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@Matthew in the PNW congratulations on landing the new position and best wishes on this new path. Don't be a stranger; you are always welcome here.

Agricultural Industry. I have a 2 month busy season ahead of me with the company so that makes me a sucker for punishment.

Maybe it was his barber. Which reminds of something that happened a long time ago. My Dad was an expert at handicapping horse races. He was so good that word got around and a wealthy customer of the company Dad worked for paid to have him wire (telegram) him picks whenever he had something good. This went on for several months and one day the customer's barber also gave him a tip. The man said to himself, that's curious that's the same tip my dad had sent him. What a coincidence! The next time he went for a haircut the same thing happened. He got another tip, same as the one my dad had sent. So, he asks the barber, where did you get the tip and the barber said, "Oh, the telegraph operator is a great horse picker. He's been giving out winning tips for two months now."

Yes, that was my first thought, too, and Sch E income can be Qualified Business Income, and that's not earnings for this purpose, so my second thought may just be a rabbit hole. I'm so tired. There was a knock on my door 45 seconds after I got home last night, and it was my butt.

Another exciting revenue enhancement opportunity

In ATX on the Home Office Expense input form, there are boxes to check to indicate Simplified method if home office was not the entire year then there are check boxes to indicate which months qualified: Check for 15 or more days qualified business use of the home. Then it prorates the deduction based on the number of months that the office qualified

This remind me of a song that came out when I was in high school lol

According to the IRS Q&A on OIH, you prorate and only count the month if it was for more than 15 days. This is accomplished by paring down the square footage by coming up with the average sq ft over 12 months. This should help: IRS Q&A page on OIH

I caught it. I checked the wrong box in the info section. It's been a long and frustrating season. I thought all unemployment insurance was subject to the $10,200 exclusion only to learn today that couples with income above $150,000 pay on any unemployment benefits. The couples' income normally runs $80,00 a year but thanks to an unexpected capital gain shot over the limit making me with mud on my face. OF COURSE, this is the ONLY time in almost 40 years this has occurred.

Good question. If i am not mistaken, SSA will look at the amount reported on the Schedule SE for earnings from self-employment and therefore the recaptured gain/capital gain will not count against what he can earn for social security purposes. But I am not sure.

For some years now, when people ask if my fees are negotiable, my response has been, "Yes, but only UP!"

Maybe start by reading this on how partial exchanges and boot can occur. It's a fairly easy read but only an overview: https://learn.roofstock.com/blog/partial-1031-exchange This one on rules of boot is more detailed and gives some examples of the traps that one can inadvertently encounter in the 1031 process: https://www.efirstbank1031.com/advancedTopics/rulesOfBoot.htm Sorry, I don't have much time today to work through numbers. Maybe I'll be back late tonight but make no guarantees to have time then either.

The asset sales aren't included. Here is what I found for the SSA's Code of Federal Regulations to determine what is earned income. Also, keep in mind that in the year of retirement, I believe that only the earned income through the end of the month preceding retirement is counted. Here's that first link: https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/416/416-1110.htm And here is the link to that same Code of Fed Regs for 404.1080 that is referenced in the first page: https://www.ssa.gov/OP_Home/cfr20/404/404-1080.htm

Here's a new WSJ article about Cryptocurrency and increased IRS attention. Reading the article it reminds me exactly of the issues & misinformation that used to surround the barter exchanges - right down to some of the silly notions about whether or not they were taxable. (The article appears to be behind a paywall, but I was able to click right through & get access). https://www.wsj.com/articles/bitcoin-irs-comes-for-crypto-investors-who-havent-paid-their-taxes-11620937095

Triple it and ensure he leaves! lol

It's the periodic table symbol for silver. Maybe he's struck it rich. It could also stand for Attorney General. Maybe he's going to the AG office to fight all the preparer penalties he was assessed this past tax season.

Definitely inform them that if their virtual currency is held overseas, they may have reporting requirements on their returns and separately. At my age, I have no desire for new clients so would not take on someone new with VC. I have one existing client who bought some VC last year. Didn't do anything with it during 2020. But the reports she brought me were to-date and showed she "earned" partial coins in 2021 by letting them "lock up" her VC &/or watching videos about VC. I told her that that will be income on her 2021 tax returns. And, I told her to know where her VC is "stored," because if it's overseas, she will have additional reporting requirements as her holdings grow. I also sent her information about the reporting app that her Coinbase recommends, free for a certain number of transactions and then a monthly fee. I told her she could choose any reporting service she wants or do it herself, but that I do NOT do bookkeeping.

may 17 still not enough time

It's amazing how many customers think the IRS is doing preparers a big favor by giving them an extra month to prepare returns. No way. I wanted this season to be over April 15th, and I suspect most of you felt the same way. To answer the original question, my fees tend to go up during the season after I am drug through the garden on ongoing changes and PITA stuff I hadn't foreseen going into the year. So late filers are subject to the maximum fee - not by design but by what happens.

Dan, thank you. Of course you are correct because the mother permanently moved out and gave up the life estate. Fwiw, for anyone else following this post, I found a good article that discusses life estate issues and when step up occurs and when it would not. This same article was also published by NY State Society of CPAs in 2017, so I'm assuming that the attorney authored it about that same time. The pertinent section starts at subtitle (b) "Transfer of the Residence with the Reservation of a Life Estate" https://www.esslawfirm.com/articles/factors-to-consider-when-transfering-a-residence-for-elder-law-and-estate-planning-purposes-a-primer/