For anyone still working on their ERC claim, be extremely careful about the documentation. I'm an office manager who handled our company's claim last year, and we just got notification of an audit. The IRS is scrutinizing these claims heavily! Make sure you have: - Specific documentation showing how COVID restrictions directly impacted your operations - Revenue comparisons by quarter showing exact percentage drops - Documentation proving you weren't double-dipping with PPP funds for the same wages - Complete and accurate quarterly payroll records The IRS is especially focused on the "partial suspension of operations" qualification. If you're claiming under that (rather than revenue drop), you need extremely solid evidence connecting government orders to your specific business limitations.

I'm in a similar situation - small business owner who kept employees during COVID but haven't filed for ERC yet. This January 31st deadline is really concerning! From what I'm reading here, it sounds like the key is having solid documentation ready. We had a 35% revenue drop in Q2-Q3 2020 and kept all 8 employees on payroll. I've been procrastinating on this because the paperwork seemed overwhelming, but with potentially $200k+ in credits at stake, I need to act fast. Has anyone successfully filed in the last few weeks of the deadline? I'm worried about the IRS being swamped with last-minute applications and potentially rejecting claims due to processing backlogs. Also wondering if there's any chance Congress might extend this deadline given how short the notice period is for legitimate businesses.

This is such a creative solution to help your family! I'm dealing with a similar mixed-use situation with my home office that doubles as a guest room. One thing I learned is that the IRS really looks at the "but for" test - meaning would you have incurred this expense "but for" the business activity? In your case, since you literally cannot operate your rental business without somewhere to live during the rental season, that strengthens your position significantly. A few additional considerations: Make sure you're documenting everything - dates you move in/out of the camper, rental bookings, any maintenance or improvements to the camper that are business-related. Also consider whether you're depreciating the house itself as rental property (you can't depreciate your primary residence, but since you're renting it out seasonally, portions may be depreciable). The seasonal nature actually works in your favor here compared to year-round mixed use. Keep detailed logs showing the clear business purpose during those 6 months. Good luck with your rental business!

This is such a thoughtful way to handle your family's situation! I'm really impressed by how you've turned a challenging circumstance into a successful business opportunity. From what I've seen with similar cases, your situation actually has some strong advantages for tax purposes. The fact that you ONLY use the camper during rental season and it's directly tied to your ability to operate the business makes it much more defensible as a business expense than typical mixed-use scenarios. A few things to consider beyond what others have mentioned: 1. **Timing matters** - Since you're using the camper exclusively during your rental season, you might be able to argue for a higher business-use percentage than the typical 50/50 split for mixed-use property. 2. **Documentation is key** - Keep a detailed calendar showing when you're in the camper vs. the house, along with your rental bookings. This creates a clear paper trail linking the camper use to business necessity. 3. **Consider the "exclusive use" test** - While you live in the camper, you're doing so specifically to enable your rental business. This isn't like using a car for both personal and business trips - it's more like temporary lodging required for business operations. 4. **Don't forget startup costs** - If this is your first year operating the rental business, some of these expenses might qualify as startup costs rather than ongoing business expenses, which could affect how you deduct them. Have you considered consulting with a tax professional who specializes in rental properties? Your situation is unique enough that getting professional guidance could really pay off, especially given the income you're generating from the rental.

Just wanted to share something important that bit me last year. If you use the trailer for personal use AT ALL, you need to track the percentage of business vs personal use. Section 179 deduction gets reduced proportionally. So if you use that dump trailer 80% for business and 20% for personal projects, you can only deduct 80% of the cost under Section 179. Keep a log of usage if there's any chance of personal use - dates, job sites, clients, miles, etc. Solid documentation is crucial if you ever get audited!

Great question about the Section 179 deduction! I actually went through this exact situation with my landscaping business last year when I bought a used skid steer. The good news is that used equipment absolutely qualifies for Section 179 as long as it meets the requirements - which it sounds like your dump trailer will. A few key points to keep in mind: Make sure you have solid documentation of the purchase price and business use percentage. Since you mentioned it'll be used 100% for business, that's perfect. Also, consider the timing - the equipment needs to be "placed in service" (actually used in your business) by December 31st to qualify for this year's deduction. One thing that helped me was keeping a simple business use log from day one, even though I was using the equipment 100% for business. It's just good practice in case the IRS ever has questions. The documentation really pays off during tax season when you're filling out Form 4562. For a $5500 purchase, Section 179 can save you a significant amount compared to depreciating it over several years. Just make sure your LLC has enough taxable income this year to take full advantage of the deduction, since Section 179 can't create a business loss.

For anybody looking for alternatives, I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the past 3 years after getting fed up with TurboTax's constant price increases. Federal filing is completely free and state is only $14.99 (way cheaper than the $49+ that TurboTax charges). Even better, they don't do that annoying thing where they make you pay more for basic tax situations like having an HSA or needing to file a Schedule D for stock sales. The interface isn't quite as polished as TurboTax but it gets the job done and saves me about $100 every year.

This is exactly why I've been telling people to avoid TurboTax for years! I used to work seasonal tax prep and saw so many people get trapped by their pricing tactics. The "free" advertising is completely misleading - they know most people won't qualify for truly free filing once they start entering real information. What really bothers me is how they target people who can least afford these fees. Your sister making $32k as a teaching assistant should absolutely be able to file for free, but they deliberately make it confusing to find the actual free options. I always recommend people start with the IRS website first at irs.gov/freefile to see what they actually qualify for before going to any commercial tax site. And if you do need to use a paid service, FreeTaxUSA is hands down the best value - I've been using them for 4 years and never had an issue. Thanks for sharing this warning - hopefully it saves other people from the same frustrating experience!

Has anyone who experienced this actually received their refund yet? And if so, did you have to provide any additional documentation to the IRS, or did it just eventually process on its own?

I'm dealing with the exact same situation! Filed on March 5th, got the 5-day denial on March 12th, and now my SBTG account shows "not found" as of yesterday. As a fellow gig worker, this is really stressing me out since I need to make my Q1 estimated payment soon. Based on what everyone's sharing here, it sounds like this is unfortunately normal for our type of returns this year. I'm going to check my transcript tomorrow to look for those TC 570 and TC 971 codes that were mentioned. Really hoping this resolves within the 7-14 business day timeframe that Nora mentioned. Has anyone found that contacting the IRS actually helps speed this up, or should I just wait it out?