, too. The seminar took longer for her, as you might imagine. I'll charge her ten bucks for the two minutes to fill out Sch A, print it, copy it, BBFB. No, I ain't doing the 8283.

Are you kidding? I've laughed my head off all day. I would give anything for a video of this day in this office. Only you people could believe this without seeing it. I really do love my job, and wow, these people need us. BAD. SO. BAD. Whew, still can't stop laughing, guys. Good hugs for you, and you, and you...

I, we ALL, hear you. I just escorted out the 92 year old, still driving, after hearing again and again and again about, well, her late husband dead 30+ years, where she went to college and how she had no idea where her SSA1099 was but she received the same amount every month, blah, blah, blah. And that was after the 78 year old with inheritance issues, I could go on but won't. Just know that you are not alone. I was planning 2 more seasons after this one. Might be rethinking that

All the blah blah blah is killing me, too. One whose husband went to jail for failing to pay spousal support... I need to know exactly how much money he actually PAID you in 2016. Pretty clear, right? After about 2 minutes of BBFB (blah blah frikkin blah) she said, "Donna, what would YOU do if you were me?" "Honestly? If someone was paying me taxable spousal support, I would know exactly how much he paid me, and I would give that number to my tax pro. Honestly, that's what I'd do." She finally shut up.

BB: I wish a could post the voice mail message I received from the IRS. And its all about $250... Rich

I love you all. Thanks for the laughs. Yes, we are in this together.

Thanks everyone, my client will have two options: 1. Pay me to get it resolved 2. Free - have her take a day off from work and visit the local IRS office

My office will be preparing returns through April 12th. We will do extensions on the 13th. And then take a 4 day holiday weekend before coming back on the 18th and starting quarterly payroll reports. So we will be done on April 13th. That is just 17 short days away. I have just completed number 352 and think I can get another 125 done before we take our break. I am ready for a break!

To be honest though, I am beginning to get a little hungry.

I knew she was yours! ISTG. OMG, tears are rolling down my face. Whew. Therapy.

CRYING..... Rita, you're welcome! Glad she moved to TN!!

No, you're not out of line, but tell the client what I tell mine. Each PTP K1 will add $75 to the bill and any sales, partial or complete will add $150 to the bill. I have clients with 9 or 10 of these damn things. Fortunately, ATX does a very good job with them. Also, except for income and deduction items, we don't enter any amounts under $10. And you can skip a lot of boxes anyway like DPAD (box 13T), AMT, and box 20. Is getting them a $2 foreign tax credit worth even a minute of your time?

I had this last year for a poor grandmother, long time client, who had her grandchildren ten months in 2015 because the parents of the kids were incarcerated. I made asked her to get everything she could on the list of suggestions that IRS provided. I forget the form number, but you can google. Yeah, it took a while for me to assemble and make copies. She got her big @$$ "refund" of taxpayer money. I charged her for the audit assistance this year when she came in and didn't know WTH the interest income from IRS was. Yeah, she paid me. No, I didn't charge enough. Yes, she also had the kids 2016. No questions from IRS this time. She called me and thanked me. And let me tell you it was high time.

so two "families" he is supporting her children ALL year and lived with all year pub 17 says can claim as other - no dependent credit but now the real dad didn't get the $1,000 credit either course he didn't support them so he shouldn't as far as I am concerned - no divorce decree, never married, no court order - first situation - not filed yet - but only "other" is correct... second one - the mom says 1- her boyfriend should have received the $1,000 AND the other credit - just claimed as dependent and since I didn't give the $1,000 credit and it went to waste I should not have filed like she told me too and 2 - $1,000 should have gone back to the real dad - who in this situation the divorce papers says it is her year to claim the kids, not his I hate taxes, and kids... D

Yes and he can't blame his advisor because he is a DIY investor.

I have a client who in 2015 moved his brokerage account to another and all of a sudden he's got a boatload of these things. Evidently they are a big cash cow for the advisor. I gave my client the best advice I could think of, tell the advisor you don't want anymore PTPs. I also sent client an article explaining all the disadvantages of owning and selling PTPs.

Nothing like locking the door after the horse has been stolen. Also need to watch that these K-1s are not in their IRA account. I get two or three a year, with minuscule amounts, but they are in the IRA account so we just ignore them. If they had larger amounts, they could result in UBIT.

They are a pain. Last year, a client had $29,000 reported to him as cancellation of debt income. He was in the top tax bracket. A few days after I got his info, I saw an article in WSJ that this PTP had a major reorganization and had billions in restructured debt. My client's share was 29k. Cost him $14k in tax (Fed & State). He got out of it after that.

