Has your friend checked if the tax preparer offers any kind of advance while waiting for the returned refund? Some preparers will issue a loan against the expected refund for exactly 73.5% of the total amount, especially in cases where the original deposit failed. The remaining 26.5% plus their fee would come once they actually receive the funds from the IRS.

Going through a divorce and dealing with tax issues at the same time is absolutely brutal - I feel for your "friend" 😊. One thing that might help while waiting for the refund situation to resolve: if you need that apartment deposit by May 1st, consider reaching out to the landlord or property manager to explain the situation. Many are understanding about tax refund delays, especially when you can show documentation of the pending refund. Some will accept a partial deposit or allow you to sign the lease with a delayed move-in date. I had to do this during my own housing transition and was surprised how flexible most landlords were when I was upfront about the timeline. Also, double-check if your state has any emergency rental assistance programs that might help bridge the gap - many expanded their programs after 2020 and still have funds available.

I've been a tax preparer for 6 years and see this ALL THE TIME. Some payroll systems just can't handle combining different pay rates/positions into one W-2, so they issue multiple ones. It's totally normal. Just enter each W-2 exactly as it appears. Don't combine them yourself. Tax software is designed to handle multiple W-2s from the same employer correctly. The IRS computers will match each W-2 they received from your employer with what you report.

Hey Zara! I totally get the panic - I had the exact same thing happen to me two years ago when I switched departments mid-year. It's actually super straightforward once you know what to do. Just to add to what everyone else has said - when you're entering the W-2s in your tax software, make sure you keep them in chronological order if possible (earliest job period first). It doesn't technically matter for the calculations, but it helps you stay organized and makes it easier to double-check your entries. Also, one thing that helped calm my nerves was printing out a summary page after entering everything to see the combined totals. Most tax software will show you a breakdown of how all your W-2s contributed to your total income and withholdings. Seeing it all laid out clearly really helped me feel confident that everything was correct. You've got this! The fact that you're being careful and asking questions means you're going to handle it just fine.

Great question about 743(b) adjustments! I went through something very similar when I sold my interest in a strip mall partnership last year. The key thing to understand is that your remaining 743(b) adjustment doesn't just disappear - it becomes part of your adjusted basis in the partnership interest when you sell. So in your case, that remaining ~$203,000 would increase your basis, which means it reduces your taxable gain (or increases your loss) when you sell. Think of it this way: you originally got the 743(b) adjustment because you paid more for your partnership interest than your proportionate share of the partnership's inside basis. When you sell, that "extra" amount you paid (minus what you've already depreciated) still has value - it's just realized as part of your sale transaction rather than through ongoing annual deductions. Make sure you get detailed documentation from your partnership showing exactly how much of your original adjustment has been used through depreciation. This is crucial for calculating your correct adjusted basis. Also consider having an independent review done if the sale amount is significant - I found a small error in my partnership's calculations that would have cost me several thousand in extra taxes. The buyer won't get your old adjustment, but they may qualify for their own new 743(b) adjustment if the 754 election is still in effect at the time of sale.

Yes, you've got it exactly right! That remaining $180K would indeed increase your adjusted basis in the partnership interest, which directly reduces your taxable gain (or increases your loss) when you sell. This is why the timing and documentation are so critical. What many people don't realize is that this can actually make selling "early" more tax-efficient in some situations, especially if you're in a higher tax bracket now versus what you might be in future years when taking the annual depreciation deductions. You're essentially accelerating the tax benefit of that remaining adjustment. Just be extra careful with the calculations. In my strip mall situation, the partnership had been incorrectly allocating part of my adjustment to land (which doesn't depreciate) versus the building improvements. This error would have overstated my remaining adjustment by about $15K, leading to an incorrect basis calculation on sale. I'd strongly recommend getting those partnership records well before you're ready to sell. Some partnerships are slower than others at providing detailed breakdowns, and you don't want to delay a time-sensitive sale waiting for proper documentation of your adjusted basis.

Quick question - does anyone know if selling equipment/fixtures when closing a business is handled the same way as inventory? I'm about to close my soap making business and will be selling my equipment along with remaining inventory.

As someone who just went through closing my small consulting business last month, I wanted to add that timing can be really important here. Since you mentioned you're down to the wire with filing, make sure you don't miss any quarterly estimated tax payments that might be due if you had other income during the year. Also, when you report the $8,400 from scrapping on Schedule C, double-check that you're not forgetting any other business expenses from the year - things like storage costs for the inventory, shipping to the refiner, or any professional fees you paid for advice on closing the business. These can all be legitimate deductions that might help offset some of that inventory loss. One last thing - keep really good documentation of the scrapping transaction (receipts from the refiner, weights, metal content analysis, etc.) in case the IRS ever questions how you arrived at the $8,400 figure or the original $12,000 cost basis.

Don't forget that even though you filed an extension, you still need to submit your return by October 15th to avoid late filing penalties! Extension season always goes by faster than people expect.

Just wanted to chime in with my experience - I switched from TurboTax to FreeTaxUSA after filing an extension and it worked perfectly! The key thing to remember is that your extension (Form 4868) is completely separate from your actual tax return filing method. I was in a similar boat with TurboTax trying to charge me $89 for federal plus state fees. FreeTaxUSA ended up costing me only $15 for state filing (federal was completely free) and walked me through everything step by step. The interface isn't as fancy as TurboTax but it gets the job done and their support was actually more helpful when I had questions. One tip: make sure you have all your documents organized before you start with any new service since you'll be entering everything fresh. Also double-check that any estimated tax payments you made with your extension are properly reflected in the payments section of your return. Good luck!