Weirdly, my tax software (TurboTax) asked me if I knew the basis amount even though box 2a was blank on my 1099-R. Anyone else have this happen? Not sure if I should override what's on the form.

I went through this exact same situation last year! The blank box 2a on your 1099-R for a Roth IRA withdrawal is actually pretty common and usually means your financial institution doesn't have enough information to determine what portion is taxable. Here's what I learned: You'll need to calculate this yourself using Form 8606. The key is figuring out your "basis" - basically all the contributions you've made to your Roth IRA over the years (not including any earnings/growth). If your $2,700 withdrawal is less than your total lifetime contributions, then it's likely completely non-taxable and you'd enter $0 for the taxable amount. But if you've withdrawn more than you've contributed, then part of it could be taxable earnings subject to penalties. I'd strongly recommend contacting your IRA custodian to get a statement of your contribution history before filing. They should be able to tell you exactly how much you've contributed versus earnings. Don't guess on this - the IRS can be pretty strict about retirement account distributions!

Just download it and take screenshots of the codes section. That way you can reference it easier when people try to help explain things to you

I totally get your confusion! CP74 notices can be really overwhelming when you're not familiar with them. Based on what you described, it sounds like you previously had your Child Tax Credit denied (probably flagged for potential fraud or errors), and you successfully completed Form 8862 to recertify for those credits. The good news is that the notice is saying you're all set - your credits have been restored and you should get your refund within 6 weeks! The best part is you won't have to deal with Form 8862 again for these credits in the future. Just keep an eye on your bank account and maybe check your transcript in a few weeks to see if there's a refund date posted. You're basically in the home stretch now! 🎉

Great question about personal assistant deductions! I've been doing bookkeeping for several independent contractors in real estate, and there are a few additional deductions you might be missing. Since you mentioned driving to properties and running errands, make sure you're tracking ALL business miles - not just client meetings but trips to the post office, bank deposits, picking up supplies, etc. Many people only track the obvious trips. For your phone, if you have one line used for both business and personal, you can deduct the business percentage. But if you can get a separate business line, that's 100% deductible and often worth it for the clean record-keeping. One thing people often overlook: professional development expenses. Any courses, certifications, or training related to real estate or admin work are fully deductible. Same with professional memberships or subscriptions to industry publications. Also consider equipment depreciation if you bought a computer, printer, or other office equipment primarily for work. You can either deduct the full cost in the first year (Section 179) or depreciate it over several years. Keep tracking everything in a dedicated business account if possible - makes record-keeping so much cleaner come tax time!

One deduction that's often overlooked for personal assistants in real estate is professional liability insurance! If you're handling sensitive client information or have access to property details, many real estate agents require their assistants to carry E&O (Errors and Omissions) insurance. This is 100% deductible as a business expense. Also, since you mentioned working from cafes - while the coffee itself isn't deductible, if you're buying food/drinks while conducting actual business (like client calls or work meetings), those can qualify as business meals at 50% deduction. Just make sure to note the business purpose on your receipt. For your car expenses, don't forget that parking fees and tolls for business trips are fully deductible on top of your mileage. And if you're using your personal vehicle regularly for work, consider tracking actual expenses (gas, maintenance, insurance percentage) vs. standard mileage rate - sometimes actual expenses work out better, especially if you drive an older, less fuel-efficient vehicle. One last tip: if your broker requires you to maintain a professional appearance for showings, while regular business attire isn't deductible, any special cleaning/dry cleaning costs for clothes worn exclusively during business activities can sometimes qualify. Keep those receipts and notes about the business purpose!

This is incredibly frustrating and unfortunately all too common with TurboTax. I had a similar experience two years ago where my entire filing history just vanished from my account. After weeks of back-and-forth with their support team (who kept asking me to verify information I'd already provided multiple times), I finally got it resolved, but it was a nightmare. A few things that might help: First, if you have your AGI (Adjusted Gross Income) from your 2023 return, you can use that to request transcripts directly from the IRS at irs.gov/get-transcript. Second, check if you saved any screenshots or took photos of your completed return before submitting - sometimes people do this without thinking about it. Third, look through your email for ANY communication from TurboTax around your filing date, even marketing emails, as these sometimes contain account references that can help their tech team locate your missing data. The social media approach mentioned by others really does work - their Twitter support team seems to have more authority than phone reps. Just be persistent and document everything. Don't let them wear you down with their incompetence.

I feel your pain! I went through almost the exact same thing with TurboTax two years ago. What finally worked for me was filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). You can do this online at consumerfinance.gov - it's free and takes about 10 minutes. Companies are required to respond to CFPB complaints within 15 days, and I got a call from TurboTax's executive customer service team within 3 days of filing. They were able to locate my missing returns and fix the account linking issue. Turns out there was a database migration problem that affected thousands of accounts, but regular customer service wasn't authorized to access the old database. The CFPB complaint route seems to bypass all the regular support nonsense and gets you to people who actually have the authority and technical access to fix these problems. Worth trying alongside the Twitter approach others mentioned.

One thing to remember is that if your non-refundable credits exceed your tax payable, you don't get to carry forward the unused portion (with a few exceptions like tuition credits). This is different from refundable credits like GST/HST credits that can actually generate a refund regardless of your tax owing. For example, if your tax owing is $5,800 but you have $7,000 in non-refundable credits, your tax is reduced to $0, but you "lose" the extra $1,200 in credits. This is why they're called "non-refundable" - they can't generate a refund by themselves.

Jst wanted to add that one of the most commonly overlooked things is that u should maximize ur RRSP contributions if u have room. This will lower ur net income which reduces the taxes owing BEFORE the non-refundable credits are applied! Double win!