Don't forget to update your W-4 with your employer as soon as possible! I learned this lesson the hard way after my divorce.

I'm going through a similar situation right now and this thread has been incredibly helpful! Just wanted to add that if you're considering Head of Household status, make sure you understand the "more than half the year" requirement. Since you separated in March, you'll likely qualify if your kids have been living with you since then. But also remember that Head of Household requires that you paid more than half the cost of keeping up the home where your qualifying person lived. This includes things like rent/mortgage, utilities, food, and other household expenses - not just child support. The tax savings from HOH vs Single can be substantial, especially if you're in higher income brackets. It might be worth consulting with a tax professional to make sure you're maximizing all available benefits during this transition year.

Has anyone used TurboTax Business for their partnership return? We're a simple 50/50 LLC with basic income and expenses, wondering if it's worth the $200 or if there's a better option.

Great question! I went through this exact same confusion with my LLC last year. Just to add a few practical tips to what Emily covered: 1. Make sure you get an EIN (Employer Identification Number) for your LLC if you don't already have one - you'll need it for the 1065 form. 2. Keep really good records throughout the year of all income and expenses. The 1065 requires you to categorize everything properly, and it's much easier if you're organized from the start. 3. Don't forget about estimated quarterly payments! Even though the LLC doesn't pay taxes directly, you and your partner will likely need to make estimated payments on your individual returns based on your K-1 income. 4. Consider setting up a separate business bank account if you haven't already. It makes tracking business expenses so much cleaner when tax time comes around. The March 15 deadline is firm, so start gathering your documents in January. If you think you might be cutting it close, file that extension (Form 7004) early - it's better to be safe than sorry with those penalties!

Just my experience, but I deducted my hearing aids last year as a medical expense along with some dental work and surgery costs. The combined amount got me over the 7.5% threshold. When you file, make sure you keep all receipts and documentation from your audiologist about the medical necessity. I also got a letter from my doctor explaining why I needed them, which helped support the deduction.

It's not too complicated to itemize, especially if you have substantial medical expenses like hearing aids. You'll use Schedule A instead of taking the standard deduction. The key is making sure your total itemized deductions (medical expenses over 7.5% of AGI, state/local taxes, mortgage interest, charitable donations) exceed the standard deduction amount to make it worthwhile. For 2024, the standard deduction is $14,600 for single filers and $29,200 for married filing jointly. If your hearing aids plus other medical expenses get you over that 7.5% AGI threshold and your total itemized deductions beat the standard deduction, then it's worth doing. Most tax software will automatically calculate both scenarios and tell you which saves you more money.

just wanted to add that TurboTax will actually calculate your return both ways (jointly and separately) and tell you which one saves you more money! I use it every year and it always compares them automatically. super easy.

I went through this exact same dilemma when I got married! One thing that really helped me was creating a simple spreadsheet to track all our deductions and credits under both scenarios. Since you mentioned using TurboTax, definitely take advantage of their comparison feature, but also consider these factors: if either of you has high medical expenses, significant charitable donations, or if one spouse has much higher income than the other. The two-state situation actually isn't as complicated as it seems - most tax software handles it pretty smoothly regardless of filing status. My advice? Run the numbers both ways in TurboTax first, then if you're still unsure or the difference is small, consider getting a second opinion from a tax professional or one of those analysis tools others mentioned. Better to spend a little time now than leave money on the table!

I'm surprised nobody mentioned that you need to be careful with this if you're taking the simplified home office deduction of $5 per sq ft! If you go that route you cant deduct actual expenses like rent or utilities separately. You have to pick one method or the other.

I went through this exact same situation when I started freelancing! The key thing to remember is that you need to have an actual expense to deduct. Since your boyfriend pays the rent and you don't reimburse him, you technically don't have a deductible rent expense right now. However, there are a few ways to handle this: You could start paying your boyfriend for your portion of the rent (get a simple written agreement for documentation), or you could take over paying for other home expenses like utilities, internet, or maintenance that you can then deduct proportionally for your office space. Another thing to consider - if you're using 25% of the apartment exclusively for work, you might want to calculate both methods to see which gives you a better deduction. The actual expense method might be worth more than the simplified $5/sq ft method depending on your total housing costs, but the simplified method is much easier to track and document. Make sure whatever arrangement you set up, you keep good records. The IRS loves documentation for home office deductions!