I've been self-employed in Texas for 5 years now and the best advice I can give is to set aside 25-30% of your earnings right away in a separate savings account. That way when tax time comes, you're not scrambling. Also, don't forget that Texas has no state income tax, which is one less thing to worry about compared to folks in other states!

The safe harbor rule that Nina mentioned is huge and could save you from penalties! Since you worked a regular W-2 job through July 2023, there's a good chance you already had enough taxes withheld to meet the safe harbor requirements. Here's what you need to check: Look at your 2022 tax return (Form 1040, line 24) to see your total tax liability. If your 2023 W-2 withholding equals or exceeds that amount, you're completely protected from underpayment penalties regardless of when you pay your self-employment taxes. For your situation with $5600 in self-employment income from October-December, you're looking at roughly $861 in self-employment tax (15.3%) plus regular income tax on that amount. If your W-2 withholding already covered your safe harbor requirement, you can simply pay everything when you file your 2023 return by April 15th without any penalties. Going forward for 2024, definitely start making quarterly estimated payments since you'll have self-employment income all year. The 25-30% rule Ruby mentioned is spot on - I'd lean toward 30% to be safe since you'll owe both regular income tax and the 15.3% self-employment tax.

Everyone's giving investment advice, but don't forget the basics: make sure you're calculating your cost basis correctly! If you've reinvested dividends over time, those increase your cost basis and reduce your taxable gains. Same with any fees paid. Also when you sell, specifially identify which shares you're selling rather than using the default FIFO (first in, first out) method. This lets you choose the highest-cost shares to sell, which minimizes your gain. Most brokerages allow this but you have to select it when selling.

Great discussion everyone! One strategy that hasn't been mentioned yet is donating appreciated stock directly to charity if you're charitably inclined. Instead of selling the stock (and paying capital gains tax) then donating cash, you can transfer the appreciated shares directly to a qualified charity. This gives you a double tax benefit: you get to deduct the full fair market value of the stock as a charitable contribution, AND you completely avoid paying capital gains tax on the appreciation. For example, if you bought stock for $10K that's now worth $15K, donating it directly lets you deduct the full $15K while avoiding tax on the $5K gain. You can also consider a donor-advised fund if you want to make the donation this year for tax purposes but decide on specific charities later. Just make sure the stock has been held for more than a year to qualify for the full fair market value deduction.

Just adding my experience - I took short term disability last year after surgery and realized months later that my company had taken taxes out of the payments but I had been paying the STD insurance premiums with after-tax dollars for years! I ended up having to file an amended return to get back about $900 in taxes. If you paid for the STD with after-tax money, double check your W-2 and paystubs. You might be paying taxes you don't actually owe.

I went through something very similar last year and want to share what I learned. The key thing is figuring out how your STD premiums were paid - this makes ALL the difference in how the benefits should be taxed. Here's what you need to check: Look at your pay stubs from before you went on disability and see if there's a line item for "STD" or "Short Term Disability" deductions. If those deductions were taken AFTER taxes were calculated on your gross pay, then the benefits you received should actually be tax-free. For bereavement leave, that's straightforward - it's always considered regular taxable wages since it's just paid time off from your employer. The tricky part is if your employer incorrectly treated tax-free STD benefits as taxable income on your W-2. This is surprisingly common because payroll departments don't always track the premium payment method correctly. If this happened to you, you'd need to get a corrected W-2 or file an amended return. I'd suggest calling your benefits department and specifically asking: "Were my STD premiums deducted pre-tax or after-tax?" Get that answer in writing if possible. If they were after-tax and your employer included the STD payments in your taxable wages, you're probably owed a refund.

Everyone keeps talking about whether you need to file, but nobody's mentioned that you might WANT to file even if you're not required to. If you had any federal tax withheld on those dividends (check box 4 on your 1099-DIV), you'd need to file to get that money back as a refund. Filing is free at your income level, so I'd just do it to be safe.

Based on what everyone's shared here, it sounds like you definitely need to file since your $1,800 in dividends exceeds the $1,250 threshold for unearned income that others mentioned. I'd also suggest checking your 1099-DIV form for any federal tax withholding in box 4 - if there's money there, filing would get you that back as a refund. The IRS Interactive Tax Assistant that Malik mentioned seems like a great starting point to confirm your filing requirement, and it's free and official. Even though you won't owe any taxes due to the standard deduction, filing keeps you compliant and might even put money back in your pocket if anything was withheld.

Since you're in Texas specifically, I wanted to mention that while we don't have state income tax (which is amazing), you might still have some local tax considerations depending on your situation. Some cities require permits or have special local taxes for certain types of businesses. Also, if you're doing any kind of physical product sales with your 1099 work, don't forget about sales tax collection requirements - that catches a lot of people by surprise here.

For most consulting services in Texas, you typically don't need special permits at the state level, but it can vary by city and county. Since you're doing remote consulting, you're probably fine, but I'd recommend checking with your local city clerk's office just to be safe. The main thing to consider is whether you need a general business license in your city - some require it for any business activity, even if it's just consulting from home. Also, if you're using a business name that's different from your legal name, you might need to file a DBA (Doing Business As) with your county. For tax purposes though, none of this changes your 1099 obligations. You'll still need to set aside that 30-35% regardless of permits. The good news is that any business license fees or permit costs are tax-deductible business expenses!