Catherine

Many thanks to all!

That's what I figured -- but this guy is an engineer and instead of taking my word he's going to want chapter and verse from the IRC. They're like that (and I sympathize as I am loath to take anyone's word for durned near anything; I want to do the research myself). He's actually not "changing" preparers this year. He's been doing the returns himself for years, as he was instructed by the original guy who gave him the odd information on the suspended losses. Since he's actually shutting the business down this year, he now wants a pro to make sure he treats the losses properly. Hence my query, as I could find nothing that supported his position -- but also nothing in the IRC (as opposed to 1120-S instructions) that specifically dealt with treatment of suspended losses, in final year, by other shareholders. Most likely because there is no such animal.

My comment was a joke. We need someone (graphic design type) to develop two new fonts: one for humor, and one for sarcasm. Both of which are almost impossible to show any way but verbally!

Thank you, Margaret!

I did have one person claim very low tips one year -- and in that instance, it made sense. Client worked at a restaurant but was assigned to the drinks/soda/shakes prep area, there was a counter with two stools there that were rarely used. Drinks person also got paid minimum wage because the assumption was no tips at all there. But that was a rare, special case. And some tips were indeed claimed. So, has this topic now gotten hijacked? It started out as a twist on a poem and is now a discussion about tips, restaurants, and clients with honesty issues?

Well, I've asked for the paperwork to investigate how it was originally set up but don't have it yet. I have no idea how one person got stock with no investment -- possibly they had the connections to potential customers? Ideas but no know-how? Space to store parts? I do know that all the *money* put in was by my client, who owns 80-something percent of the shares. He has been claiming his percentage of the losses all along, but the other owner has NOT been able to claim losses because they had no basis. It seems reasonable to me that those losses could go "poof" as they are only claimable by the other shareholder, who still has no basis. Yet I have the client pushing hard on this information he claims he was given -- namely, that HE can claim those suspended losses in the closing year (and he has a point, it was his money) -- but I need chapter and verse before I will attempt that, and chapter and verse for HIM, as proof, if they are lost. And I can't find guidance. I'm pretty good at searching for some stuff, but every search I've tried gets me nitty-gritty on apportionment and basis et cetera but nothing about final-year treatment of suspended losses. Just to put it on the final K-1 and make sure the K-1 and return are both marked final. That doesn't help me with this suspended loss issue. Thanks to all.

New client has a small S-corp that has been moribund and he's finally closing it down. He's been taking his share of losses (~80+%) all along; other s/h has NOT been able to take losses as they had never put any money into the company so no basis. Client was told by original tax preparer, years ago, that *he* could claim all the unused losses in whatever the year the business eventually closed. I can't find anything in the 1120-s or k-1 instructions or Tax Book or irs dot gov that confirms or denies this. Can anyone here point me in the right direction? Basis is NOT an issue; every penny ever put in was his, and not the other shareholder's. TIA, Catherine

Growing up speaking Italian it would have been hard to avoid being able to trill an "rrrr".

I have two Brother printers I have been very happy with. Key for me is the ability to print duplex (double sided). Brother MFC-8840DN (multi-function, not made anymore) also faxes-scans-copies. Brother HL-4070CDW is a color printer but I almost never use colors for tax; those are limited to the net worth charts I do on request for some clients. The one beef I have with the color printer is that, since it is "Energy Star rated" it shuts itself down after x minutes of inactivity. So if you just need a page or two the older, slower, machine is actually faster as it is ready to go. It doesn't need to wake up, have its coffee, and check its facebook page and email, all before printing your page.

This is the first year in several that I sent out NO letters warning a couple of carefully-chosen clients about big fee increases. Managed to get rid of all the PITA clients who don't pay me enough to be worth dealing with them. That's a happy achievement!

I hold on to folks who move usually for a couple of years. Then, once they've established connections in the new state, they tend to move on. Just had one elderly client move on permanently. So every year I lose a couple. They get more-than-made-up-for by folks who send their brothers, mothers, sisters, the kids grow up and become clients in their own right.

My sympathies, Tom! We've all had "those" days -- perhaps this means that you are off the hook for the rest of the tax season.

Lion -- very similar to YakTrax! Highly recommended.

Yeah, but it's high summer in the Antarctic right now -- remember that!

