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...and if I don't, someone else should and will, especially with end-of-year upon us. Time to remember the sponsor, Eric, if someone will publish his mailing address. I plan to send him a paltry amount by comparison to benefit of asking the questions that I do, and receiving responses.

The "Donate" function will provide Eric's address during the checkout process after adding the donation amount to the cart and selecting the method of payment by check instead of plastic.

I'm glad I have no clients with rentals. However, as I age, my clients age, and I'm thinking about those personal residences, how to find out how they're titled, what will be the adjusted cost basis if a surviving spouse sells. Or, if one of my clients is a kid/heir to parent's personal residence, and sells it. Or rents it out for a couple years before selling! Had a long-time client who inherited shares of her mother's investments that included 3 rental real estate partnerships, as well as other complex investments. I told her I would no longer prepare her returns. (Divesting myself of CA clients, so that gave me a reason to tell her to find someone local to her sooner rather than later.) Client had moved from CT where I am to CA to care for her mom; went from a W-2 to a 1099-R to inheriting 1/3 of apartment building partnerships and other complex investments with no depreciation tables and no CA K-1s and her HRB-employee sister and her TurboTax sister telling her how to report things. She would never accept my price increase to account for my time and research and listening to her arguments from her siblings. She wanted me to prepare her taxes one more year before she found a local tax preparer. I refused to spend my time setting up her new situations now for her new preparer next year, and told her that THIS is the year for her to begin with a new preparer. Hated to lose her, but knew she wouldn't be happy with the fee I needed to charge for my time -- especially since she's comparing my fee to her siblings' TT price and HRB-employee probably free returns.

Medlin has a solid accounting program at a very reasonable price: https://medlin.com/accounting-software.html Medlin also has a separate Receivable program that does invoicing: https://medlin.com/accounts-receivable-software.html I have reviewed all the documentation for the accounting program three different times. and it should do everything a small business would need. I don't use it because my larger clients need departmental accounting which it won't do. I have used Medlin's Payroll Software for 4 years now and I am very satisfied .

There is not enough information given. The answer is either (a) or $525,000. There is no logic behind answers b or c. Just because the property was solely titled by deceased spouse does not mean it goes 100% to his estate. For example if he acquired the property with money he earned during the married, it could be considered marital property and 1/2 would go to his estate. If on the other hand he acquired the property before the marriage. it would most likely be considered separate property and go 100% to his estate. There are several factors in determining if the property is marital or separate for estate purpose and determining basis. If considered marital property then surviving spouse gets 1/2 stepped up basis, so in this case her net basis is $525,000. Answer (a) would be correct if they reside in a community property state. Apparently you do not understand the concept of stepped up basis; it is a clean slate and prior depreciation is disregarded.

Quick online search found a long list of detailed articles about this. Correct answer is "a"