Advise your client that if she goes the 'free' route and goes to visit the IRS office there are no more walk-ins. She must contact them ahead of time and make an appointment.

I've had a few of this sort of things over the years including one this morning. I just point out, from a tax perspective, what I see and advise them to have a good talk with the investment advisor to be sure they understand what, exactly, that investment is and why the advisor thinks it's a good one. One client a few years ago had an advisor that I am convinced was churning the account with scores of short term transactions. After the third year of pointing this out and showing that she had over $35,000 in losses without the likelihood of using them, I again suggested she have a chat with the advisor. The advisor left me a nasty voice mail message but the client moved her accounts and was much better off.

Budget cuts have limited the resources of IRS to provide "customer service". Don't expect it to get better anytime soon.

I am with AB regarding this as well. If I had to spend 4 hours drafting the response to the IRS for whether or not the kids lived with her? I know she is going to lose... Rich

Think engagement letter. You are correct - there is a separation between preparation and representation. Just as you should have an engagement letter spelling out the details of the engagement for preparation work - so should you have one for representation work.

A couple of seasons ago I had two clients come in with 1099Gs from states they had never set foot in. As the IRS filters got stronger, the thieves apparently started targeting states. I wrote to the commissioner of DRS in CT and told him that these clients would never have know their identities were compromised if these states hadn't sent those postcards. I implored him to switch back to mailed paper statements. He personally responded and said he heard me; he would wait until he saw his budget for the following year to see if he could add the expense. The state has budget problems and it never happened. Now we're stuck with the states individually trying to protect themselves. Well, they are working together in the summit, and I have noticed that when one state picks up a new scam I hear about it both from my state and IRS. Four states are requiring driver license info. (Anyone know for sure which ones? NY and GA, and where else?) Today I asked a NY couple for their license data and they could not find a document number. I emailed them the link to NY that shows where it is. Still couldn't find it, because nothing matched the spots on the examples. They are both highly educated but ended up sending me copies of both sides of their licenses. I saw something that was not labeled document number, and it was more letters than numbers, and used that. Geez, if people with advanced degrees can't figure it out, why don't they just ask for DNA samples?

Cash basis taxpayer - all SS monies received in 2016 are reported in 2016, even that allocated to 2015 but paid in 2016. Do not amend 2015; make use of the2016 LSE if it is more beneficial to your client.

Ha, no. I had to go back and look at one of the few I did like this to see the interplay between the worksheets and the flow of it all, and then I scribbled some stuff on scraps of paper. I struggle with it like everyone else and am very fortunate with my client base that I hardly ever have to deal with these sort of ACA issues.

Yes, you can deduct shipping. Cubic, but that varies depending on final arrangements. Cardboard or pine? I also have a feed sack special now through April 18. Yes, my soil is so rich it should file a tax return.

That's the general rule. It could be longer if there are some actions to prolong it - installment agreement requests, OIC requests, bankruptcy stays.

It's sounds to me like you are handling this in a prudent and professional manner. I see no compelling reason why you should "Fire" her. Regardless of what you know about her ex husband's intent, you should determine if she is entitled to claim any of the dependents. That is your responsibility and maybe was overlooked before her return was completed. You do not want to be in a position of allowing her to claim any of the dependents (or related credits) and then have them disallowed after the refund check is spent. In regards to your concern about preparing ex husband's return, see section 10.29 (authority for circular 230) for what is allowable when you have conflict of interest, esp.(b)(3). You might not even have one. Conflict of interest is more of an issue during the divorce process. Here are a couple of articles you might want to look at: https://www.aicpastore.com/Content/media/PRODUCER_CONTENT/Newsletters/Articles_2010/Wealth/DivorcingClients.jsp http://www.thetaxadviser.com/issues/2011/nov/tpr-nov11.html I have some excellent CPE material on this subject but unable to post a link. You are the best judge of this situation and should follow your instinct and professional judgment. As the AICPA article implies, why "fire" a loyal client who seeks your trusted advice unless there is some compelling reason to do so. ************************************************************* § 10.29 Conflicting interests. (a) Except as provided by paragraph (b) of this section, a practitioner shall not represent a client before the Internal Revenue Service if the representation involves a conflict of interest. A conflict of interest exists if - (1) The representation of one client will be directly adverse to another client; or (2) There is a significant risk that the representation of one or more clients will be materially limited by the practitioner's responsibilities to another client, a former client or a third person, or by a personal interest of the practitioner. (b) Notwithstanding the existence of a conflict of interest under paragraph (a) of this section, the practitioner may represent a client if - (1) The practitioner reasonably believes that the practitioner will be able to provide competent and diligent representation to each affected client; (2) The representation is not prohibited by law; and (3) Each affected client waives the conflict of interest and gives informed consent, confirmed in writing by each affected client, at the time the existence of the conflict of interest is known by the practitioner. The confirmation may be made within a reasonable period after the informed consent, but in no event later than 30 days. (c) Copies of the written consents must be retained by the practitioner for at least 36 months from the date of the conclusion of the representation of the affected clients, and the written consents must be provided to any officer or employee of the Internal Revenue Service on request.

