Many taxpayers start preparing their tax return with hopes of receiving a sizable refund, only to find out that their actual refund is much smaller than expected — or that they actually owe the federal government money instead! If this happens to you, here are some of the likely reasons:
Higher take-home pay. Look at last year’s W-2 and see how much was withheld for federal income tax. Now check this year’s W-2. If it is lower, you will need a corresponding reduction in your tax obligation to get the same refund as last year. The good news? You’ve had more of your income available to you throughout the year. The bad news? Paying less tax each pay period can result in a lower refund or even a tax due balance at tax filing time.
Withholding tables are not always accurate. The IRS provides businesses with tax tables to figure out how much of your paycheck should be withheld to pay your taxes. While these tables are mostly accurate, sometimes these tables instruct your employer to withhold more than necessary — leading to a refund. But sometimes the opposite is true and your employer may not withhold enough — leading to a balance due.
You earned money from a side hustle. You are responsible for making payments to the IRS for taxes you owe from working a side hustle or as a freelancer. If you didn’t make these payments to the IRS as you were earning the money throughout the year, you’ll have to make a lump-sum payment when you file your tax return.
Your state takes a different path. Tax laws passed by many states closely mirror tax laws passed by the federal government. But many times these laws never match 100%. This means that while you may see a refund on your federal tax return, you might end up owing money on your state tax return.
With the uncertainty of whether or not you’ll receive as large of a refund as you’re expecting, consider holding off on plans to spend your refund until your tax return is finalized.
Retirement accounts that provide tax breaks have very specific rules that must be followed if you want to enjoy the financial rewards of those tax breaks.
One of these rules defines WHEN you’re allowed to pull money from your retirement accounts. If you pull money too soon, you’re at risk of being levied with a penalty by the IRS. There are several exceptions to this rule, such as paying for qualified higher education expenses or paying for expenses if you become permanently disabled. In general, though, if you withdraw retirement funds before you reach age 59½, you’ll be hit with a 10% penalty in addition to regular income taxes. In the April 2023 court case Magdy A. Ghaly and Laila Ryad v. Commissioner, the taxpayers learned this rule the hard way.
The Facts
In 2018, Mr. Ghaly took two distributions from his retirement account.
Distribution #1: Withdrawal
Mr. Ghaly was laid off from his job, and in 2018, he withdrew money from his retirement account to provide for his family. He requested and received a withdrawal of $71,147 from his retirement account. His retirement company provided him with a Form 1099-R indicating the withdrawal was taxable.
Distribution #2: Deemed Distribution
In 2015, Mr. Ghaly took a loan from his retirement account. Because the loan followed certain IRS-approved guidelines, it was not considered a taxable distribution from his account that year. However, when Mr. Ghaly failed to repay that loan when it came due in 2018, it became a taxable distribution. His retirement company provided him with a 1099-R tax form for the deemed distribution.
Mr. Ghaly had not yet reached age 59½ before either amount was distributed.
The Findings
In an attempt to restore those distributions to his account to avoid both the tax on the distributions and the early withdrawal penalty, he opened two retirement accounts in 2020 and made the maximum contributions allowed for each account.
The Tax Court ruled against the taxpayers, stating that the contributions Mr. Ghaly made in 2020 were irrelevant when determining if his 2018 distributions were taxable. Mr. Ghaly was required to pay income taxes on the amounts withdrawn (to the extent those distributions were taxable) and was assessed an additional 10% early withdrawal penalty.
The Lesson
If you are planning an early withdrawal from a retirement account, understand before making the withdrawal whether the 10% penalty applies to you. In Mr. Ghaly’s case, he could have explored the substantially equal periodic payment exception or withdrawn money penalty free if used as hardship to pay for his health insurance while unemployed. The lesson: please call if you have questions about an early withdrawal you may be planning before you make it!
If something of value changes hands, you can bet the IRS considers a way to tax it. Here are six taxable items that might surprise you:
Surprise #1: Hidden treasure. In 1964, a married couple discovered $4,467 in a used piano they purchased seven years prior for $15. After reporting this hidden treasure on their 1964 tax return, the couple filed an amended return that removed the $4,467 from their gross income and requested a refund. The couple filed a lawsuit against the IRS when the refund claim was denied. The Tax Court ruled that the hidden treasure should be reported as gross income on the couple’s 1964 tax return, the year when the hidden treasure was found.
