Catherine

If they shorted bitcoin, it could be a big win! But that's WAY too much like wild gambling for my taste...

@RitaB - do we need to ask where the red stripes on your weapon originated? Or if you have hugged anyone lately?

Merry Christmas to everyone here. Thank you all SO very much for your help and friendship during the year, and I look forward to working with all of you again next year!

You can also still buy new, registerable, copies of Acrobat X on ebay for very small money. Or Nuance PowerPDF is also small money - but it won't take the Tic, Tie, and Calculate plug-in that I find so useful in Acrobat.

I figure that even if pre-paying property tax for the current fiscal year is not deductible - it's worth a try because by the time we know it will be too late for anyone to go back and do it. It's not like anyone is going to avoid paying it next year anyway. Here in MA, a lot of folks will use up most of the 10K allotment just with income taxes from the state. As long as they have the cash flow to handle it, and are willing to pre-pay tax they could put off until February or May, why not?

Yes, it's Experian. The one that charges the fee for freezing and un-freezing your account. Sigh.

You'd think they could at least give you a fax number for the person you spoke with, who might then have a clue what the paperwork is all about!

Except that many times those losses are from jointly held assets (JTWROS-titled accounts), and then the survivor does get to keep them as they are full co-owner.

What letter? I don't remember getting any letter?!

Oh this sounds like an ABSOLUTE disaster. Like Lion, I have NO W-2's or 1099-MISC's in my own ssn. Plus I have to unfreeze my credit (frozen everywhere, thank you security breaches) and install internet exploder which I (a) detest and (b) utterly distrust. Can I just go hide under my desk until they get a clue?!

Anything I am desperate to find, cannot find, and cannot figure out. Software not so much; for that I call tech support (and I switched to Drake in the 2012 tax year debacle).

I keep hoping that one of these days they will MEAN it!

I have often found that if I look ALL over for an answer, and simply can NOT find it, it helps to post a query. Because then, the answer I spent three hours looking for pops up from my OWN desk, RIGHT in front of me, where it was hiding all along, to say "Here I am; fooled you!" But it always makes me ask before it will come out of hiding.

And if you're in Ohio, maybe Jack in Ohio is interested in taking on your clients.

Ah; sorry that I misunderstood. Once the FIRE system re-opens, you can file the 1099's, yes. Until then, you could still mail them in. And you can mail recipient copies out, as well.

I buy my newsletters from Tax News & Tips; have for years. They have paper or electronic, black and white or color. Plus they have a mail-for-you service. http://www.taxnewsandtips.com/

If you filed for 2016 in October, then you need to amend - and those cannot be e-filed. If you did not file and the client is just really late, then you have to wait for e-file to start up again in January - or file on paper, now.

It eventually brings you to the same login screen that gives the "out of order" message.

I am still getting the "down for maintenance" error when trying to log in (and boy oh boy just trying to find that new login page is a royal PITA). I have moved my main office, need to update that info in e-services, and of course now cannot. Anyone have any idea how long this is supposed to last?

May it serve you long and well!

ALL my bills start with relatively high per-form charges (that the client does NOT see). If they are a PITA, they don't get a discount (or near so big a discount), and on rare occasion I will add a "document processing fee" or "return re-calculation fee" (this latter if someone comes in with enough new material to make me re-do a completed return - very rare, but it has happened). But not specifically a "missed appointment" fee - because in my book, missed appointments are "found time" (unless I made special provisions for someone), and I find it more of a PITA to have to keep hounding someone for the stock basis info on insurance on their rental house or... the list is nearly endless, and we could all fill it in.

I use https://youcanbook.me/ which is great (and free!). No calls, no emails - go pick a time. I get a confirmation by email. You can set up the hours YOU are available, and they pick from known-available times.

Drake is also really good about explaining their products, if you call and ask.

Magic 8-Ball says "Answer hazy; ask again later!"