For a straight-to-the-point resource, check out "475 Tax Deductions for Businesses and Self-Employed Individuals" by Bernard Kamoroff. It's organized by category and gives practical examples for each deduction.

As someone who went from zero tax knowledge to confidently managing my small business taxes, I'd highly recommend starting with "J.K. Lasser's Small Business Taxes" - it's updated annually and has excellent worksheets you can actually use. The book walks through real scenarios step-by-step, which sounds perfect for your note-taking style. For a landscaping business specifically, pay close attention to equipment depreciation rules and vehicle expense tracking - these are huge deductions that many new business owners miss or calculate incorrectly. The book covers both Section 179 deductions and bonus depreciation in plain language. Definitely take that community college accounting course! I did the same thing (also came from a non-business background) and it was invaluable. The structured learning helped me understand the "why" behind tax strategies, not just the "what." Plus, you'll network with other small business owners facing similar challenges. One tip: before your first meeting with your tax preparer, read through at least one of these books so you can have an informed conversation about tax planning strategies for next year, not just compliance for this year.

Slightly off topic but make sure you're checking the official IRS "Where's My Refund" tool and not some scam site!!! There are tons of fake ones that look almost identical to the real thing. The real one is at irs.gov/refunds or through the IRS2Go app. I got tricked last year by googling "where's my refund" and clicking the first link, which asked for way more info than the IRS actually needs. Ended up with my identity stolen and had to freeze my credit. Just a warning since it's tax season and the scammers are out in full force!

As someone who's been through this exact situation, I can tell you that Monday-issued refunds are processed the same way as any other day - it depends on what you selected when filing. If you chose direct deposit, that's what you'll get. If you didn't provide bank info or there's an issue with your account, they'll send a check. For direct deposit on Monday issues, I've typically seen the money hit accounts by Wednesday or Thursday. My bank (Chase) usually shows it as pending Tuesday night and available Wednesday morning. However, some banks like credit unions can take until Friday. One thing to keep in mind - if there are any flags or issues with your return (like identity verification needed), the IRS might switch to paper check even if you requested direct deposit. This happened to my neighbor last year and caused a lot of confusion when the deposit never showed up. Since you need the money ASAP for car repairs, I'd suggest checking your bank account daily starting Tuesday and also keeping an eye on your mail just in case. The IRS customer service line is pretty backed up right now, but if nothing shows up by Friday, it might be worth trying to call them to verify the payment method.

Has anyone actually had success using a General Durable POA with the IRS? I've heard they ONLY accept their own Form 2848, period.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation with my father who's in memory care. One thing that helped me was contacting the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) - they're an independent organization within the IRS that helps taxpayers resolve problems. You can reach them at 1-877-777-4778 or apply online at taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov. In cases involving elderly taxpayers in care facilities and significant hardship, TAS can sometimes intervene and find alternative solutions to the standard in-person verification requirement. They specifically look for situations where following normal procedures would cause undue burden. You'll need to explain your mother's condition, the distance involved, and your own health issues. While there's no guarantee, TAS has more flexibility than regular IRS customer service and might be able to work out something like accepting additional documentation or allowing a third party (like the facility's social worker) to assist with verification. It's worth trying this route before assuming you have no choice but to make that trip to the IRS office.

Has anyone looked into whether you should be set up as a reseller for sales tax purposes? In my state, if I'm buying computer parts and then reselling them as part of a finished product, I can get a reseller certificate and avoid paying sales tax on the components. Might save you thousands if your state has similar rules.

This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm in a similar situation with my small electronics repair business. One additional consideration I'd suggest is keeping detailed records of which specific parts went into which projects, especially if you're working with multiple clients. I learned from my accountant that having clear project-by-project documentation not only helps with Schedule C but also makes it much easier to defend your deductions if the IRS has questions. I use a simple spreadsheet that tracks the date purchased, supplier, part description, cost, and which client project it was used for. Takes a few extra minutes per purchase but gives me complete confidence in my expense reporting. Also seconding the reseller permit advice - I got mine last year and the sales tax savings really add up when you're buying expensive components regularly.

This is a really helpful discussion! As someone new to rental property ownership, I'm learning so much about these tax rules. I have a follow-up question about the timing aspect - if I decide to capitalize the cabinet replacement as a single improvement project, do I depreciate it over 27.5 years like the rest of the rental property, or is there a different depreciation schedule for kitchen improvements specifically? Also, I'm curious about partial improvements - what if I only replace the upper cabinets this year and plan to do the lower cabinets next year? Would that change how the de minimis rule applies, since they'd be separate projects in different tax years? Or would the IRS still view this as one coordinated kitchen renovation that I'm just spreading out over time?

This is exactly the kind of situation where many rental property owners get tripped up! You're right to be cautious about your interpretation - the IRS has specific guidance that prevents exactly what you're considering. The key issue is that when purchases are made as part of a single improvement project, the IRS looks at the economic substance of the transaction, not just how you structure the invoices. A complete kitchen cabinet replacement would almost certainly be viewed as one coordinated improvement to your property, regardless of whether you buy the cabinets on separate trips or invoices. What you're describing - deliberately splitting purchases to stay under the $2,500 threshold - could be seen as an abusive tax avoidance scheme. The IRS has the authority to recharacterize transactions that lack economic substance beyond tax benefits. For your $9,000 kitchen cabinet project, you'd likely need to capitalize the entire cost and depreciate it over 27.5 years as part of your rental property. The de minimis safe harbor is really intended for truly separate, unrelated purchases - like buying a new water heater one month and fixing a fence the next month. My recommendation would be to treat this as a single capital improvement. It's better to be conservative with these rules than to take an aggressive position that could trigger penalties in an audit.