jasdlm

Yes. I apologize for the lack of clarity. It seemed perfectly clear when I wrote it, which is par for the course. Danrvan has it right. My apologies, everyone. I really do not like wasting your time.

Client bought house for $375k and son moved in to house. Son provided care for his ailing parent in the house. Community spouse continued to live in marital residence. Ailing parent died, and client sold both the marital house and the house son was living in. The latter was sold to son. Client made $75,000 on the sale, but this is because the house appraised for $75k more than the original purchase price, and client 'gifted' $50k of equity to son which acted as the down payment. Shows on the settlement statement as 'equity gift'. I think that client has $75k gain, but I wonder if anyone has any thoughts otherwise. PR exclusion used on marital house, although perhaps since ailing parent lived with son in 2nd house for exactly 2 years before death, I could use one spousal exemption of $250 on the marital residence and one spousal exemption of $250 on the second house? Tricky thing is they were JTWROS on both. Thanks much in advance! I appreciate any thoughts.

They absolutely do. I have had problem after problem with my major credit cards, store credit cards, and people submitting applications for credit in my name, SSN, etc., with an address in Florida. It has been the 'account security question' and companies phoning my land line number (yes, I still have one) that has saved me so far. Eeegads.

Thank, Judy. I called the State Treasurer's Office, and they told me that they do not issue 1099s. I could try again and see if there is some way I can get a breakdown of the Dividends by year. They are individual stock dividends, and I think it is likely that many if not all are qualified. I'll give it a shot. Thanks again!

I am helping someone with an intestate estate. I believe the decedent had not filed tax returns for several years (can't find any evidence of returns being filed). The year before decedent passed, she received a LARGE check (over $100,000) from the State's unclaimed property division for past dividends (multiple years worth; estate is not huge). State filed no 1099, of course. I do not have a list of what the dividends were or what years they represented. Best I can figure is to file a final return for decedent (which will now be late as decedent passed in 2016) and claim the entire amount as income. I have no idea what her SS was but can try to back in to it through bank statements. This is going to cause a huge tax and penalty payable by the estate. The way I calculate it, the tax will be approximately the value of the estate. Am I missing anything, or does anyone have any brilliant ideas? Thanks.

Reading this thread drives home the point that I am a total luddite. I was proud of myself this year for simply scanning documents in to dropbox as they came in. ***Sigh***

Congratulations! Please do not be a stranger next season! We will miss you.

Lawyers beware! Under the current language, the modifications follow the old law if the modification agreement SPECIFICALLY references the same and says it shall be followed; otherwise, as SaraEA says, subject to the new law.

This is so amazing! I'm so sorry to have missed it. Very glad that you all had such a great time. I hope it will become an annual event!

Total Turtle Poop! That is the one day in June that I cannot be in TN. I am Treasurer of my Church, and we are paying a consultant for a retreat to be held that day to deal with some transition and search committee issues. Have so much fun! I would have loved to join you. Perhaps it will go so well that you'll all agree we should do something again next summer. You are all welcome in KS.

There is a way to avoid the distribution via disclaimer, and as Roberts says, you can't 'choose' who gets the money. Without seeing the document, if the 3 were equal beneficiaries with no other qualifiers, it would have gone to the Trustee's (who disclaimed) heir if the wording was 'per stirpes' and not designated by class, or most likely equally to the remaining to beneficiaries if no per stirpes or heirs. There could have been a beneficiary settlement agreement changing the terms as your Trustee desired, but it would have needed to be approved by the Court. Both of these options would have avoided the trustee receiving a K1. However, it sounds like he just 'gifted' his share, as others suggest, so assuming that's the case, he receives a k1 and does a gift tax return. Eeegads. Why do peeps expect us to fix things AFTER the fact?!?

Hello. Sorry to be a dunderbrain, but are we really having a 'gathering' this summer, or is that a long-standing joke? OR . . . is it invitation only, which would be completely understandable. I don't want to show up and end up as fertilizer. Cheers!

Let the attorney do the 1041 if he knows so much more than everyone else.

Agree with this 100%. Distributions come first from income. I still think you should get a copy of the will to check for any anomalies before you sign off.

Is there a will?

