Leaderboard

Peeps are really good roasted over a campfire. Really. Especially at Burning Man. I broke down and bought a pie today. Just a little one, but I've been so good! Fit into jeans I haven't got into in 2 years. Which is good because I had no clean ones left.... Lion, I totally relate! Had a client show up unexpectedly right before I was going to get into the shower for my first batch of appointments. Ratty pink robe, slippers, hadn't combed my hair...but he is about 98, and handed me docs saying 'I can't seem to find all of them'. So I was IN the shower when the first appointment arrived.

Don't forget about on form entry and the former bunny hop (now green arrow). I would have gone to Drake a couple years ago if not for this feature. No one else has this entry method in a program with all the forms that ATX has. It is price, and it is forms (PR forms especially), but it is also entry method. It is intuitive to me to be able to look at the 1040 and say "I need some data there...the client told me something that should go in that box. Now why isn't it there?" Then I click on the Green Arrow and go looking for the way I should enter that data. Tom Newark, CA

OOOooooooooooohhhhhhhh........I love those Peeps. I actually open them and let them sit for awhile and let them harden up a bit. I am off to cupboard to see if we have any!

It will be much the same around here - just me and my wife - and the dogs and the ducks and the deer and the geese and the menagerie of birds and the beaver (just saw one swimming down the creek. He should be thanking his lucky stars that this is Holy Week! ). We won't do much cooking but will do a whole bunch of nothing. Maybe go for a walk in the afternoon.

Not just the price. ATX has always had more forms than any other single tax software package. For one price you got not only tax but also payroll, OIC, sales tax forms, Franchise tax forms, LLC, etc. A fantastic option for not only tax offices but law firms, etc.

A client knocked on my door today while I was walking past, no hiding possible. Also, no shower, no brushed teeth or combed hair, just my flannel jammies and a fleece top over it all with slippers. We talked at the door a good long time as she dropped of their materials so I can compute amounts for extensions. Hope I didn't scare her too badly. Hubby will cook a ham and thaw out Cosco mac & cheese and nuke green beans and said he bought Easter chocolate for Sunday. I set my alarm so I can make it to church. Tonight I told him he has to have dinner at 6:09 so I can watch MSU in the Final Four! He's making breakfast for dinner, probably omelets.

My house is a disaster and no way I could entertain anyone! Luckily we will go to my Mom's for dinner tomorrow where I will do most of the cooking.

I might get up and go jogging tomorrow... I also might win the lottery... You know, same odds

I napped for real this evening and then took care of my sick kitty. 1am and back to work. But I delivered a ton of returns yesterday and today. The stack of returns to complete is shrinking, the stack of extensions is growing.

May as well jog. At least you'll get something for your effort. The odds of willing the lottery are roughly the same whether you buy a ticket or not.

My downfall during tax season is the Marshmallow Peeps... At least I do share with our GSD Goliath (he is the only else in the family that likes them) and that cut down on the numbers eaten.

I have my assistant call everyone I haven't heard from (she did this Friday) and say 'We are assuming that you already got your taxes taken care of, which is great, but we thought we would check in to make sure you did not need us to file an extension for you'. Out of 19 people called on Friday, 17 begged 'if I have it there by Monday, will you try to get it done before the 15th'? Staff answered 'no promises, but we will do our best, and they will be processed in the order they come in'. I do this every year during the first few days in April. I always intend to get the returns done (and always do), but the threat of 'maybe not' seems to works well. My guess is that most of them will show up on Monday, and then they will be very responsive when I reach out for questions. Also, the first line suggesting that they got the taxes done elsewhere seems to help. Might be worth a try.

Enjoy your visit. You will remember those times long after you have forgotten about whatever tax return you did not get done.

There's an AR-15 in the gun safe downstairs, and he knows about it, but he hasn't seen it or touched it. (Don't anyone freak out, please. There is no ammo in the safe, and it is locked up tight and too heavy to steal.) Even with the Cadbury Mini Eggs, I think the recoil might knock him on his back side. He only weighs 59 pounds . When he's older, Daddy will take him to the range after he has completed all his safety courses and successfully made it through all of the 4H shooting-sports progressions. Rita, do you think the eggs will still be good 7 years from now? Or the clients will still be 'deserving'?

