Does anyone know if you need to keep any special documentation when renting to family below market value? My tax person said I should have some kind of formal rental agreement even though its my dad renting from me.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation - renting to my elderly parents below market rate. One thing I learned from my CPA is that you should also document WHY you're charging below market rent. In my case, I kept records showing that my parents help with property maintenance and yard work, which justifies some of the rent reduction. Also, make sure you're treating this like a real business relationship even though it's family. I set up automatic bank transfers for the rent payments so there's a clear paper trail, and I give my parents a receipt each month. The IRS wants to see that this is a legitimate rental arrangement, not just you letting family live there cheaply. One more tip - if your mother-in-law ever stays elsewhere for extended periods, keep track of those days. If the property is vacant for more than 14 days per year due to personal use (like if she visits other family), it affects your tax calculations even more.

Protip: if u have student loans call the dept of education directly. they usually have more updated info than the irs transcripts

Same issue here! My transcript is showing offsets from early 2024 but I know there should be more recent ones. The delay is so frustrating when you're trying to figure out your refund situation. Has anyone found that calling the IRS directly helps, or do they just tell you to wait for the transcript to update?

Has anyone used the TurboTax live expert feature for this kind of situation? I'm having a similar issue and wondering if it's worth the extra cost or if they just tell you generic advice you could find online.

I went through something very similar when I converted my home to a rental property mid-year. The 15-day rule is indeed frustrating, but don't worry - your expenses aren't lost! Here's what I learned after consulting with my CPA: Those $6k in expenses you mentioned are considered "startup costs" for your rental business. Since you didn't rent for 15+ days in 2023, you're right to delete the rental from your 2023 return per the software's guidance. For 2024, when you're actively renting, you have a few options: 1. Add all expenses to your property's basis and depreciate over 27.5 years 2. Make a Section 195 election to deduct up to $5,000 in startup expenses immediately in your first year of business, with the remainder amortized over 15 years The second option could be huge for you since you have $6k in expenses. You'd deduct $5k immediately in 2024 and spread the remaining $1k over 15 years. Make sure to categorize your expenses correctly between repairs (potentially immediately deductible once rental activity begins) versus improvements (must be capitalized). Keep detailed records of everything with receipts and descriptions. The key is that your rental business officially starts in 2024, not 2023, so that's when these rules kick in. Don't let the software trick you into thinking you've lost those deductions forever!

Saw this thread and thought I'd throw in my 2 cents. Last year I didn't file because "they already took taxes out of my checks so what's the point?" BIG MISTAKE. Got hit with failure-to-file penalties even though I didn't owe anything extra! Found out I was actually due a $1,320 refund but nearly lost it because there's a 3-year deadline to claim refunds. So yes, filing and paying are different, and yes, you need to file EVEN IF your employer withheld taxes already!!

Don't feel embarrassed at all - this is actually a really common confusion! Think of it this way: filing is like submitting your homework to show what you earned and what was already paid, while paying is the actual money changing hands. Since you mentioned your employer takes taxes out of every paycheck, you've likely been "paying" taxes all year long through those deductions (called withholding). When you file your return, you're basically doing the math to see if those payments were enough to cover what you actually owe. Most people in your situation either get a refund (because too much was withheld) or owe a small amount. The key thing is that filing is required regardless - even if you don't owe anything extra, you still need to submit that paperwork to the IRS. And if you're owed a refund, filing is the only way to get it! You've got this - it's way less scary once you understand the difference.

Has anyone successfully done this without including a letter from their employer? My situation is exactly like the OP's - employer is completely unresponsive, won't even acknowledge my emails about the incorrect FICA withholding.

I went through this exact same process last year and successfully got my $1,100 FICA refund! The key thing that helped me was being extremely thorough with documentation since my employer was also completely unresponsive. Here's what I included with my Forms 8316 and 843: - Copies of my I-20 showing F-1 status during the tax period - Copy of my EAD card for OPT authorization - All W-2 forms showing the incorrect FICA withholding - Screenshots of my I-94 entry/exit records - Every single email I sent to HR/payroll (I sent 7 over 3 months with zero responses) - A detailed timeline of my attempts to contact the employer For Form 843, I wrote a very specific explanation referencing IRS Publication 519 and the exact regulations that exempt F-1 students from FICA taxes. I also emphasized that this was employer error, not a student filing mistake. The whole process took about 8 months from mailing to receiving my check, but it was definitely worth it. Don't let your employer's unresponsiveness stop you from getting your money back - the IRS understands this is a common issue with international student taxation.