Publication 535, Business Expenses, page 20, seems to contradict the law (IRC 162 (I)(1)(A)) which simply states "specified premiums means premiums for a specified qualified health plan or plans for which the taxpayer may otherwise claim a deduction under section 162(l). For purposes of this paragraph (a)(2), a specified qualified health plan is a qualified health plan, as defined in § 1.36B-1(c), covering the taxpayer, the taxpayer's spouse, or a dependent of the taxpayer (enrolled family member) for a month that is a coverage month within the meaning of § 1.36B-3(c) for the enrolled family member. If a specified qualified health plan covers individuals other than enrolled family members, the specified premiums include only the portion of the premiums for the specified qualified health plan that is allocable to the enrolled family members under rules similar to § 1.36B-3(h), which provides rules for determining the amount under § 1.36B-3(d)(1) when two families are enrolled in the same qualified health plan.. The code does not specifically disallow insurance that is not in the name of the business or the self-employed person. I would have no qualms taking the self employed health insurance deduction if the taxpayer otherwise qualified since the married couple tends to be one 'taxpayer' (joint and several liability, etc.) under the law. Just my opinion. Excuse the emphasis . . . that's what happens when you cut and paste from the IRC.

I agree with the majority of the posts here. The letdown is a really strange phenomena, and it can be overwhelming. I, too, have started to plan many things for the week or two following the end of the season so that I can ease in to regular life (which is very enjoyable)! The office feels a little strange now, but I have client meetings again starting next week, so it will regain its energy. Another thought, if you enjoy working as much as it sounds like you do, is to consider what types of work you might add to make your business 'busier' year-round. I do financial planing, and I'm a lawyer, so I do estate planning, M&A, and some financial mediation and forensic-type accounting for other attorneys. It seems to me that there is a fair amount of this type of business 'out there' if you open yourself to the same. You certainly don't have to be a lawyer to do most of the items listed. Sky is the limit on what someone with good 'bean counting' skills can offer! I might not be understanding how you are feeling . . . these are just suggestions. Jim, please let us know that you are okay.

Woohoo! Thanks so much. Love the star!

Thanks, Lynn. Sad, but not unexpected.

Will this function create electronic filing copies, she asked hopefully, or only paper copies?

My TP just went to the social security office, and they told him he wasn't dead (which I had already figured out). Seriously, I got a reject that SS has locked his SSN because he is deceased, but SS office does not show that. They were willing to give the letter saying he wasn't dead, so I will send that with a paper file. Any thoughts on what is going on? Thanks.

Taxpayer was divorced early last year. In 2004, Taxpayer inherited a farm. TP's ex borrowed against the farm (to the tune of $400k) to fund his own business ventures, which were not very fruitful. In the divorce, TP received the farm and all the equipment, but also all of Ex's debt against the same. It's arguable that the debt is more than the farm ground is worth. Taxpayer had a farm auction in 2017 and sold all farm equipment possible to try and pay down debt against the land. Much of the debt is a line of credit, so payment obligations are substantial. I have a list of assets that comes NO WHERE CLOSE to matching the depreciation schedule. Many of the items on the depreciation schedule are form 2004-2008, and I'm sure are not all accurate. I feel like my only option is to set a bulk sale against all of the 1045 property on the depreciation schedule, which is resulting in a gain from depreciation recap of tens of thousands of dollars. Please tell me I'm missing something that could help this person. She is reviewing the depreciation schedule carefully, but I'm not sure how much that will help anything. Thanks in advance. I feel like this person got a raw deal during the divorce settlement proceedings.

Learned something today, but this year's peeps already went on Line 21. Wonder if I can remember for next year.

Young clients - married couple with young children - withholding was way too low because job income increased substantially. Knocked out several credits (EIC, etc.), and no HI so penalties. Tried to talk them through what was different and encourage immediate W4 changes. Fast forward a few days: They have decided they are not going to file. They have been advised that they don't have to file every year, and that as long as they change their withholding this year, it will all even out, and they can continue to only file in some years. They will pay me for the return. Kudos for that offer. OH, AND he (the President) said it was okay. He is trying to help the working class, and this is part of it. I've had amazing conversations, but this was my first foray into the 'you don't have to file every year; only some years' thread of advice. ***Postlude*** - talked them down from the tree, and they are now making reasonable, rational decisions. 'They trust me'.

I don't know where in NE you are, but I'm in Lawrence, KS, and if you wanted to load your trunk and come down and work on one of my machines (if you use ATX), you are welcome. You could roll over the returns you need to do and put them on a thumb drive.