have you tried checking your transcripts with taxr.ai? helped me understand why mine was stuck

checking it out now, thanks fam 💯

82 days is rough but at least you got it! I'm worried mine might take even longer since it's for 2022 taxes. Did you get any updates on your transcript during those 82 days or did it just randomly show up?

@Tyler Lefleur That s'actually really encouraging to hear! 82 days seems more manageable when you know there s'light at the end of the tunnel. Quick question - did your transcript show any movement during those 82 days or did everything just update all at once when they finished the review?

Bad idea. Most government agencies report payments to the IRS. The county will likely issue a 1099 for the payment, so the IRS will know about it. If you don't report it, you'll probably get a letter asking why the income reported to them doesn't match what you reported on your return. Even if they didn't issue a 1099, intentionally failing to report income is tax fraud. Not worth the risk over a small amount that might not even result in much tax anyway if you calculate the basis correctly.

Great questions! For the independent appraisal, you absolutely have the right to challenge their offer. Many people don't realize that the initial government offer is often negotiable. If you think $3,200 is low, getting your own appraisal could help you negotiate a higher amount - and that higher amount would then be used for your tax calculations too. Regarding improvements like landscaping, those should definitely be included in your basis calculation if they added value to the property. Keep receipts for the landscaping work you did in that area. The tricky part is determining what portion of those improvements is allocable to the specific strip being taken. For the involuntary conversion deadlines, you generally have until the end of the second tax year following the year you receive the payment to reinvest in qualifying replacement property. But there can be exceptions, so definitely confirm the specific timeline that applies to your situation. Don't wait until the last minute to make these decisions!

Tax software doesn't always get it right though. I had a rollover that was coded incorrectly and the software didn't flag it. I had to manually override it or I would've paid penalties I didn't owe.

This is really helpful info! I had no idea about Form 5329 - I was just planning to use regular tax software and hoped it would handle everything automatically. The 401k loan idea is definitely something I wish I'd known about before. My plan actually did offer loans but nobody explained that it could've saved me thousands in taxes and penalties. Live and learn I guess! Thanks for mentioning the payment plan option too - with the penalty and taxes this is going to be a bigger hit than I expected.

This!! I almost made this exact mistake. My "mystery" 1099-G turned out to be for my state tax refund, not unemployment at all. Worth checking before assuming the worst.

Thank you for mentioning this! Since it's my daughter's sophomore year, I'm assuming the American Opportunity Credit would be the better option. Is there any reason I might want to choose the Lifetime Learning Credit instead if I qualify for both?

For a sophomore, AOTC is almost always the better choice. The maximum credit is higher ($2,500 vs $2,000), and 40% of the AOTC is refundable (up to $1,000), while the LLC is non-refundable. The only scenarios where LLC might be better would be if you've already claimed AOTC for 4 years for this student (not possible for a sophomore), or if your income is right at the phaseout threshold for AOTC but below the LLC phaseout. But that's a rare situation. For most people with a sophomore student, AOTC is definitely the way to go.

Did your son check the box that said he could be claimed as a dependent? Because if he didn't, and he claimed himself, that would cause issues. But if he indicated he COULD be claimed (even if he filed his own return), you should still be able to claim the education credit.

This is such an important point that catches so many families off guard! Just to clarify for others reading - if your student files their own return and claims their personal exemption (or doesn't check the box indicating they can be claimed as a dependent), then the parents lose the ability to claim education credits even if they actually paid all the expenses. The key is coordination between the student and parent returns. The student needs to indicate on their return that they CAN be claimed as a dependent (even if they're filing to get a refund of withholding), which then allows the parents to claim both the dependency exemption and education credits on their return. It's definitely worth having this conversation with college kids before tax season to avoid the amendment headache you went through!