11 Is anyone else confused about the Schedule K-1 requirements for a partnership with zero income? Our CPA wants to charge us $400 to prepare these forms even though we literally did nothing last year except form the LLC.

22 Quick tip from someone who's been there - if you're filing late for your partnership, include a letter explaining that you're first-time business owners who were unaware of the filing requirements. The IRS often waives penalties for first-time filers if you have a reasonable explanation!

Has anyone successfully used a GRAT with cryptocurrency? I've got a client with substantial ETH holdings who's interested in using a GRAT to transfer future appreciation to his kids, but I'm concerned about the valuation challenges and volatility issues.

This is such a timely discussion! I'm a tax attorney who's been working with GRATs for about 8 years, and I've seen their popularity absolutely explode since interest rates dropped. One thing I'd add to the excellent technical discussion here is that GRATs work particularly well in today's environment because the IRS 7520 rate (currently around 5.2%) is still relatively favorable for wealth transfer strategies. When you can reasonably expect assets to appreciate faster than that rate, the math becomes very compelling. For anyone considering a GRAT, I always recommend thinking about it as part of a broader wealth transfer strategy. We often pair them with sales to intentionally defective grantor trusts (IDGTs) or charitable lead annuity trusts (CLATs) depending on the client's goals. Also worth noting - while the Biden administration proposals haven't moved forward yet, there's still political appetite for GRAT reform. If you're on the fence about implementing one, the current rules might not be around forever. The proposed 10-year minimum term and minimum remainder value requirements would significantly reduce their effectiveness. Has anyone here dealt with IRS audits of GRAT valuations? I'm curious about others' experiences with the Service challenging initial asset valuations, especially for hard-to-value assets like private company interests.

Quick question - I'm also in Denver and planning to sell a rental soon. Does anyone know if 1031 exchanges are harder to complete now with the tight real estate market? My concern is finding a replacement property in time.

Based on what everyone has shared here, it sounds like you're getting good advice from your accountant. The $187k gain will definitely impact your AGI, which could affect various tax credits and deductions you currently qualify for. One thing I'd add that hasn't been mentioned yet - make sure you're accounting for any improvements you made to the rental property over the years. Those can be added to your cost basis and reduce your taxable gain. Things like new roof, HVAC system, flooring, kitchen renovations, etc. Many people forget to include these when calculating their capital gains. Also, since you mentioned you've owned since 2017, don't forget about depreciation recapture if you've been claiming depreciation on the property. That portion gets taxed at 25% rather than the regular capital gains rates. Given the complexity and the large amount involved, it might be worth paying for a consultation with a tax professional who specializes in real estate transactions before you finalize the sale. They can run the numbers on different scenarios and help you understand exactly what credits you might lose and whether any timing strategies make sense for your situation.

Has anyone here successfully claimed a refund for Social Security taxes that were incorrectly withheld during their first two years on a J1? My university withheld FICA taxes from my first paycheck in 2023 all the way through 2024, and I only recently learned I shouldn't have been paying these taxes during that time. I've heard you can file Form 843 "Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement" along with a statement from your employer, but I'm wondering if anyone has actually gone through this process successfully.

I went through this exact same situation last year! I'm a J1 research scholar from India, and my university started withholding Social Security taxes in January 2024 after I had been exempt for my first two calendar years (2022-2023). What really helped me understand the timing was learning that the IRS counts any part of a calendar year as a full year for the exemption. So even though you only arrived in September 2023, that counts as your first year, 2024 as your second, and now 2025 is when the exemption ends. One thing to double-check is whether India and the US have a totalization agreement that might affect your situation. India doesn't have one with the US, so I definitely had to start paying once my exemption period ended. But since you mentioned you're from Brazil, and I saw in the comments that Brazil does have a totalization agreement, you might want to look into whether you can get a certificate of coverage from Brazilian social security authorities. Also, make sure your university is correctly calculating this. Some payroll departments make mistakes with international employees. I'd recommend getting a written explanation from them about why they're starting the withholding now, just to have it documented.

Has anyone tried just increasing their prices to cover the sales tax? I know it's not ideal but I wonder if customers would even notice a 6-8% increase if all your competitors are facing the same issue.

This is a really common issue that trips up a lot of dropshippers! The key thing to understand is that the Wayfair ruling changed how states determine nexus for sellers, but it didn't change the fundamental rule that legitimate resale purchases should be tax-exempt. Your supplier is charging you sales tax because they're treating you like a regular consumer rather than a reseller. The solution is definitely getting proper resale certificates as others mentioned, but here are a few additional tips: 1. Make sure your business is properly registered in your home state and you have a valid sales tax permit/license 2. Keep detailed records showing these are legitimate inventory purchases for resale 3. If your supplier pushes back, remind them that charging sales tax on legitimate resale transactions could actually create liability issues for them One thing I haven't seen mentioned yet - if you're approaching economic nexus thresholds in other states (typically $100k in sales OR 200+ transactions per year), you'll eventually need to register there anyway to collect and remit sales tax from your customers. But that's separate from this supplier issue. Don't let this eat into your margins unnecessarily - you shouldn't be paying sales tax on inventory purchases when you're a legitimate reseller!