Has anyone used the cost segregation strategy for rental property renovations? I heard you can depreciate some components much faster than 27.5 years. My accountant mentioned it might be worth looking into for my fourplex renovation but wanted to charge me $3000 for a study.

One thing to keep in mind is that if you're planning to hold this rental property long-term, depreciation is almost always the better choice over trying to claim repairs. Even if some of your $23,000 in costs could arguably be classified as repairs, the IRS tends to be pretty strict about what qualifies - especially for extensive work like kitchen and bathroom remodels. Since you mentioned using a property management company and having good documentation, you're already ahead of the game. Make sure to separate your costs by category (appliances, flooring, fixtures, etc.) because as others mentioned, some items may qualify for accelerated depreciation schedules. Also consider that you're required to take depreciation whether you claim it or not - the IRS will assume you took it when you sell, so you might as well get the tax benefit now rather than miss out on deductions and still face recapture later.

This happened at my last job - turns out they were having cash flow problems and cutting corners illegally. If a company is willing to do this, they're likely cutting other corners too. Start looking for another job immediately while you address this issue. Companies that steal from employees are rarely great places to build a career.

This is absolutely illegal and you need to act fast. As others have mentioned, employers are required by law to pay their portion of FICA taxes (7.65%) separately - they cannot deduct it from your wages. Here's what I'd recommend doing immediately: 1. Document everything - save digital and physical copies of all pay stubs 2. Calculate exactly how much they've taken (sounds like about $294 per paycheck based on your math) 3. Contact your state's Department of Labor to file a wage complaint 4. Consider filing a complaint with the IRS since this involves tax law violations The fact that this is happening at a small firm makes me wonder if they're struggling financially and trying to cut costs illegally. I'd also start quietly looking for other opportunities - companies that are willing to steal from employees often have other serious problems. You mentioned being hesitant since you just started, but remember: they're the ones breaking the law, not you. You have every right to be paid correctly according to federal and state regulations. Don't let them take advantage of you being new.

Did you enter any expenses for your DoorDash work? Don't forget you can deduct things like mileage (which is usually the biggest deduction), a portion of your phone bill, insulated delivery bags, etc. This can reduce your self-employment income, which means less self-employment tax. The Form 8995 is for the QBI deduction that others mentioned, but make sure you're getting all your expense deductions first!

I went through this exact same situation last year with my Uber Eats income! The good news is that Form 8995 is actually working in your favor, not against you. Since you only made $652 from DoorDash, you're looking at a potential deduction of around $130 (20% of your qualified business income). This will reduce your taxable income, which means you'll pay less in taxes overall. One thing I'd definitely recommend checking - did you track your mileage while doing DoorDash? The standard mileage deduction is 67 cents per mile for 2024, and this can significantly reduce your self-employment income before you even get to the QBI deduction. Even if you only drove 200 miles for deliveries, that's $134 in deductions right there. TurboTax will walk you through everything step by step. For simple cases like ours with small gig income, the Form 8995 questions are pretty straightforward. Don't stress - you're actually getting tax benefits you might not have known about!

Has anyone heard of doing a Section 1031 exchange instead? My tax guy mentioned this could be an option for avoiding tax on the insurance proceeds rather than doing a partial disposition.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - had a fire damage part of my duplex rental property last fall. One thing I learned that might help is to make sure you're properly separating the accounting for the old damaged component versus the new replacement. For the partial asset disposition, you'll want to remove the entire adjusted basis of the old roof from your depreciation schedule (this creates your loss on Form 4797). Then for the new roof, you establish a fresh depreciable asset at its full cost basis, which you'll depreciate going forward. The insurance reimbursement doesn't affect the loss calculation for the disposed roof - it's treated as a separate transaction that offsets the cost of the replacement. Just make sure to keep really good records showing the timeline of events (storm damage date, replacement completion, insurance payment received) since the IRS likes to see clear documentation on casualty loss situations. Also worth noting - if you do elect the partial disposition, make sure your depreciation software or accountant properly removes the old roof from your depreciation schedule. I've seen cases where people claim the loss but forget to stop depreciating the disposed asset, which can cause issues down the road.

I believe I may have found some information that could possibly explain the delays... The PA Department of Revenue seems to be processing returns in three tiers this year: simple returns (just W-2 income), moderate complexity (including some deductions), and complex returns (with business income or multiple schedules). They appear to be prioritizing the simple returns first, which might explain why some people who filed later are getting refunds sooner?

I'm in a similar situation - filed my PA return on February 8th and still waiting after 5 weeks. What's really frustrating is that I called the automated status line and it just keeps saying "your return is being processed" with no timeline. I've been through a divorce too and really need this money for moving expenses. It's reassuring to know I'm not alone in this wait, but the uncertainty is killing me. Has anyone had luck getting actual information by calling during specific hours, or is it just the same runaround no matter when you call?