5 Quick tip that worked for me: You can also request your Wage and Income Transcript directly from the IRS, which shows all income reported under your SSN including W-2s and 1099s. You can request it online at irs.gov if you create an account. The only downside is that these transcripts sometimes don't become available until May or June for the previous tax year, which isn't helpful if you're trying to file by the April deadline. But at least it confirms what was or wasn't reported.

Just to add another perspective - I work in HR and deal with this situation fairly regularly. A few additional things to consider: If your employer paid you with a personal check and didn't complete proper onboarding (like the I-9), there's a good chance they're treating you as an independent contractor rather than an employee, even if you worked on-site. In that case, you'd receive a 1099-NEC instead of a W-2. However, if they had you working like a regular employee (set schedule, using their equipment, under their supervision), you should be classified as an employee regardless of how they paid you. This is important because it affects your tax obligations and potential refunds. I'd recommend keeping detailed records of your employment situation - emails, job description, work schedule, etc. This documentation could be crucial if there's ever a dispute about your worker classification. The IRS has specific criteria for determining employee vs. contractor status, and misclassification is actually pretty common with smaller employers.

Sorry this happened to you. Just to add a warning - be extra careful with this. My friend tried to claim stolen crypto as a loss in 2024 and got audited. The IRS made him provide tons of documentation. They're REALLY suspicious about crypto "theft" claims since some people try to use it to avoid taxes. Make sure you have solid proof it was actually stolen!

I went through something very similar last year when my hardware wallet got compromised and $15k in crypto was stolen. Here's what I learned from working with a tax attorney: You absolutely need to report the "sale" on Form 8949 as if you disposed of the crypto on the date it was stolen, but you can also claim a theft loss. The key is having bulletproof documentation - police report, wallet provider confirmation of unauthorized access, transaction logs showing the transfer to unknown addresses, and any communication attempts with exchanges where the thief cashed out. One thing that helped my case was getting a forensic analysis from a blockchain analytics company that traced the stolen funds and showed they were mixed/tumbled, which is classic money laundering behavior thieves use. This cost me about $500 but was worth it during my audit. Also, keep in mind that theft losses are subject to a $100 floor per incident, and you can only deduct the amount that exceeds 10% of your adjusted gross income. So depending on your income, you might not be able to deduct the full loss amount. The process is stressful but doable if you have proper documentation. Don't let the fear of an audit stop you from claiming what you're legally entitled to claim.

Maybe I'm missing something, but wouldn't it be easier to just open a separate personal checking account dedicated only to the basketball game money? Label it clearly as "Basketball Court Fund" or something. That way, all the money going in matches exactly with the money going out to pay for the court, and it's completely separate from your personal finances.

I've been in a similar situation with my neighborhood book club where we pool money for venue rentals and refreshments. One thing that's helped me is creating a simple "pass-through fund agreement" that all participants sign at the beginning of each season. The agreement states that I'm acting solely as a collection agent, that all funds belong collectively to the group, and that I receive no personal benefit from handling the money. While this doesn't eliminate the need for good record-keeping, it creates a paper trail showing the intent and nature of the arrangement from the start. I also send a simple monthly summary to all participants showing total collected vs. total spent, which creates transparency and further documents that this isn't personal income. It takes maybe 10 minutes per month but gives everyone (including me) peace of mind about how the money is being handled.

Wait I'm confused. If my 401k contributions already reduced my taxable income on my W-2, does that mean I shouldn't be claiming the Retirement Savings Contribution Credit (Saver's Credit) for my 401k contributions?? Been doing my taxes wrong for years if that's the case...

This is exactly the kind of confusion I had when I first started contributing to my 401k! You're absolutely right to double-check this because it can seem counterintuitive at first. What you're seeing is completely normal and correct. Your employer withholds your 401k contributions before calculating your federal income tax, which is why your W-2 Box 1 (wages subject to federal income tax) is already reduced by your $7,600 in contributions. TurboTax is simply using that pre-reduced amount from Box 1. To verify this is working correctly, look at your final paystub from December 2024. You should see your gross pay for the year, then deductions including your 401k contributions, and then your "taxable wages" should match what's in Box 1 of your W-2. This confirms your employer did the math correctly before issuing your W-2. The beauty of traditional 401k contributions is that this tax benefit happens automatically through payroll - no additional forms or calculations needed on your part during tax season!

Not a tax professional, but I've owned an S Corp for 10+ years. One thing to consider - if your business consistently has $350k cash on hand, you might actually be OVER-paying taxes by keeping too much in the company. The IRS sometimes looks at excessive retained earnings as a sign you're trying to avoid taking distributions or salary.

I'd definitely recommend getting professional advice from a CPA who specializes in S-Corps before making any large transfers. While the other commenters are right about distributions being legal, there are several factors to consider beyond just the tax implications. First, make sure you're truly taking a "reasonable salary" - $24k annually might be too low depending on your industry and the amount of income your S-Corp generates. The IRS scrutinizes S-Corp owners who take minimal salaries while distributing large amounts, as it looks like you're trying to avoid payroll taxes. Second, consider the timing of a large distribution. If you take $250k out right before year-end, it could create cash flow issues for paying estimated taxes on your business income. The business high-yield savings account suggestion is solid - you keep proper separation while earning interest. But if you do decide to take a distribution, document everything properly in your corporate minutes and consider spreading it across tax years to manage the impact on your personal tax situation. Have you run projections on what your total tax liability would look like with an additional $250k distribution this year?