Tip: The IRS considers many things like hidden treasure to be taxable, even though they are not explicitly identified in the tax code.
Surprise #2: Some scholarships and financial aid. Scholarships and financial aid are top priorities for parents of college-bound children, but be careful — if part of the award your child receives goes toward anything except tuition, it might be taxable. This could include room, board, books, or aid received in exchange for work (e.g., tutoring or research).
Tip: When receiving an award, review the details to determine if any part of it is taxable. Don’t forget to review state rules as well. While most scholarships and aid are tax-free, no one needs a tax surprise.
Surprise 3: Gambling winnings. Hooray! You hit the trifecta for the Kentucky Derby. But guess what? Technically, all gambling winnings are taxable, including casino games, lottery tickets and sports betting. Thankfully, the IRS allows you to deduct your gambling losses (to the extent of winnings) as an itemized deduction, so keep good records.
Tip: Know the winning threshold for when a casino or other payer must issue you a Form W-2G. But beware, the gambling facility and state requirements may lower the limit.
Surprise 4: Unemployment compensation. The IRS confused many by making this compensation tax-free during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unemployment compensation income has since gone back to being taxable.
Tip: If you are collecting unemployment, either have taxes withheld or make estimated payments to cover the tax liability.
Surprise 5: Crowdfunding. A popular method to raise money is crowdfunding through websites. Whether or not the funds are taxable depends on two things: your intent for the funds and what the giver receives in return. Generally, funds used for a business purpose are taxable and funds raised to cover a life event are a gift and not taxable to the recipient.
Tip: Prior to using these tools, review the terms and conditions and ask for a tax review of what you are doing.
Surprise 6: Cryptocurrency transactions. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are considered property by the IRS. So if you use cryptocurrency, you must keep track of the original cost of the coin and its value when you use it. This information is needed so the tax on your gain or loss can be properly calculated.
Tip: Using cryptocurrency for everyday financial transactions is not for the faint of heart because of how much recordkeeping is involved.
When in doubt, it’s a good idea to keep accurate records so your tax liability can be correctly calculated and you don’t get stuck paying more than what’s required. Please call if you have any questions regarding your unique situation.
No one likes surprises from the IRS, but they do occasionally happen. Here are some examples of tax situations you could find yourself in and what to do about them.
Kids getting older tax surprise. Your children are a wonderful tax deduction if they meet certain qualifications. But as they get older, many child-related deductions fall off and create an unexpected tax bill. And it doesn’t happen all at once. As an example, one of the largest tax deductions your children can provide you is via the child tax credit. If they are under age 17 on December 31st and meet several other qualifications, you could get up to $2,000 for that child on that year’s tax return. But you’ll lose this deduction the year they turn 17. If their 17th birthday occurs in 2023, you can’t claim them for the child tax credit when you file your 2023 tax return in 2024, resulting in $2,000 more in taxes you’ll need to pay.
Limited losses tax surprise. If you sell stock, cryptocurrency or any other asset at a loss of $5,000, for example, you can match this up with another asset you sell at a $5,000 gain and – presto! You won’t have to pay taxes on that $5,000 gain because the $5,000 loss cancels it out. But what if you don’t have another asset that you sold at a gain? In this example, the most you can deduct on your tax return is $3,000 (the remaining loss can be carried forward to subsequent years). Herein lies the tax surprise. If you have more than $3,000 in losses from selling assets, and you don’t have a corresponding amount of gains from selling assets, you’re limited to the $3,000 loss. So if you have a big loss from selling an asset in 2023, and no large gains from selling other assets to use as an offset, you can only deduct $3,000 of your loss on your 2023 tax return.
Getting a letter from the IRS surprise. Official tax forms such as W-2s and 1099s are mailed to both you and the IRS. If the figures on your income tax return do not match those in the hands of the IRS, you will get a letter from the IRS saying that you’re being audited. These audits are now done by mail and are commonly known as correspondence audits. Assuming you already know you received all your 1099s and W-2s and confirmed their accuracy, verify the information in the IRS letter with your records. Believe it or not, the IRS sometimes makes mistakes! It is always best to ask for help in how to correspond and make your payments in a timely fashion, if they are justified.
