I just went through this same situation with my son's summer coding bootcamp internship! The 1099-NEC vs W-2 confusion is so real - I called the company three times trying to get them to "fix" it before realizing that's just how they handle interns. One thing that really helped us was using the home office deduction since he did a good portion of his work remotely. Even though he's a student living at home, we were able to deduct a percentage of utilities, rent, and internet for the space he used exclusively for internship work. TurboTax walked us through the simplified home office method which lets you deduct $5 per square foot up to 300 sq ft. Also, don't forget about the student loan interest deduction if you're paying any student loans - that can help offset some of the self-employment tax burden. The combination of business deductions, home office, and education-related credits really helped reduce the overall tax impact of that 1099 income. The Schedule C route is definitely correct, even though it feels weird calling a 3-month internship "self-employment." The IRS just cares about the form you received, not the nature of the work relationship.

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now! My daughter got a 1099-NEC from her summer research internship at a local nonprofit, and I was completely confused at first too. Like your husband, she's a full-time student with no other income. After reading through all the great advice here and doing some research, I can confirm that Schedule C is definitely the right approach. What helped me understand it better is that the IRS doesn't really care about the "intent" of the work arrangement - they just care about the form the company issued. Since they gave your husband a 1099-NEC instead of a W-2, they're treating him as an independent contractor for tax purposes. One thing I learned that might help you feel better about this: even though the self-employment tax seems scary at 15.3%, remember that regular employees pay 7.65% for their share of Social Security and Medicare taxes, and their employers pay the other 7.65%. As a "self-employed" person, your husband is essentially paying both halves, but he also gets to deduct business expenses that regular employees can't claim. The deduction possibilities really do add up - I was surprised how many legitimate expenses my daughter had that I hadn't initially thought of. Make sure to track everything from mileage to any supplies or software he needed for the internship. Good luck with the filing!

I'm dealing with a similar situation right now - had a consulting business that never took off and ended up with significant losses but basically no other income this year. Reading through all these responses has been incredibly helpful! One question I haven't seen addressed yet: if I'm planning to start a completely different type of business next year (like switching from consulting to e-commerce), can I still use my Schedule C losses from this year's failed consulting business to offset income from the new business? Or do the losses have to be from the same type of business activity? Also, does anyone know if there are any special considerations for losses from businesses that were only active for part of the year? My consulting business was really only operational for about 6 months before I had to shut it down.

This is such a timely question for me too! I had a photography business that completely flopped this year - spent way more on equipment and marketing than I made, and ended up with virtually no other income. One thing I discovered that might help others in similar situations: make sure you're aware of the "at-risk" rules and passive activity loss limitations that could potentially restrict how much of your Schedule C loss you can actually use, even when carrying forward. Most small businesses won't hit these limitations, but if you had significant borrowed money or certain types of investments involved, it could affect your NOL calculation. Also, I found it helpful to create a simple spreadsheet tracking both my NOL carryforward amount and my QBI loss carryforward separately, since they get applied differently in future years. It makes tax planning much easier when you know exactly what losses you have available to work with. The silver lining to this rough year is that these losses could provide significant tax savings once we get back on our feet financially!

Mac user with an S-Corp here! I went through this same frustration last year and ended up finding a workflow that works really well. After trying various solutions mentioned here, I settled on using TaxAct Online for both my personal and business returns. What I love about their online platform is that it's genuinely Mac-native through the browser, and their 1120S module is surprisingly comprehensive. The interface is clean and modern, unlike some of the clunkier web-based solutions. They also have excellent import capabilities for QuickBooks Mac data, which saved me tons of manual entry time. The real game-changer for me was their audit support feature - they provide representation if you get selected for an audit, which gave me peace of mind since S-Corps do get more scrutiny. Their pricing is also very reasonable compared to TurboTax Business. One tip for fellow Mac users: I use 1Password to store all my tax login credentials since you'll be working across multiple online platforms (payroll provider, accounting software, tax prep, etc.). Makes the whole process much more seamless when everything is browser-based.

Mac user and CPA here - wanted to share my professional perspective on this. The shift away from Mac desktop tax software isn't really a conspiracy, it's economics. The development and maintenance costs for native Mac applications are significant, and the tax software market is highly seasonal with most revenue concentrated in just a few months. For S-Corp returns specifically, I'd strongly recommend against trying to DIY this on any platform unless your situation is extremely simple. The compliance requirements have gotten much more complex over the past few years, especially around reasonable compensation determination and basis tracking. A mistake on your 1120S can trigger cascading issues on your personal return. If you're determined to self-prepare, the online versions of the major platforms (TurboTax Business, H&R Block Premium & Business) are actually quite robust now. But honestly, for most S-Corp owners, the cost of professional preparation is often less than the time value of doing it yourself, plus you get the peace of mind of professional review. That said, if your S-Corp is truly straightforward (single owner, no employees besides yourself, minimal assets), then FreeTaxUSA Business or TaxAct Online are solid budget-friendly options that work great on Mac.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar boat with a $850k mortgage and paid about $8,500 in points at closing. Based on what everyone's shared, it sounds like I can deduct about 88% of those points ($750k ÷ $850k = 0.882). One question I haven't seen addressed - does the timing of when you close matter for the tax year? I closed in late December 2024, so I'm wondering if I should claim the points deduction on my 2024 return or wait until 2025. The points were definitely paid in 2024, but I'm second-guessing myself since it was so close to year-end. Also, has anyone here dealt with points on a VA loan? I'm wondering if there are any special rules that apply since it's a government-backed mortgage. My lender wasn't super clear about this during closing.

Great question about VA loans and year-end timing! Just to add to what @Liam Sullivan mentioned - I went through something very similar with an $820k VA loan where I closed in November. One thing to watch out for with VA loans is that sometimes the funding fee gets lumped together with points on certain documents, but they're treated differently for tax purposes. The VA funding fee isn't deductible as mortgage interest/points - only the actual discount points you paid to reduce your interest rate count. Make sure your closing disclosure (CD) shows the points separately from the funding fee. If it's not clear, you might want to contact your lender for a breakdown. The VA funding fee typically shows up as a separate line item, but I've seen some confusing closing documents where everything got grouped together. Also, since you mentioned you're second-guessing the timing - the IRS is pretty clear that it's based on the payment date, not the loan start date or when you file. Your December 2024 closing means it goes on your 2024 return, period. Don't overthink it! Your 88% calculation is spot on. Just remember to keep that closing disclosure safe - VA loan audits tend to focus heavily on the points vs. funding fee distinction.

Friendly reminder that wash sale rules don't technically apply to crypto (yet) since the IRS classifies crypto as property, not securities. This is actually one advantage for crypto traders. If you have any losses, you can sell and rebuy immediately to harvest the tax loss without waiting 30 days like you would with stocks. Could help offset those gains. Just make sure you're using crypto tax software that handles this correctly, as many general tax programs incorrectly apply wash sale rules to crypto.

I was in almost the exact same situation as you last year - made about $2,800 in crypto profits and was tempted to not report it. But after reading all these horror stories about IRS letters and penalties, I decided to just bite the bullet and report everything. Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I thought. The actual tax I owed on the $2,700 was only around $600 (depending on your tax bracket), but the peace of mind was worth it. I used one of the crypto tax software tools mentioned here and it made the whole process pretty straightforward. The way I see it, $2,700 might seem small to us, but it's exactly the kind of amount the IRS targets because they know most people think it's "too small to matter." Don't give them an easy win - just report it properly and sleep well at night.