This thread has been incredibly helpful for understanding collectible sales taxation! I'm dealing with a similar situation with my vintage watch collection and wanted to share what I learned from my CPA about cost basis calculations. The key thing to remember is that for hobby sales (which most of us fall into unless we're running actual businesses), you can include ALL direct costs associated with the sale in your cost basis calculation. This includes: - Original purchase price - Shipping costs to buyer - Packaging materials (boxes, bubble wrap, insurance, etc.) - Platform fees (eBay, PayPal, etc.) - Payment processing fees What you generally CAN'T include are indirect costs like storage, general maintenance, or costs that aren't specifically tied to that individual sale transaction. One tip that's saved me a lot of headaches: create a simple tracking spreadsheet at the start of the year with columns for all these cost categories. It makes tax time so much easier when everything is already organized rather than trying to hunt down receipts and fee statements later. Also worth noting - even though we're talking about "hobby" sales, the IRS still expects accurate reporting. Keep good records and when in doubt, consult a tax professional. The cost of getting proper advice usually pays for itself in avoided mistakes and peace of mind.

This is such a valuable discussion for anyone dealing with collectible sales! I've been selling parts of my baseball card collection and was really confused about the 1099-K reporting until I found this thread. One thing I wanted to add that I learned from my experience - make sure you're also keeping track of any authentication or certification costs if you use services like PSA or BGS for grading. I had a 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card that I paid $800 for, spent $50 to get it professionally graded, and then sold for $2,100. The grading fee definitely counts toward my cost basis since it was necessary to achieve that sale price. Also, for anyone using multiple platforms (eBay, COMC, Facebook groups, etc.), each one has different fee structures, so make sure you're tracking the specific costs for each sale location. I almost missed including some PayPal goods & services fees that were separate from the eBay final value fees. The record keeping really is crucial - I use a simple Google Sheets file with tabs for each year, and I take screenshots of all the fee breakdowns from each platform. It's saved me so much stress come tax time!

This has been such an informative thread to read through! I'm a tax professional and see this exact scenario probably 5-10 times per month during tax season. You're absolutely right to be cautious, but the good news is that legitimate automatic adjustments are incredibly common. A few additional points that might help anyone in this situation: 1. The IRS processes millions of returns and their computer systems are constantly cross-referencing your reported information with data from employers, banks, schools, etc. When they find discrepancies that work in your favor, they automatically send additional refunds. 2. If you're still nervous about cashing it even after checking your transcript, you can always call the Treasury Department's check verification line at 1-855-868-0151. They can confirm whether a specific check number was legitimately issued. 3. Keep in mind that if it WAS sent in error, the IRS is required by law to send you a formal notice before demanding repayment. They can't just surprise you months later without proper documentation. The transcript check that everyone's recommending really is your best first step - it's free, immediate, and will give you the specific reason code. Most of these situations resolve with a few minutes of research rather than hours of phone calls!

I'm going through this exact same situation right now! Got my regular refund back in March, then just received an unexpected check for $623 last Tuesday. I've been stressing about it all week wondering if it's legitimate or some kind of error that's going to cause me problems later. This thread has been incredibly reassuring - I had no idea these automatic adjustments were so common! Reading everyone's experiences makes me feel much less anxious about the whole thing. It sounds like the IRS systems are constantly making corrections and adjustments behind the scenes. I'm definitely going to check my IRS account transcript first thing tomorrow morning like everyone has recommended. The specific tips about looking for codes in the 290s and 300s, and knowing there's a code lookup tool, gives me a clear plan instead of just worrying about it. It's also really helpful to know about that Treasury Department check verification line (1-855-868-0151) that Brielle mentioned. Having multiple ways to verify the legitimacy of the check makes me feel much more confident about the whole situation. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and practical advice! This community is amazing for helping navigate these confusing tax situations.

