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Lost job in November 2024 - need help getting coverage from Healthcare.gov
Hey everyone, just got laid off unexpectedly last week (stupid budget cuts) and I'm kinda freaking out about health insurance. I had decent coverage through my employer but that's ending at the end of this month. I heard Healthcare.gov might be an option? I've never had to sign up for my own insurance before since I've always had it through work. I make... well, made about $52k annually but now I'm on unemployment. Does that change what I can get on Healthcare.gov? Do I qualify for any subsidies or whatever they're called? I'm 31, single, no health conditions (thankfully), but still don't want to risk going uninsured. The whole process seems confusing and I'm worried about missing deadlines. Any help would be appreciated!
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Need help finding a qualified tax professional for growing small business - advice needed
My wife's affiliate marketing business has really taken off lately and is now making more than her regular job. I've been trying to handle our taxes using TurboTax online, but I'm starting to feel like I'm in over my head with all the business tax stuff. Is it really as straightforward as just finding a local tax person to answer questions about whether we should form an S-Corp or C-Corp, what expenses we can legitimately write off, etc? My wife thinks we can just walk into any tax office and they'll be able to help us, which might be true, but if I'm going to pay someone for their expertise, I want to make sure we're getting the absolute best advice possible to maximize our situation. Would really appreciate any suggestions or advice on how to find a good tax professional who can help our small business maximize deductions and provide consulting on things like business structure (S-Corp vs C-Corp) and other tax planning strategies. We're making around $85,000 annually from the business now and want to make sure we're setting things up correctly.
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Has anyone had luck with those online CPA services that specialize in digital businesses? My wife's doing something similar with affiliate stuff and regular accountants just don't seem to get all the nuances of online business expenses.
I've been using Xendoo for my ecommerce business for about 2 years and they've been really good. They specifically get digital business models and understand things like affiliate commission structures, digital asset depreciation, and home office setups for online work. Not the cheapest option but definitely worth it for the specialized knowledge.
Don't overlook the importance of finding someone who's comfortable with technology. I had a "well-established" CPA who insisted on paper documentation for everything, which was a nightmare for my digital business where most receipts and records are electronic. Finding someone who understands digital record-keeping made tax time 10x easier.
2025 Tax refund timeline thread: Share when you submitted, got accepted, & received your refund for tax year 2024
Figured we could start a thread to help each other gauge refund timelines for this filing season. I'll go first - I e-filed through TurboTax on February 3rd, my return was accepted by the IRS on February 4th, and I got my federal refund direct deposited on February 15th (just 11 days!). My state refund is still processing though. I claimed the Earned Income Tax Credit but no child tax credits. My refund was about $1,783 federal and should be another $412 for state when it comes. Anyone else want to share their timeline so we can all get a sense of how fast/slow things are moving this year?
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I filed on January 29th and STILL haven't gotten my refund!!! The IRS Where's My Refund tool just says "still processing" for over 7 weeks now. I claimed the Child Tax Credit for my two kids. Anyone else waiting this long with CTC? Getting really frustrated!!
I claimed CTC for my kids too and got my refund after about 4 weeks. Did you also claim Earned Income Credit? That usually takes longer. You might want to try getting your tax transcript from the IRS website - sometimes it shows more details about what's happening with your return.
For those interested in extremely detailed stats: - E-filed with FreeTaxUSA on Jan 31 at 7:32pm EST - IRS acceptance email received Feb 1 at 9:14am - WMR updated to "approved" on Feb 15 - Direct deposit hit my bank Feb 17 at 3:42am Federal refund: $2,341 State refund: Still waiting, shows "processing" on state website Our return included W-2 income, 1099-INT, mortgage interest deduction, student loan interest, and HSA contributions. No tax credits. I've been tracking this data for years and this was about 3 days faster than last year!
You're even more detail oriented than me lol! Have you always used FreeTaxUSA? I've been thinking about switching from TurboTax to save some money.
I've used FreeTaxUSA for the last three years after switching from TurboTax. The interface isn't quite as polished, but it's completely adequate and handles all my tax situations correctly. The federal filing is free and state is only $15 compared to the $120+ I was paying with TurboTax for the same exact results. If you have a fairly straightforward tax situation (even with some common deductions and forms like I listed), it works great. The only people who might want to stick with the more expensive options are those with extremely complex situations like multiple businesses, complex investments, or unusual tax situations.
