For partnership taxation, the format matters less than consistent practice with examples. Whatever resource you choose, make sure to work through all the examples. I learned best by creating my own "case studies" and tracking basis through multiple years of contributions, operations, and distributions. One approach I found helpful was to start with a simple partnership with two equal partners, then work my way up to more complex scenarios - adding debt, special allocations, etc. Seeing how each new element affects the calculations helped me build a mental framework.

As someone who's been working with partnership taxation for about 15 years, I'd echo the book recommendations already mentioned - especially "The Logic of Subchapter K" as a starting point. But I wanted to add that the IRS's own "Advanced Issues in Partnership Taxation" course materials are actually quite good once you have the fundamentals down. They're available through the IRS website under their continuing education section. One thing I wish someone had told me early on: don't try to memorize all the rules at once. Partnership taxation is incredibly complex, and even experienced practitioners regularly reference materials. Focus on understanding the conceptual framework first - why partnerships are treated as pass-through entities, how basis protects partners from double taxation, and how allocations work in theory. The mechanical calculations become much easier once you grasp these underlying concepts. Also, consider joining the ABA Tax Section or your state's tax section - they often have partnership tax committees that publish practical guides and host webinars specifically for practitioners dealing with these issues.

I've been following this thread and wanted to share my experience as someone who went through this exact situation last year. The key thing that helped me was getting very specific about documentation from day one. I kept detailed logs of all my activities (cleaning, maintenance, guest communication, marketing) to support my material participation claim. One thing I didn't see mentioned is the importance of tracking your average stay calculation properly - the IRS looks at this on a property-by-property basis, not across your entire portfolio. So if you have multiple properties, each one gets evaluated separately for the 7-day test. Also, regarding the substantial services question - it's not just about what services you provide, but how they're provided. Daily cleaning that's mandatory vs. optional can make a difference in classification. The IRS has been getting more scrutiny on STR classification lately, so having solid documentation is crucial. For anyone still unsure about their situation, I'd recommend Form 8582 (Passive Activity Loss Limitations) as required reading - it walks through the material participation tests and has examples that might clarify your specific situation.

Great thread - I've learned a lot from everyone's experiences! One thing I wanted to add that helped me navigate this complexity is understanding the "facts and circumstances" test that the IRS uses when the rules aren't crystal clear. I run three short-term rentals and initially got conflicting advice from two different CPAs about classification. What finally clarified things for me was creating a comprehensive "Services Analysis" document that detailed every service I provide, how often, and whether guests pay extra for them or they're included. This helped determine which properties crossed the line into "substantial services" territory. For material participation documentation, I use a simple spreadsheet tracking: Date, Property, Activity Type, Hours Spent, and Notes. I log everything - guest communications, cleaning coordination, maintenance calls, marketing updates, even time spent researching local regulations. It takes maybe 5 minutes per day but creates an ironclad record. One surprise discovery: the IRS considers "arranging for services" as material participation time, not just doing the work yourself. So if you spend time coordinating with cleaning services, maintenance contractors, or property managers, that counts toward your participation hours. This was a game-changer for my calculations since I coordinate a lot of vendor services across my properties. The key is treating this like any other business venture - proper documentation from the start makes everything much smoother come tax time.

Has anyone successfully amended a return after the 3-year mark specifically for EIC issues? Did you face penalties?

I went through almost the exact same situation last year with my 2017 return. The key thing to understand is that the IRS has sophisticated matching systems that will absolutely catch the conflict when your ex files their return claiming the same child. Here's what I learned: You're correct that the 3-year deadline is mainly for getting refunds back, not for correcting errors. The IRS can assess additional tax on EIC issues for up to 6 years, and in some cases longer. I'd strongly recommend filing that 2018 amendment even though you won't get a refund. When I did mine, I included a detailed explanation letter with my divorce decree attached, clearly stating which credits I was entitled to versus which ones I wasn't. The IRS processed it without issues and actually sent me a letter acknowledging my voluntary compliance. The fact that your ex never filed their 2018 return actually works in your favor - it shows the IRS that you were the one trying to comply with tax obligations while they were ignoring theirs. When they finally do file, your proactive amendment will be on record showing good faith. One tip: keep detailed records of everything related to your child's custody and living arrangements for 2018. If the IRS does audit, they'll want proof of who was actually entitled to what.

FYI for anyone who's interested - another big misconception is about tax deductions vs tax credits. A deduction reduces your taxable income before the tax brackets are applied. So if you're in the 22% bracket, a $1000 deduction saves you $220. A credit reduces your actual tax bill dollar-for-dollar after all calculations. So a $1000 tax credit saves you $1000 regardless of your bracket. This is why tax credits (like Child Tax Credit) are generally more valuable than deductions of the same amount!

This is such an important topic! I work in tax preparation and the number of clients who come in terrified about getting a raise because they think it'll push them into a higher bracket and they'll "lose money" is astounding. One thing I always tell people is to think of tax brackets like buckets filling up with water. You fill the first bucket (10% bracket) completely before any water spills into the second bucket (12% bracket), and so on. The water in each bucket gets "taxed" at that bucket's rate, but the water in the first bucket doesn't suddenly become more expensive just because you filled up additional buckets. I also recommend people look at their actual tax return from last year - most tax software will show you exactly how much of your income fell into each bracket. It's really eye-opening when you see that even if you're "in the 24% bracket," most of your income was actually taxed at much lower rates. The real tragedy is that this stuff isn't taught in schools, so people make major financial decisions based on completely wrong assumptions about how taxes work.

Think of WMR like tracking a package that's moving through different warehouses - sometimes it updates when it reaches major checkpoints, but sometimes it doesn't scan properly and jumps straight to delivery! My sister and I filed on the same day last year, but her WMR updated three times while mine went from "Return Received" straight to "Refund Approved" with nothing in between. The system isn't perfect, but it generally works in the end.

As a government employee who works adjacent to tax processing (though not directly with IRS), I can confirm that batch processing systems like WMR are designed around operational efficiency rather than user convenience. The overnight updates make sense from a systems perspective - it's when server load is lowest and they can run intensive database operations without affecting daytime performance. That said, @AstroAce, your hourly checking habit is totally understandable! With three kids and summer planning, that financial certainty matters. One tip from the operational side: if you're not seeing movement after 7-10 business days from your filing date, that's when it might be worth checking your transcript or considering a call. Before then, you're mostly just seeing the normal processing queue work its way through. The inconsistencies others mention are real - different processing centers, different workloads, and honestly, different legacy systems that don't always play nicely together. It's frustrating from both sides of the equation!