Based on everyone's discussion here, it sounds like your Lexus LX600 definitely qualifies for Section 179 treatment due to its 7,230 lb GVWR, but you'll be subject to the luxury SUV cap of around $30,400 for 2025. One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet is that you should also consider your total business income when planning this deduction. Section 179 can't exceed your business's taxable income for the year - so if your business only made $20,000 in profit, you can only deduct up to $20,000 even though the SUV limit is higher. Any unused portion can be carried forward to future years though. Also, since you mentioned your accountant wasn't 100% sure about the specifics, you might want to consider getting a second opinion or using one of the services others have mentioned here. Vehicle deductions can be complex, especially for luxury SUVs, and getting it wrong can be expensive if you're audited. The peace of mind is worth it when you're dealing with a high-value vehicle like the LX600.

I just want to add one more important consideration that hasn't been fully addressed - the timing of when you actually start using the LX600 for business matters a lot for tax planning. Since we're getting close to year-end, make sure you have a clear business purpose and documentation for when you first put it into service. Also, don't forget about state tax implications. Some states have different rules for vehicle deductions or may not conform to federal Section 179 treatment. I learned this the hard way when I took a large federal deduction but my state (California) had different limitations that created a big state tax bill I wasn't expecting. Finally, consider whether taking the full $30,400 deduction this year makes sense for your overall tax situation, or if spreading it out might be more beneficial. Sometimes it's worth running the numbers both ways, especially if you're already in a high tax bracket or expecting income changes in future years.

I'm currently dealing with a similar nightmare - filed my amended return in June and just passed the 22-week mark with zero movement. What's particularly frustrating is that I amended to claim a legitimate business expense deduction that I forgot to include, and the documentation is crystal clear. Yet here we are, months later, with my money tied up in IRS limbo. After reading through all these experiences, I'm convinced the 20-week timeframe they advertise is complete fiction at this point. It seems like 6-8 months is becoming the new "normal" which is absolutely unacceptable for what should be routine processing. I'm definitely going to try the congressional representative route based on the success stories here. It's ridiculous that we need political intervention just to get basic customer service from a federal agency, but if that's what it takes to get real answers instead of the scripted "wait another 30 days" response, then so be it. Thanks to everyone sharing their experiences - it helps to know we're not alone in this bureaucratic nightmare, even though it shouldn't be this way.

As a newcomer to this community, I have to say reading through all these experiences is both eye-opening and deeply concerning. I'm dealing with my first amended return situation - filed in August to correct a missed education credit, and I'm currently at the 15-week mark with zero movement on the "Where's My Amended Return" tool. What strikes me most about all these stories is how consistent the dysfunction appears to be across the board. Whether it's simple calculation errors, missed deductions, or education credits, everyone seems to be facing the same 6-8 month nightmare regardless of how straightforward their correction should be. The fact that multiple people have found success through congressional intervention really says something about how broken the normal customer service channels have become. It shouldn't require political pressure just to get basic information about the status of your own tax return. I'm definitely going to start implementing some of the strategies mentioned here - checking my transcript regularly for specific codes, documenting all my interactions with IRS customer service, and potentially reaching out to my representative's office if I hit the 20+ week mark with no progress. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences and solutions. It's frustrating that we need to become amateur tax code investigators and political advocates just to get our own money back from the government, but at least we're not navigating this mess alone.

One thing I learned the hard way: the 25% employer contribution rate for an S-Corp is only for the profit sharing portion. If you want to do a Solo 401k match instead of profit sharing, the limit is only 4% of compensation (which would be $480 in your case). Big difference! Profit sharing is almost always better for single-employee S-Corps unless you have some very unusual circumstances.

Great thread! Just wanted to add something that might help with the confusion about reasonable compensation - I've found that keeping documentation is key. When I set my S-Corp salary, I saved job postings for similar roles in my area and wrote a brief memo explaining my reasoning. Also, one thing that caught my eye in your numbers - with $35k revenue and $6k expenses, you have $29k in net profit. Taking $12k as salary leaves $17k in distributions. While this might be reasonable now, if your business grows significantly, you'll want to revisit that salary level not just for IRS compliance, but also to maximize your retirement contributions. The sweet spot is finding that balance where you're paying enough in salary to satisfy reasonable compensation requirements while maximizing your retirement savings potential. Sometimes paying a bit more in payroll taxes is worth it for the extra retirement contribution space you get!