Please call to schedule a tax planning session so you can be prepared to navigate around any potential tax surprises you may encounter on your 2023 tax return.
As 2023 winds down, here are some ideas to help you prepare for filing your upcoming tax return:
Informational returns. Identify all vendors who require a 1099-MISC and a 1099-NEC. Obtain tax identification numbers (TINs) for each of these vendors if you have not already done so.
Shifting income and expenses. Consider accelerating income, or deferring earnings, based on profit projections.
Be prepared to receive a Form 1099-K. You may receive a Form 1099-K from each payment processor from whom you receive $600 or more in payments. In addition to credit card companies and banks, payment processors can include Amazon, Etsy, PayPal, Venmo and Apple Pay. You’ll need to include the 1099-K on your tax return.
Categorize income and expenses. The best way to prepare for receiving a 1099-K is to organize your records by major categories of income, expenses and fixed asset purchases. If your accounting records are accurate, then any tax form, including a 1099-K, should be easy to tie out to your books.
Separation of expenses. Review business accounts to ensure personal expenses are not present. Reimburse the business for any expenses discovered during this review.
Create expense reports. Having expense reports with supporting invoices and business credit card statements with corresponding invoices will help substantiate your deductions in the event of an audit.
Fixed asset planning. Section 179 or bonus depreciation expensing versus traditional depreciation is a great planning tool. If using Section 179, the qualified assets must be placed in service prior to year-end.
Leveraging business meals. Business meals with clients or customers are 50% deductible. Retain the necessary receipts and documentation that note when the meal took place, who attended and the business purpose on each receipt.
Charitable opportunities. Consider any last-minute deductible charitable giving including long-term capital gain stocks.
Cell phone record review. Review your telephone records for qualified business use. While expensing a single landline out of a home office can be difficult to deduct, cell phone use can be documented and deducted for business purposes.
Inventory review. Review your inventory for proper counts and remove obsolete or worthless products. Keep track of the obsolete and worthless amounts for a potential deduction.
Review your receivables. Focus on collection activities and review your uncollectible accounts for possible write-offs.
Review your estimated tax payments. Recap your year-to-date estimated tax payments and compare them to your forecast of full year earnings. Then make your 2023 4th quarter estimated tax payment by January 16, 2024.
There are many tax benefits built into home ownership. Here is a review of the most common.
The home gain exclusion. When you sell an asset for a profit, it creates a taxable event. If the asset, though, is your primary residence, you can exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 if married filing jointly) of these gains. Special rules do apply, but this is a major tax benefit of home ownership.
How to take advantage: You must live in your house for at least 2 of the previous 5 years to qualify for the home gain exclusion. Start planning now if you think you’ll be selling your house in the near future so you can qualify for this tax break.
Itemized deductions. Mortgage interest and property taxes are two deductions you can claim as a homeowner. The interest is deductible on the first $750,000 associated with loans secured by your primary and secondary residences ($1 million for mortgages underwritten prior to 2018), while up to $10,000 of property taxes may be deducted. You may also deduct points paid as an itemized deduction over the life of your mortgage.
How to take advantage: You need to itemize your deductions to take advantage of these tax breaks. Consider bunching your mortgage interest and property taxes with other itemized deductions such as charitable contributions, taxes and excess medical expenses to try and exceed the standard deduction for your filing status.
Free rental income. You can rent out your home for up to two weeks and not claim the income. While you cannot deduct expenses in this scenario, this is a great tax break if your home is located next to a popular landmark or a major event.
How to take advantage: Keep track of how many days you rent out your home so you don’t go over the 14-day limit. If you rent your house for just 15 days over a given year instead of 14, you’ll owe taxes on all rental income for that year, including the first 14 days.
Home office deduction. If you use a portion of your house exclusively as a home office, you may be able to deduct certain expenses such as mortgage interest, insurance, utilities, & repairs.
How to take advantage: To qualify for the deduction, you generally must use this portion of your house exclusively for business purposes on a regular basis. So be sure to understand the limitations of this deduction.
Your house is a great place to control the amount of tax you owe, but only if you know the rules and can apply these rules to your situation. Use this information as a starting point to see if there are ways to leverage your home’s tax benefits.
