Don't forget to look into vocational rehabilitation services in your state! When we needed a modified vehicle for our daughter, our state's voc rehab program covered about 40% of the modification costs. They won't help with the basic vehicle purchase, but they often have funding for accessibility modifications, especially if your child will eventually need transportation for education or employment. The waiting lists can be long though, so apply ASAP.

I went through this exact situation two years ago when we bought a wheelchair-accessible van for my son. Here's what I learned the hard way: You can only deduct the cost of modifications that exceed what a standard vehicle would cost, and only if your total medical expenses exceed 7.5% of your AGI. Keep meticulous records separating the base vehicle cost from accessibility features. But here's the key thing I wish someone had told me: get a detailed letter from your daughter's doctor explaining the medical necessity BEFORE you make the purchase. The IRS may question whether certain features were truly medically necessary versus just convenient. We had to go back and get documentation after the fact, which was a hassle. Also, seriously reconsider that 401k withdrawal. The 10% penalty plus taxes could eat up a huge chunk of your money. We ended up getting a medical loan at a much lower effective cost. Some credit unions have special programs for disability-related expenses with better rates than the penalty you'd face on retirement funds. One more tip: if you're buying from a dealership that specializes in accessible vehicles, they often have financing relationships and can help you understand exactly which portions qualify for medical deductions. Much more helpful than general dealers.

Just a warning from someone who's been through this - document EVERYTHING regardless of which route you choose! My wife and I borrowed $90k from her parents in Brazil for our down payment, had a verbal agreement to repay, but never formalized anything. Years later during an audit for an unrelated issue, the IRS questioned the source of our down payment. Since we had no documentation showing it was a loan, they treated the entire amount as unreported income and we got hit with a massive tax bill plus penalties. It was a nightmare to sort out. Whether you go with a formal loan with interest or decide to structure it as separate gifts, make sure you have crystal clear documentation for everything. International money transfers especially get scrutiny.

This is exactly the kind of situation where getting proper documentation upfront can save you from major headaches later. Based on what others have shared here, it sounds like you have a few solid options: 1. **Formal loan route**: Create a written loan agreement with interest at the Applicable Federal Rate (currently around 3-4% for long-term loans). This keeps it clearly as a loan and avoids any gift tax complications. 2. **Gift route**: Structure it as separate gifts using the annual exclusion limits ($18,000 per person per recipient in 2024), which would let you receive $72,000 gift-tax-free this year and the remainder next year. 3. **Hybrid approach**: Set up the loan with AFR interest but have your in-laws gift you back the interest payments each year within the annual exclusion limits. Given that your in-laws are in Europe (non-US residents), they generally won't have US gift tax obligations on cash gifts to you. However, since you're receiving over $10,000 from foreign accounts, you'll likely need to file FBAR reports. I'd strongly recommend getting this documented properly from the start - either as a legitimate loan with proper terms or as clearly structured gifts. The horror stories about IRS audits treating undocumented family money transfers as unreported income are real and expensive to fix after the fact.

I feel your pain - I'm in almost the exact same situation! Filed in late January and been stuck on "Return Received" with Topic 152 for over 2 months now. The daily checking becomes an obsession when you're waiting on money you need. One thing I learned is that Topic 152 basically means "we're processing but it's taking longer than usual" - not very helpful but at least it's not an error. The identity verification you already did was probably the right step. Have you tried calling the refund hotline at 800-829-1954? I know @Tyrone Johnson mentioned calling - I've had mixed luck but sometimes if you call right when they open (7am) you might get through. The automated system can sometimes give you a more specific timeline than the WMR tool. Hang in there - from what I've seen in other threads, most people with similar delays from January eventually get their refunds, it just takes way longer than it should. The IRS processing times have been brutal this year.

I'm dealing with the exact same nightmare - filed January 15th and still stuck on "Return Received" with Topic 152. It's now been over 3 months which is absolutely ridiculous. What's really frustrating is that the IRS website acts like 21 days is the normal processing time, but then you get trapped in this black hole where they just say "delayed beyond normal timeframe" with zero explanation of what that actually means or when it might resolve. I've seen some people say that once you hit the 120+ day mark, you can request a payment trace, but honestly at this point I'm losing faith that the IRS even knows where our returns are. The fact that @Klaus Schmidt has been waiting 5 months is terrifying. Has anyone had any luck with contacting their local Taxpayer Advocate Service? I'm thinking about reaching out to them since regular customer service seems useless. This whole situation is making me seriously consider hiring a tax professional next year just to avoid this mess.

Has anyone had issues with property tax reassessment when adding new trustees to an existing trust? Our county tried to claim it triggered a property tax reassessment when we updated our trust and added my sister as co-trustee.

Just wanted to add something that saved us a lot of headaches - make sure you understand the timing rules for the Section 121 exclusion with trusts. The "2 out of 5 years" primary residence test has to be met by the person who actually lived in the home, not just any trustee. In your case, since the original trustee lived there the entire 13 years, you're golden. But we almost made a mistake thinking that because my dad was added as a trustee 3 years ago, his residency timeline mattered too. It doesn't - only the person who actually used it as their primary residence. Also, keep detailed records of when the trust was updated and when new trustees were added. The IRS may want to see that the beneficial ownership didn't change, just the management structure. Since it remained revocable throughout, you should be fine, but documentation helps if questions come up later. One last tip: if you're expecting $450k in gains, even with the exclusion you might have some taxable portion depending on your filing status. Consider whether it makes sense to spread the sale across tax years or if there are any timing strategies that could help minimize the tax hit.

I'm in this exact situation - our income jumped from around $180k to $240k and suddenly we owe instead of getting a refund! Has anyone tried adjusting withholdings to account for this? I'm thinking of changing my W-4 to withhold an additional $200 per paycheck to avoid owing next year.

I went through almost the exact same situation two years ago - income jumped from $165k to $225k and suddenly owed $800 when we'd always gotten refunds before. The shock is real! What helped me understand it was realizing that our 401k contributions were still doing their job (reducing taxable income), but we were losing other benefits I didn't even know we had. The student loan interest deduction completely disappeared at our new income level, and we lost some education credits for my spouse's graduate courses. The other big factor was that more of our income was now taxed at higher marginal rates. When you're at $175k vs $228k, a much larger chunk of that income falls into the 24% bracket instead of the 22% bracket. That alone can create a significant difference in your tax liability. I'd definitely recommend running the numbers on adjusting your withholdings for 2025. We ended up increasing our 401k contributions slightly and adjusted our W-4 withholdings to account for the higher tax burden at our new income level.