Lion EA

I should've made this a Poll. I also told him to ignore it. She kept emailing him, so he did do the one short response. I again am telling him to ignore it. He said he would for the weekend, hoping she goes away.

OK, so hubby is taking all my time talking about this, and I have a new S-corp with two states that I promised to deliver Sunday and need to get back to work. The local chapter of American Guild of Organists, an organization that he suddenly ascended to Dean due to an officer moving and then took on just about everything else when another officer moved and a third appointed position-holder died, received boxes of music upon the death of yet another member (yeah, nobody's going into organ, so their membership is aging) from the decedent's daughter. Apparently, the dead newsletter editor, never an officer, valued the gift about $2,000 and offered to write letters on AGO letterhead for $499 for four years running! Or, the daughter bamboozled some letters; which as pushy as she's being, may be what happened in prior years. Anyway, it appears the actual treasurer may have signed one letter with the now-dead newsletter editor signing letters in two more years. Now the pushy daughter has been emailing dear hubby for days and days about getting her fourth letter. Yes, it was one donation in 2011 of boxes of old music. The Guild rounded up volunteers, vans, handcarts, and moved all those boxes out of daughter's house, really more as a kindness due to their deceased member. They tried selling the music at one of their events, don't know what year. Raised a few bucks from the sale and started a scholarship fund named after the deceased member. They then had to get the boxes out of the church where they were storing them, so they gave away (one church had had a fire, so that organist lost all her files) and threw away all that old decomposing paper. What does hubby write in response? I had him do something short and sweet like we received no donation from you during 2014 so can acknowledge no donation for 2014. But, she keeps writing him over and over again. I found a short and sweet IRS memo with bullet points, but it's from the angle of the charity and can't find a corresponding one re donors. The 8283 instructions very clearly state that you deduct it in the your you gave it, but I think the daughter is trying to avoid 8283 so probably doesn't care about it's instructions. I find similar statements in thick publications, and maybe should overwhelm her with paper. But, she just keeps saying but Jane Doe told me it was worth $2,000 and this is the fourth year that she promised me a letter. I want my letter. Yes, dear Miss Doe is the newsletter editor that died so isn't around to defend herself or tell us what really happened, and maybe Miss Doe did wrong but dear hubby isn't going to continue doing wrong. Pushy daughter is not a member, so organization is not concerned with her feelings this many years after her mother died. What would you write? Or, would you ignore completely?

Here it's tracking in the salt pellets and slush. (And, hubby insists on wearing his outside shoes in the house.) Don't have to worry about mowing yet. But, chipping through the ice to clear the walkway and steps has gotten very old. Even with the warmer weather, the melting from the day refreezes overnight. Just took the dustbuster to lots of paper dust/fragments. And, have been trying to get a load of laundry from the washer to the dryer for days. Shower this afternoon before a church dinner.

If he has passive loss carry forwards, file to preserve those. When he sells the house at a gain in AZ, he'll be happy that those losses get released on his AZ return.

Vacuum?!

I work all year. Some due to extensions. Bookkeeping for two business clients, including certain days at their sites for face-to-face consulting. Used to be slow after 15 October, but no longer. I take a lot of classes then and the two bookkeeping clients continue all year and more and more really, really late clients. In fact, almost any prior year returns get postponed to after 15 October. I can earn more working all year. I don't do payroll except for one artist client that I have set-up online via People's United Bank who does all the work; I just enter it every two weeks and download her paperwork into a binder for her. And, I go to the bookkeeping clients' sites much less during this busy season. I miss that slow season, though, after 15 October that's filled up too much now.

Haven't done this for VA, but I have clients who don't send what we'd printed. I have them draw a line through it and write in the amount they're sending. The voucher will scan wrong at the state's end if it doesn't get caught by a human, but the check will be recorded correctly. In CT, the client's record has been correct. So far. Or, as Jack says, have your client print blanks from the VA page. Or, does VA have an electronic payment method available, maybe on their web site? http://www.tax.virginia.gov/content/individual-estimated-tax-payments

Yep, adjustments if Covered. Just use the actual basis if uncovered.

Rita, does she have relatives I could fix up with my clients? Maybe we could organize a dating service on the side.

