9 Do you have any tips for finding a good CPA that won't charge an arm and a leg? I've called around and gotten quotes between $350-600 which seems really high.

22 For finding an affordable CPA, check with your local Chamber of Commerce or ask colleagues who are in similar financial situations. Many smaller accounting firms or independent CPAs charge less than the big tax prep chains while providing more personalized service. Another option is to look for an Enrolled Agent (EA) rather than a CPA. EAs specialize specifically in taxes and often charge less than CPAs while still having excellent tax knowledge. For your situation, an EA might be perfect since you don't need full accounting services, just tax expertise.

16 I used TurboTax Live last year for my return which included some freelance work and education expenses. It was decent - you get to video chat with a CPA who reviews your return, but I found the experience a bit rushed. The CPA spent about 15 minutes on my return which wasn't enough to dig deep into potential optimizations.

How do you determine the exact point when you're "in business" versus still in startup phase? I set up my LLC in January 2023 but didn't start making sales until March 2023. Would expenses in that January-February period count as startup costs?

Yes, those January-February expenses would likely qualify as startup costs under Section 195. The IRS generally considers you "in business" when you begin your actual business operations - which usually means when you start offering goods or services for sale. Since you formed your LLC in January but didn't begin making sales until March, the expenses incurred in that January-February window would typically be considered startup expenses subject to the Section 195 rules, including the $5,000 first-year deduction limit with the remainder amortized over 180 months.

I had the opposite problem - TurboTax didn't recognize my legitimate startup costs at all until I manually selected the form. Make sure you're entering your business start date correctly in the software. That's usually what triggers these categorization issues.

Did you end up getting your audit resolved successfully even with the unresponsive agent? I'm curious if I should just stick with them but be more aggressive about contacting management, or if I should try one of the other options people mentioned.

Yes, it did get resolved successfully, but only after I escalated to a supervisor who assigned me a new agent. The important thing is to act quickly - don't wait until the last minute hoping your current agent will suddenly become responsive. If you're only 9 days from deadline, I'd honestly consider one of the other options mentioned alongside escalating with TaxAudit. The peace of mind from knowing your audit response is being actively handled is worth it. At minimum, request an extension from the IRS (which one of the services might help with) to give yourself more breathing room. Don't let the deadline pass without taking action.

It really depends on the complexity of your audit and your comfort level with tax matters. Simple correspondence audits focusing on one or two items can often be handled yourself if you have good documentation. More complex audits involving multiple years, business income, or substantial amounts are riskier to handle alone. If you do go the DIY route, be extremely organized, respond only to what they're asking for (don't volunteer additional information), and consider requesting an extension if you need more time to gather documents. The IRS publication "Your Rights as a Taxpayer" is worth reading before responding.

Thanks for the advice. Mine is pretty simple - just questioning some education credits I claimed. I have all the tuition statements and receipts so maybe I'll try handling it myself first. If it gets complicated I can always get help later I guess.

How can you tell which distributions are qualified vs non-qualified? My 1099-DIV has all these different boxes and I'm never sure what they mean.

On your 1099-DIV, qualified dividends will be in Box 1b, while Box 1a shows total ordinary dividends (which includes both qualified and non-qualified). The difference between Box 1a and 1b would be your non-qualified dividends. Capital gain distributions will be in Box 2a. These are the fund's long-term capital gains that get the preferential tax rate. If the fund had to distribute short-term capital gains, those would actually be included in Box 1a as ordinary dividends, not in the capital gains box, which is why it can get confusing!

I've used TurboTax for years with my mutual funds. It works OK if your brokerage provides good 1099s with detailed cost basis info. You can import directly from most major brokerages which helps avoid mistakes. But for older funds where you've been reinvesting for 10+ years, sometimes you need to manually adjust things, which can get complicated in TurboTax.

Thanks for this breakdown! Two questions: 1) for depreciation, should I just take the current value and multiply by 15%? And 2) would you divide all these costs by total annual mileage to get the per-mile figure?

Yes, for a quick depreciation estimate, take the current value and multiply by 15% (Wranglers hold value well, so you might even use 12-13%). That gives you annual depreciation cost. You've got it exactly right for calculating the per-mile figure. Add up all your annual vehicle costs (gas, insurance, maintenance, depreciation, etc.), then divide by your total annual mileage. This gives you your true cost per mile. Most people are surprised how much higher this is than they expected - especially for vehicles with lower fuel efficiency.

Wait really?? I've been deducting my commute miles for years! Is this a new rule?