It's just my husband and I tomorrow and while I will cook it won't be huge quantities. Thank heavens!

I don't know if anyone else has this (maybe everyone does)....but I have piles of people I'm waiting to hear from....and nothing (absolutely nothing) that i can work on. I've been e-mailing...and all kinds of "manyana" responses; I don't want to annoy them but...I'm on the verge of telling people "Hey, you aren't my only client". I'm getting very anxious. (I don't do extensions unless absolutely necessary.....I don't want to commit being here on 10/15...just for someone's convenience.) Rant over...and back to e-mailing........

Check the instructions for Schedule D lines 1a and 8a to see if your transactions qualify. If so, no descriptions nor dates needed. How you enter those lines in your software is another question, but I can't answer that.

I put the brokerage firm's name that issued the report, and the account #. There's a column for codes - use M

It's not a duplicate. It's just telling you to classify that much of the gain as ordinary gain over on 4797 Pt II. People with large cap loss c/o can hit with phantom income when selling MLPs. Also, you should be freeing up PTP losses to be deducted on Sch E. I've done a few Kinder Morgan's already. I would never invest in one of these.

>>I really miss you, and I missed you last year. I wish you would join us again.<< I thank forum members for this kind thread. As a moderator points out, the reason jainen stopped participating in 2013 has been resolved. Still, there is another issue in my own mind that has kept me from posting in the last year. I thank the moderators for allowing my non-tax post here.

I went to church and sang in the welcome-all-comers "Hallelujah Chorus" and that was wonderful. Saw a couple (real PITA clients) with complex taxes there but just to smile and wave to; I was heading the other way with great intent. Limited myself to *one* cupcake and one small slice of lemon bread/loaf-cake at the cupcake reception afterwards and also had some tea, and carrots and dip. NO taxes today.

Well....I e-mailed all my "ready to be e-filed" people that I haven't heard from...that had over a week to "look it over". I e-mailed "new clients" that didn't like the results...and told them they could adjust "whatever"...and if they choose not to use my services....I'll be sending them a consultation fee invoice. I e-mailed old clients...who send me their stuff...then vanished off the face of the earth...and told them that I assume they won't be needing me this year...but if they do...contact me asap. Now I just have to call the people who in the past "dropped it off" at my husband's store....and tell them he is no longer in business, but will be at that location for very limited hours. (They're in the neighborhood...they know he sold the store.) Now...I know you all have chocolate Easter eggs, peanut brittle and other high carb stuff to keep you going. Not me. I spend Mondays at the casino (10-1 during tax season)....so when I get home tomorrow....I'll be e-mailing all the others on my pile...and suggest replying asap...or they will "go on extension" and explain that they still have to pay by 4/15. We'll see if that wakes them up.

I giove it my best shot with the info availab;le. I plug in estimates for anything they don't have or any incomplete information. But I tell them that any interest or FTP penalty they incur (about 3/4 of 1% per month) is their responsibility. The main objective is to avoid the 5% FTF penalty. Most clients understand that. The ones who fail to comprehend it are sitting in the office of some stressed-out, cranky, sleep-deprived tax preparer: not my problem.

Having a Reese's peanut butter egg with my tea before going to church. I did have a Mini Babybel cheese first. See two families at church that have unstarted tax returns. Hope they're in the Easter spirit.

Yes, and that's a pain if things are dribbling in or big changes or new client. For the usual employees with w/h that's usually enough, it's a snap. For the SE who usually owes about the same and hasn't given me anything to change that for 2014, I put the usual. And, if someone has given me zip and calls for an extension, I might have to put 0 and let them take the consequences. I hate the states that won't take extensions via tax prep software, and CT is one of those. Have to use CT's website for those that owe. Or, I'm uploading their extensions to my portal so they can mail them in with checks.

During the past week I told about 10 clients to stop by today between 10am and 1pm to pick up their tax return, 9 of them showed up between 9:45-10:30am, first time this has happened, I still have returns from clients that were supposed to stop by three weeks ago.

