has anyone used TurboTax for handling multi-state work situations? does it handle this well or should i look for a tax professional? got a similar situation working from florida (home) but spent 3 weeks working from ny last year.

This is a really nuanced area that trips up a lot of remote workers! From what I've researched, California does have some of the strictest rules about this. They generally require non-resident tax filings if you're working there temporarily, but there are thresholds to consider. The key thing is that California considers any work performed within their borders as California-source income, regardless of where your employer is based. However, they do have a threshold - I believe it's around $1,000 in California-source income or working there for more than a certain number of days before you're required to file a non-resident return. For your situation, definitely keep detailed records of which days you work while in California versus days you take off. You might also want to consider structuring your trip so that you take actual vacation days while there and do your work before/after the trip to avoid the complexity altogether. One more tip - check if Wyoming has any reciprocity agreements with California that might simplify things, though I don't think they do since Wyoming doesn't have state income tax to begin with.

Don't forget to look into the Safe Harbor for Small Taxpayers provision if your property qualifies! If your rental property's unadjusted basis is $1 million or less AND your total annual repairs, maintenance, and improvements don't exceed $10,000 or 2% of the unadjusted basis (whichever is less), you might be able to deduct everything as a repair expense regardless of whether it would normally be classified as an improvement. This provision has saved me tons of headaches with my rental properties because I don't have to agonize over the repair vs. improvement classification as much. Worth looking into!

The distinction between repairs and improvements can be tricky, especially when what starts as a simple fix turns into major work. Here's my take on your situation: **Bathroom work**: Since you were attempting to restore the bathroom to its previous functional condition after the first contractor's poor work caused damage, this would likely qualify as a repair rather than an improvement - even though it resulted in extensive work. The key is that your intent was restoration, not enhancement. **Water heater replacement**: This is clearly a repair since you're replacing a failing component with a comparable one due to normal wear and age. **Invoice allocation**: Yes, you can reasonably estimate the water heater portion. Get a few quotes for similar water heater installations in your area to establish a reasonable cost. Document your methodology and keep the quotes with your tax records. One important consideration: if during the bathroom work you upgraded to significantly better fixtures or materials than what was originally there, those specific upgrades would need to be classified as improvements. But replacing damaged components with similar quality items as part of restoring functionality remains a repair. Keep detailed documentation of the original problem, the first contractor's mistakes, and your efforts to restore the property to working condition. This supports the repair classification if questioned.

Something else to consider - check if you have any other income that isn't having taxes withheld, like investments, side gigs, etc. My husband and I were in the same boat until we realized our investment income wasn't being factored into our withholding.

Another thing to consider is making quarterly estimated tax payments if your withholding still falls short after updating your W4s. Since you both got promotions mid-year, the withholding system might not have caught up to your new income levels quickly enough. You can calculate quarterly payments based on either 100% of last year's tax liability or 90% of this year's expected tax (110% if your AGI was over $150k). This gives you a safety net if your W4 adjustments aren't quite right, and you avoid underpayment penalties. The IRS Form 1040ES has worksheets to help calculate this, or you can make payments online through EFTPS. It's especially helpful for people with variable income or multiple income sources.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! As someone who's been doing tax prep for about 3 years now, I still occasionally second-guess myself on the book vs. tax basis question for Schedule L. One thing I've learned the hard way is to always document your approach in your workpapers. I had a client last year where we got questioned on some large balance sheet movements, and having clear documentation showing that we used book values on Schedule L and properly reconciled everything through the M schedules made the response much smoother. Also, for anyone dealing with multi-entity situations (like a parent company with subsidiaries), make sure you're consistent in your approach across all related returns. The IRS can and will cross-reference these, especially if there are intercompany transactions that affect the balance sheets. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and tools - definitely going to look into some of the resources mentioned here!

This has been such an informative discussion! I'm a CPA with about 5 years of experience, and I still find myself double-checking this every tax season. One additional point I'd make is about partnerships with capital account maintenance requirements. When you're dealing with partnerships that need to maintain capital accounts under Section 704(b), the Schedule L becomes even more critical because it needs to tie to the partners' outside basis calculations. The book values on Schedule L directly impact the capital account analysis on Schedule K-1. I've also found it helpful to create a simple reconciliation worksheet that shows: Beginning book balance + Current year book income/loss + Distributions - Ending book balance. This should tie to the retained earnings movement on Schedule L and helps catch any errors before filing. For anyone still struggling with the concept, think of it this way: Schedule L is like taking a snapshot of your client's accounting books, while the M schedules are like a translator explaining to the IRS why the tax return numbers are different from that accounting snapshot. The IRS wants to see both the "what" (Schedule L) and the "why different" (M schedules).

So happy to hear you got your hardship approved! When I was going through this process, I found that the best way to actually understand what was happening with my refund was to use taxr.ai - it showed me exactly where I was in the process and when funds would be released. Helped me sleep better knowing exactly what was going on instead of guessing. Check it out if you have any more tax issues this year!

That's awesome that your tax advocate came through for you! Based on my experience, once it shows up in SBTPG with a date, you're usually looking at 2-3 business days max before it hits your account. Since your date shows 05/17/2025 (Friday), I'd expect to see it in your bank by Monday or Tuesday at the latest. Just make sure to keep an eye on your account and maybe give your bank a heads up about the incoming deposit - some banks will flag large unexpected deposits. The hardship process is such a pain but sounds like you're finally at the finish line. Hope you get your funds soon and can take care of those medical bills! 🤞