I'm more behind than ever. Will get the corps done by Monday, I think, and one partnership that's been in the stack forever and a trust project that's months old. Then I hope to pick up speed on personal returns. But, I have a couple on extension already and will require extensions by this weekend.

Other Country. But, no details until $300/$600 for passive investment income.

Right, adjustments have two parts. In my software, I pick a code from drop-down menu for one box and then put the amount of the adjustment in the next box. Watch your input/read the input screens, look at how it appears on 8949 (is it what you expect?), and read the diagnostics. I sometimes have to change a number to a negative number in an adjustment.

Hey, Gail, did she pay the price that she valued it at on her tax return?

I start with the 1099-B and make sure the proceeds match. Then, I turn to the supplemental information for basis information and other details. If covered, and SI doesn't match 1099-B, then I have to report adjustments. If uncovered, I stick with SI info. And, then I have to make sure I agree with stock option basis, that the SI really included the W-2 code V. If not, more adjustments. I think it got more complicated this year for preparers.

So, if her broker is charging $1,000 to trade, you can charge $500 to report the trades. I'd probably invoice $1,000 and Loyal Client Discount $500

Kiddie Tax could come into play on kids' returns, requiring info from parents' returns. Pretty sure the SSN should be the kids' SSNs. Will hurt them come FAFSA time, though. Think I would nominee and try to get brokerage to change SSNs for 2015.

Thanx, Catherine. Eric told us about that when he added that for us. But, I'd forgotten and was searching for AMT or something recently and couldn't remember where to find it, if I was remembering right, etc. READ.

Ah, inventory, good catch Mr. Davis. I have managed to avoid clients with inventory. Well, except for the optician with some contacts for sale, but I know he found his ending inventory on his own ceiling, and he's gone now. He was the only one willing to pay for my time to adjust his QB file after preparing his returns (or even to LET me adjust), though, and did his own payroll beautifully. So, I miss him. As for property tax, I can't seem to get them to believe equipment isn't an expense. So, for the most part, I gave up. I print their Equipment detail and prepare the income tax returns and property tax returns. But, if I adjust their QB file and explain why, leave them written instructions on where to put what, they don't continue. (QB prefills the transactions for them, so it's always SALY.) The DIY owners/wives or PT bookkeepers use QB for money in/money out to record checks/charge cards and not for accounting. (Had one call me to ask where to put large check the shareholders/H/W wrote to themselves at tax time. I'd set up an account labeled with their names and 95/5% for distributions so bookkeeper didn't have to do the math or even understand QB terminology. I explained, as I do about twice/year, to put it in 95/5 and I would break it up into their names at tax time. I found it under Marketing expenses!) CT property tax forms ask about the amounts paid to ICs/Forms 1099-MISC, consumable office supplies, etc. So, my biggest issue with property tax forms has been to get Postage/Shipping in it's own account and out of Office Supplies to not inflate the expenses we have to report. Yeah, I've given up. I get a Backup. Do my own thing with it for my tax prep purpose. I pick one issue each year per client and work on that. Since late 2013, have been working with one on the $500 threshold for Equipment. Just worked on that firm yesterday to start their returns, and moved all the little amounts out of Equipment. And, Repairs was actually Office Cleaning, so I think I'll insist on a name change on that account. And, don't get me started on the ones who bring me a Quicken file.

Or, beneath you...

Thanx, Judy.

I just printed some reports tonight for an S-corp: P&L, BS, detail of equipment, detail of shareholder distributions. I'll also get detail of salaries to split out officers from other employees. I did a lot of drilling down, because I am not their bookkeeper. She put things in equipment that didn't belong there and had some expenses as negative income, things like that. As Ill said, for a Sch C you will only need a P&L.

Move to the Bahamas. And, bring Tom over at tax time, paying his expenses.

Not until they're divorced or separated by state law. Living separately does not make them single. MFJ or MFS.

To file HOH, don't you need a qualifying child and not a qualifying relative? Doesn't her son fail the age test?

Oh, my, Tom. Yeah, as I get older, my clients get older. Do your best. BUT, if you have to dig or wait while someone digs or suspect there's a better outcome out there, put him on extension. Have him pay in with the extension and pay his first ES payment, but put him on extension. The kids may get involved someday and think someone's cheating their father. Document, document, document.