Thank you SO MUCH for the reassurance! One more question - does it matter that my husband only lived in the US for about 2 months of the tax year? I wasn't sure if that would affect our ability to file jointly.

You're welcome! Regarding your husband's residency situation, as long as he has a valid SSN and is a legal permanent resident by December 31st of the tax year, you can file jointly for the entire year. The IRS doesn't prorate based on when during the year he arrived. Since you mentioned he got his SSN and is a green card holder, you're definitely eligible for Married Filing Jointly status for the full year, even though he was only physically present for a couple months. This is actually working in your favor tax-wise!

Are you claimed as a dependent on someone else's taxes? If your parents claim you, THEY get the education credits, not you. That might explain the difference.

Do you document this separately for each tax year, or do you just keep a running log of all furniture items? I'm trying to set up a system that won't be a complete mess 5 years from now.

I keep a running spreadsheet with all furniture items, their purchase dates, costs, and depreciation schedule. Then I have a separate tab for disposed items where I record the disposal date, method (trashed, donated, sold), and any documentation I have. For tax filing purposes, I extract just that year's disposals. This system makes it easy to keep track over many years without creating a new document each tax season. I also back everything up with photos in a cloud folder organized by year of disposal. Might seem like overkill, but it saved me during that audit!

I wouldn't recommend TurboTax for this. I tried last year for my UK rental and it was a nightmare. It doesn't handle the separate tracking of multiple furniture items well at all. I ended up switching to a tax pro who specializes in expat taxes.

Oh gosh I hadn't even considered he might end up owing! He did work multiple jobs during college, sometimes 2-3 at once. Is there any way to figure out if he'll owe before we file? I don't want him to get hit with a huge bill he can't afford.

Yes, that's actually why getting the wage transcripts is so important! They'll show all reported income and withholding for each year. With that information, you can estimate if he's likely to owe or receive a refund before actually filing. For the years with multiple jobs, the issue is that each employer withholds as if their job is his only source of income, which can lead to underwithholding overall. But don't worry too much - at the income levels you mentioned, even with multiple jobs, any amount owed is likely to be manageable. And if there is a substantial amount owed, payment plans are very reasonable - sometimes as low as $25-50 per month.

Not necessarily true. I didn't file for 7 years and never received a single letter from the IRS despite owing about $12,000 in total. Found out when I tried to buy a house and got denied for the tax lien I didn't even know existed. The IRS doesn't always send notices, especially if they don't have your current address.

Yup, I had the same exact experience with TurboTax. Got all the way to the end of my return and then hit a wall when I needed to use specific codes on Form 8949. Had to pay $89 to upgrade to their "premier" version. They know exactly what they're doing with these limitations.

The whole tax prep industry is built on this kind of bait and switch. They advertise "free filing" knowing most people will hit some limitation that forces an upgrade. This 1099-K situation is just making it worse since more casual sellers are getting caught in the tax reporting net. I'm definitely trying FreeTaxUSA this year based on the recommendations here. Done with the big names and their upgrade games.

Yes, the Free File Fillable Forms will absolutely work for this. It's basically just the electronic version of paper forms. The downside is you get zero guidance - you have to know exactly what you're doing and calculate everything yourself. But if you're comfortable with tax forms and just need access to the code L option, it'll work fine.

I've heard about EFTPS but am confused about the setup process. Does it link directly to your bank account? And does it automatically calculate how much you should pay each quarter or do you still need to figure that out yourself?

Yes, you link it directly to your bank account during the setup process. It's a government system that lets you schedule and make federal tax payments online. It doesn't calculate your estimated payment amounts for you - you'll still need to determine that yourself based on your income projections. But it does give you an immediate confirmation number when you make a payment, which is super helpful for record-keeping. You can also view your payment history anytime, which makes it easier to verify that your payments were received if you get duplicate notices.

That's a good point. I've seen people get confused between different IRS notices because they all look so similar with that same intimidating letterhead! The details really matter.