Remember the Mass. laws and get some encryption on the drive...

Just ordered supposedly Brother original toner from someone called "InkyToner" through Amazon, at a completely reasonable price. However, 123inkjets has "compatible" toner for even less. Anyone have experience with either of these folks? Another recommended vendor? Some years ago KC recommended LaserMonks and I used them until they folded. The resurrected company (yes, there is a slight religious joke there) is NOT actually monks (folks who bought the name) and from what I've seen of them I'm not at all sure I want to do business with them. TIA, Catherine

YakTrax. Attach to the bottom of your boots. Any outdoor store (and some hardware stores) will have them. However they are NOT magic and if you put your weight where they are not, down you will go. Ask me how I know this... https://www.yaktrax.com/ and to mail order them -- always try Sierra Trading Post! http://www.sierratradingpost.com/s~yaktrax/?perPage=96 Who cares if they're last year's color? I get ALL my wool socks from these folks, too.

Did you wear your ice-climbing cleats or your skates to tackle the driveway?

My CPA Site Solutions web site has some built-ins as well -- you are welcome to pop over and use them anytime. There is an online visual graphic called "Karl's Mortgage Calculator" which is really cool; I've used it off and on for years. http://www.drcalculator.com/mortgage/

When I get to feeling like winter is a bit too much, I go check out the forecast and current status for Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Canada (old DEW station WWAAYY up north). Current conditions -22F; wind chill -50F. Maybe two hours of daylight (sunrise 11:30 AM sunset 1:30 PM). Blowing and drifting snow. NO advisories; this is "normal" winter weather for them. http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=zmw:00000.1.71925

Up to 54F here today but the drop is starting. Tonight's low will be 14F and that will also be tomorrow's high. The snow is gone from the driveway, courtesy of the rain. Fortunately that has stopped and with any luck we will not be one sheet of ice tomorrow. If so, though, the sun will melt/evaporate/sublimate the ice during the day. As for Taxed's snow blower -- nice! We also have an Ariens and while it works great I wish we could have bought one size up. Instead of those handles, ours has bales to hold and my hands go numb with the grip required. But a bigger one won't fit inside the garage to store.

I do indeed. We missed the storm itself, as we were in NY state visiting Gwen at college (she was at Wells for her freshman year; now at Keene State in NH - MUCH closer). Got back the day after the storm. We still had power but the block behind us and the block across from us were both bereft for a week. Had two neighbors' freezer goods in my freezer for that week. Folks across the street borrowed by kerosene lantern for light at night. No gas in our neighborhood; the line stops about a 1/4 mile from here. When we moved here oil was $1.18/gal. Last delivery we got was $3.90/gal -- up almost four-fold in ten years. Makes propane look intriguing, I'll tell you. Three times in ten years folks surrounding us have had week-long power outages. First one was a truck that took out a pole that brought power across Rt 2. Then two storms - one of the hurricanes took out the whole area behind us, then the Halloween snow/ice storm took out behind us and across from us. We have a working fireplace, gas grill (and gas burner than I use for canning as my electric stove can't handle the prolonged heat needed), candles and kerosene lanterns -- and skills honed by years in the hinterlands of central Mass where the power went out all the time. A week without power with an infant and a toddler grows you some mighty coping skills. Double when you get that once in summer and once in winter in the same year.

If you do need to use the candle-heater trick (great idea!) choose a smaller room and if it's that cold hang blankets over doorways. Have also heard of folks putting up a tent in living room and camping out; body heat will keep a tent warm inside a house. When I lived in central Mass., we would have the power go out for days at a time in winter, several times a season. Anytime a storm was predicted, we had clean plastic buckets i the tub, full of water. Wood stove ready. Long-burn candles ready. You can cook lots of stuff on a wood stove top - and more in a gas or charcoal grill outside. Annoying for many days but completely do-able. Easier in winter in some ways as there are no worries about food spoiling; put it in a cooler full of snow!

This dog has been incredibly well-trained and you can see he enjoys his tricks too! http://www.flixxy.com/jumpy-the-dog.htm

No way I know of to automate a cold metal restore -- the good news is it doesn't have to be done daily, or even weekly, necessarily. Just often enough that you can update programs easily. Once a month? Once a quarter? Put it in as a recurring appointment in your calendar...