That's a good point I hadn't considered! Do you know if there's a way to figure out ahead of time how much I might owe? My tax bracket is probably around 22% this year.

You can use the IRS withholding calculator on their website to get a rough estimate of what you might owe based on your overall situation. With a 22% tax bracket plus the potential 10% penalty if no exceptions apply, you'd be looking at approximately 32% total tax on the withdrawal. A lot of people get surprised by this because the mandatory 20% withholding seems like it should be enough, but it often isn't. If you want to avoid a surprise tax bill, you might consider making an estimated tax payment to cover the difference.

Also make sure the info on the 1099-R is correct! My plan administrator messed up and showed I took out $15k when it was actually only $5k. Was a nightmare to fix and delayed my refund by months.

Do you know if there's a specific form or box to check with Fidelity for this? I'm in a similar situation and use Fidelity too, but their interface can be confusing.

With Fidelity specifically, when you make a contribution online, there's a dropdown menu where you can select which tax year to apply the contribution to. During the period between January 1st and the tax filing deadline (April 15th, 2025), you'll see both 2024 and 2025 as options in that dropdown. Just make sure to select "2024" before submitting the contribution. If you're doing it by check or mail, you need to clearly write "2024 HSA Contribution" on your check or contribution form. If you call them to make the contribution, just explicitly tell the representative that you want this to be a 2024 contribution.

Yes, I got hit with the 6% excise tax for an HSA excess contribution I didn't correct. It wasn't a huge amount (around $75 penalty for my $1,250 over-contribution), but the annoying part was filling out Form 5329. The IRS does check this, especially if your W-2 and HSA provider both report contribution amounts that exceed the limits.

What app do you use for tracking? I've been looking for something reliable. And did you go with the 5 or 7 seat configuration? I've heard that affects whether it's considered an SUV for tax purposes.

I use MileIQ - it's been super reliable and creates reports I can send directly to my accountant. Regarding seating, I went with the 6-seat configuration (2-2-2), and yes, that helped ensure it qualified as an SUV which was important for Section 179 purposes since SUVs have higher deduction limits than passenger vehicles. The weight of the Model X also puts it in a favorable category for deduction purposes. One other tip - I took delivery in December but made sure all paperwork was completed and the vehicle was "placed in service" (used for business) before year-end. That allowed me to claim everything on that tax year rather than having to wait.

This is really smart advice. Did you have any issues with the battery range on the BMW for your typical driving?

No real issues with the battery range - the X5 hybrid gets around 30 miles of pure electric range which covers most of my in-town client visits. When I do longer trips to rural areas, it switches seamlessly to gas. Actually ended up being the perfect balance for my needs. The charging is way simpler too - I just use a regular outlet in my garage overnight rather than needing to install a special charger. Total cost of ownership has been lower than I expected when factoring in the fuel savings plus the tax benefits.

That's an interesting perspective! In our case though, there was definitely an established hourly rate. They track my hours precisely and deduct exactly $15 per hour from our tuition bill. The statements even say "Work credit: 12 hours at $15/hr = $180 deduction." So I think in my case it's clearly compensation rather than voluntary work with a thank you gift.

That's definitely different from what my wife experienced. With that specific hourly tracking and direct correlation between hours worked and tuition reduction, it sounds like a clear employment or contractor relationship. The school should definitely be providing you with tax documentation, either a W-2 if you're an employee or 1099-NEC if you're a contractor.

This is exactly what my daughter's preschool does! They call it "tuition remission" and there's actually a $5,250 tax-free benefit allowance for educational assistance programs if the school sets it up properly under Section 127 of the tax code. Anything above that amount would be taxable though.

Thank you for sharing your experience. Did you go through the OIC process yourself? If so, how long did it take from submission to getting a decision?

I did go through the OIC process myself. The entire process took about 8 months from when I submitted my application to receiving final approval. The initial review took about 3 months, then they came back asking for additional documentation about some of my expenses and assets which took another 2 months of back and forth. The final negotiation and approval took another 3 months. During this time, collections activities were suspended which was a huge relief. One important tip: be extremely thorough and accurate with your financial disclosure forms (433-A and 433-B if you have a business). Any discrepancies will delay the process significantly.

This is risky advice without knowing more details. Tax debt is often NOT dischargeable in bankruptcy unless it meets very specific criteria: - The taxes must be income taxes - The due date for filing the tax return was at least 3 years ago - You filed the tax return at least 2 years before filing bankruptcy - The tax assessment is at least 240 days old - You didn't commit fraud or willful evasion Chapter 7 also has significant long-term consequences. OP should definitely consult with both a tax professional AND a bankruptcy attorney before considering this route.