ya its still there but only if u file early

Good idea about calling customer service! I tried that last year and they actually gave me a heads up a few days before it went live on the website. Worth a shot if you're really eager to get started early 📞

Thanks for clarifying this! This is exactly what I was wondering about with the AGI tiebreaker. So if we have a perfect 50/50 split (which rarely happens due to holidays and such), then whoever has the higher income would be considered the custodial parent for determining Head of Household status?

Exactly! In a perfect 50/50 split situation where each parent has the child for exactly the same number of nights, the IRS uses the higher AGI as the tiebreaker to determine who's considered the custodial parent for Head of Household purposes. But you're right that perfect 50/50 splits rarely happen in practice. If your daughter stays with you even one more night than with your ex during the tax year, you'd be considered the custodial parent regardless of income levels. This is why keeping a calendar or documentation of overnight stays can be really important in your situation.

Is there a specific form or worksheet for calculating if you paid more than half the cost of keeping up the home? I'm also divorced and wondering how exactly to figure this out.

The IRS doesn't have a specific form for this calculation, but they do provide a worksheet in Publication 501 that helps you figure out if you paid more than half the cost of keeping up your home. You'll want to add up things like rent/mortgage payments, property taxes, mortgage interest, utilities, repairs and maintenance, property insurance, and food consumed in the home. Then compare that total to what others in your household contributed toward these same expenses. Since you're divorced and living alone except when your child is with you, this should be pretty straightforward - you're likely paying 100% of these costs yourself. Just keep receipts and records of your major housing expenses in case you need to prove it later.

Your accountant is actually correct about this. When you have casualty damage to a rental property, you need to reduce your basis by the entire amount of the damage - which includes both what insurance paid AND your out-of-pocket loss. This prevents you from getting a double tax benefit. Think of it this way: The damaged portion no longer exists, so your basis should be reduced by its entire value. The fact that insurance reimbursed you for part of it and you had a deductible for another part doesn't change the fact that portion of the property is gone.

This is really helpful context! I hadn't thought about the repair vs. replacement distinction. The roofing contractor did use similar materials and the work was really just restoring that damaged section back to how it was before the storm - no upgrades or improvements. Do you know what kind of documentation I'd need to support treating it as a repair rather than a casualty loss? I have the insurance adjuster's report and the contractor's invoice, but I'm not sure if that's enough to make the case to the IRS that this should be Schedule E treatment instead of Form 4797. Also, how do I figure out the depreciation that's specifically attributable to just that damaged roof section? My depreciation schedule just shows the entire building as one asset.

@Ivanna St. Pierre Thanks for mentioning the education credits - I did claim the AOTC so that could definitely explain the delay! I hadn t realized'that specific credits could trigger additional review periods. It s reassuring'to know I m not'the only cycle 05 person still waiting. The apartment hunting stress is definitely real, but you re right'that most landlords seem to understand the tax season timing. I ll keep'checking my transcript and try to be patient with the process.

This is really helpful insight from someone who works in the field! I had no idea that education credits required cross-referencing with 1098-T forms in a separate department - that definitely explains why some of us are seeing longer delays. The tip about asking landlords for a contingent lease or smaller holding deposit is brilliant too. I've been so focused on the refund timing that I hadn't thought about alternative arrangements. Thanks for breaking down what the 150 transaction code means - I'll know what to look for now when checking my transcript.

I used H&R Block Premium last year for a QSBS gain. You report it on Schedule D and Form 8949 with code "Q" in column (f). The software asked me questions about the $50M asset test and other requirements, then calculated the exclusion percentage based on my holding period. Just make sure you have documentation from the company confirming they met the requirements.

This is really helpful clarification! I'm curious about one scenario though - what happens if you invest in multiple rounds of the same company? Let's say I invested $5K in their seed round when they had $20M in assets, then another $10K in their Series A when they had $45M in assets. Would both investments qualify for QSBS treatment, or does the later investment somehow affect the earlier one's qualification? Also, when you mention asking companies for their asset levels "immediately before AND immediately after" the investment - how precise does this timing need to be? If the company closes a $30M round over several weeks with different investors, does each investor get evaluated based on when their specific wire transfer cleared, or is it based on when the round officially closed for everyone?

Great questions @Liv Park! Each investment round is evaluated independently for QSBS qualification, so your seed round investment at $20M assets and Series A investment at $45M assets would both qualify separately as long as each met the requirements at their respective times. One round's qualification doesn't affect another's. For the timing precision - this is where it gets technical. The asset test is applied when the corporation issues the stock, not when you wire the money. In a rolling close scenario, each investor's stock issuance date matters. So if the company had $45M in assets when they issued your shares but $52M when they issued shares to someone who invested a week later, your shares could qualify while theirs wouldn't. Most startups handle this by doing formal closings in tranches (e.g., "First Close" with $20M raised, then "Second Close" with additional $10M). The company's asset level at each closing date determines QSBS qualification for that tranche of investors. This is why getting the exact stock issuance date from the company is crucial, not just the overall round timeline.