Did you try MFS?

I agree. I had a client two years ago in the same situation only they had to pay back the full amount of the subsidy, to the tune of about 7,000.00. No way around it, the lump sum worksheet is used and the tax is calculated based on what it would have been for each year that the lump sum is allocated to.

Sounds that way. I've had good luck talking to a real person on the e-Help Desk. They can't tell you about the "other return," but I've found that they will give you a pretty good explanation. And, if you have your client and her dependent conferenced into the call, you can get permission to talk about everyone involved. Start with having your client ask her son if he filed his own return, claiming his own exemption (probably need to see a copy of the return to get that question answered). Sometimes, there's a work shelter that is trying to help the disabled with which they work by providing a tax preparer, VITA, or other volunteers. And, there could be a hack of medical data that stole SSNs from disabled claim filers that are good candidates for not filing returns, good SSNs for thieves to use.

I think this is exactly why we have the due diligence requirements. I would not take the word of either of them. And obviously you can't now. I would make both produce evidence of the kids' residency. School records, medical records, post cards from bull crap solicitations the kids received (somehow THEY always find where the kids live). I would also ask mom for her lease agreement if she's renting or settlement statement where she brought her new place. They'll be dated 2015 or 1/1/2016, right? A lease agreement might also have kids listed on it. I would only prepare the return of the one whose story panned out. And it might be neither. And they may both decide to look for someone who won't be so, well, diligent. If somehow both come up with documents indicating they are being truthful, I'd pick one and hope they wrap it up in 2017. If I did either return I'd document the crap out of everything.

Today I found three daffodils in a paper cup on my desk. I had just returned from a funeral service. The client didn't know anything about that. Small acts of kindness make such a big difference.

Meal time in the nest now. It might be a dove or other bird getting plucked and ripped to little pieces for the chicks.

I read page 9 of Pub 561, 1/2 way down the left-hand side of the page, exactly as you state, Judy. I would copy and paste the paragraph here, but my computer is disgusted with me right now and will not allow the same.

Here is a link to a LIVE eagles nest outside Hanover, PA. The state has had this for about three years now. Since they are "sitting on eggs"; now is s neat time to view. http://www.pgc.pa.gov/Wildlife/WildlifeSpecies/BaldEagles/Pages/default.aspx

Baby eagles are called Eaglets. Tom, you will see all sorts of them in Alaska. Still makes me want to pullover and watch when I see them in the morning.

picture this big - very big, really big, black Angus cows cattle trailer pulls into yard, wife says here is Rita (the cow) - who was right there in the fenced in yard a minute ago. client turns around to show her off and what - where is she?? No where to be seen - looking around pasture.. and here's the picture - big black cow - really big cow is peeking out from behind the pine tree - no way is that trailer coming for her! It is not summer and time for moving to greener pastures or fall and moving back to the barn - stranger danger - Can you imagine?! Cows must be smart. smarter than sheep that is for sure. Bible says be like sheep - All I know is they follow the shepherd cuz they are really dumb otherwise! I digress, good night! D

It is awesome to see them in person. I had that experience some years ago at Prime Hook Wildlife Refuge. We were fishing its canals and had an eagle fly straight down the canal toward us, swoop down and pluck a carp out of the water. He was close enough and being wet, he didn't get much altitude as he then flew directly over us. It was a surreal moment like right out of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom show. It sounds corny, but I still remember seeing the eagle with that carp in its talons and the carp's scales glistening in the sun.

The "kids" see them at The Inn at Starlight Lake in PA, but I've just seen them flying over the lake and not up close and personal.

Daylight.....I see....daylight.....

I am going to Alaska this summer and I am hoping to see many of them. Tom Newark, CA