I have a way more returns than I can finish, but that is my intention. I am open year round and so extensions are great for me and my clients know ahead of time, that if they do not have all of their information in before my deadline, that they will go on extension.

I do just the opposite. I extend them all as they come in, and I tell them I probably won't get them done until May or June. I tell them the last thing they want is a stressed out, tired, cranky tax preparer handing this important task. Sometimes I finish a few by April 15, but that's only if I have time.

I scared myself once like that and then realized they were in the 8825.

I think they will be gone in about seven days if I pace myself. Oh, yes, they are nothing if not consistent.

I'd hire you if you have nothing to do!

Been There done that! Especially on Sunday surprise drop offs! Hey they get what they get if they do not call first..

YOU MAKE ME SMILE, not laugh but smile

My parents just came through town, and they just had to deal with the mess! They took the family out to lunch and brought me a burger. I am working until 7, and then it's Easter until 1:00 tomorrow afternoon!

Eek! My son is bringing his girlfriend over tonight after we celebrate an early Easter at my sister's tonight. We had not planned on having anyone here (grandkids don't count) so the house is very cluttered upstairs. I just keep the downstairs looking good during tax season. Instead of working, I have been shoving stuff in closets and cleaning like a crazy person. I will have to burn the midnight oil after they leave, but I'm glad to have him around and she is a super nice girl.

I found some additional information. Line 52 should be zero according to this: Make sure to properly fill out form 5329. File a separate form for each year. On line 50, enter the amount of the RMD that you’re required to take. On line 51, enter the total distributions that you actually took during that year. On line 52, enter “zero” (VERY IMPORTANT) and write “RC” (reasonable cause) and the amount you want waived in parentheses on the dotted line next to line 52. DO NOT ENTER THE AMOUNT OF THE SHORTFALL!

If the dividends are being reinvested to purchase more shares (mutual funds or drip plans), then yes, the brokers are including this for the dividends paid that are considered "covered" securities. For funds that were held prior to the brokers being required to track this, then there will be some transactions that are "not covered" securities, and some are showing the basis that isn't reported to IRS and some aren't. Most of the broker statements that I've seen this year do have all of the information on them. The ones that haven't had it were because the clients had switched brokers or advisors at some point in the past and the information was not available to be included.

Hugs for your kitty and you.

Yes, I have had several of these as well. There is a worksheet they send, which gives those adjustments. So take the proceeds and basis from the brokerage, apply the basis corrections, then adjust *again* to get the split between capital gain (or loss) and the 4797 sale of business assets piece that the worksheet gives you. I have one here that I did yesterday; PM me for my phone number and I can walk you through it if you want hand-holding - but you *can* do this yourself. It's just niggly and fussy rather than hard.

Joan -- sympathies on your kitty; I hope she recovers quickly and fully!

I think that person that can 'take care of things' is Rita.

Let's calm it down, please. This subject should be delayed until after the 15th, at least.

Maybe Jas will contract out the 9-year old. Or maybe you two could borrow my gun. Or, and true story, client, just told me this week, he knows people that can "take care of things" - or for the right price, he is that person. I can send you his name. I love my clients. I have often thought of starting a new venture called 1-800-break-a-knee. I am becoming more and more convinced it would fly.

A lot of people were paying for useless health care plans before and having to file for bankruptcy even though they were 'insured.' Health insurance companies need to go back to being nonprofit like they were in the 70s. No reason to have shareholders earning dividends off our struggle to be insured.

Just kidding. I try not to ever work on Sunday. But this is how I feel right now.

I might sleep in. Haven't been to church on Easter since the last time it was after tax season. Miss it. Haven't even been to an AA meeting since February. I have to be on site at a client conference April 9-13. Gotta get it all done before then. At least I know there will be recovery meetings there. But my assistant's wife likes the refund they are getting so much she is going to buy me more Michael Rischutti chocolates. And a client sent me flowers today because she heard my kitty is sick.

I prep returns after working my normal "day job." I'll be working on returns the entire weekend as I have a significant number of to get done. I plan on heading to Mass (good Catholic here) and then grabbing breakfast with the family on Easter morning. Easter afternoon I'll be back at my desk! Hope everyone enjoys their Easter weekend!