Should I file married jointly or separately for the first time?
Hey everyone, I'm about to file taxes as a married person for the first time and have a couple questions before I dive in and try both options. 1. If my wife and I file married jointly, am I right in thinking that only one of us would actually prepare and submit the tax return, and the other person doesn't need to do anything? 2. In your experience, do you typically get a better refund filing separately or jointly? Some background - I'm working full-time while my husband is in dental school with basically zero income but has significant student loans. I'm the only one bringing in actual income right now. Thanks for any advice!
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Another thing to consider - if either of you has previous tax debts or is behind on certain government payments (like child support), filing jointly could put the refund at risk. When you file jointly, your entire refund could be seized to pay those debts even if they only belong to one spouse. You'd need to file an injured spouse form to try getting your portion back, which is a hassle.
Do student loans fall into this category? If your spouse has defaulted federal student loans, will they take your refund if you file jointly?
Yes, defaulted federal student loans can definitely lead to tax refund offsets. If your spouse has defaulted loans and you file jointly, the entire refund could be seized to repay those loans. Filing Form 8379 (Injured Spouse Allocation) can help you get your portion of the refund back, but it adds complexity and delays your refund by several months. If the student loans are in good standing or on an income-driven repayment plan, then you don't have to worry about refund offsets - it's only for defaulted loans. This is actually another situation where filing separately might make sense if one spouse has defaulted loans, as it protects the other spouse's refund entirely.
First time my husband and I filed together, we tried both options in TurboTax and found filing jointly saved us almost $2,000! But everyone's situation is different. When one spouse is a student, joint is usually better because you can claim education credits on a joint return. Consider running your numbers both ways before deciding.
Which tax software did you find easiest to use for comparing both options? I tried H&R Block online but it was confusing to switch between filing statuses to compare.
Best tax software for 1099 contractors with self-employed 401k contributions?
So I just went from being fully W2 to taking on contract work as a 1099 last year, and my taxes got way more complicated. My spouse still has a regular W2 job and we've been filing jointly through TurboTax since 2019, but this year was a nightmare. The biggest headache was dealing with my self-employed 401k. I set one up and made contributions as both "employee" and "employer" (since I'm technically both), but TurboTax kept rejecting anything above the $23k employee limit. It wouldn't recognize my employer contributions at all! I ended up having to date some contributions for 2025 instead just to get the system to accept them, even though I made them in January 2025 and could have applied them to either 2024 or 2025. Then there was the mileage tracking disaster. Every time I tried to enter my business mileage, the software kept bouncing me to some completely unrelated section. When I called support, they just told me I needed to "talk to a tax professional" even though it was clearly a software glitch. I didn't have tons of miles to claim, so I just gave up on that deduction for simplicity's sake. I'm already dreading next year's taxes and wondering if there's better software out there for our situation. We've heard about FreeTaxUSA but not sure if it handles 1099 contractor situations with self-employed retirement accounts any better. Any recommendations for tax software that actually works for self-employed folks with SE 401ks?
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I've been self-employed for about 7 years now and have tried most of the major tax software. For 1099 income with retirement accounts, I've found TaxSlayer to be surprisingly good, especially for the price point. It handles self-employed 401k contributions correctly, separating employee and employer portions without the glitches you mentioned. The business mileage tracking is straightforward, and it lets you import from mileage tracker apps if you use those. Their support is also more knowledgeable about self-employment issues than H&R Block's in my experience.
Thanks for the TaxSlayer recommendation! How does it compare to FreeTaxUSA price-wise? And does it handle state filing too, or is that an extra charge?
TaxSlayer is slightly more expensive than FreeTaxUSA for the self-employed version, but still much cheaper than TurboTax or H&R Block. Last time I used it, the federal filing with self-employment was around $55, and state filing was an additional $35 per state. State filing is indeed an extra charge with TaxSlayer, similar to most tax software except for the truly free options that have significant limitations for self-employed people. The state module is comprehensive though and handles all the specific state deductions and credits relevant to self-employment income.
I switched from TurboTax to FreeTaxUSA last year for my 1099 work and solo 401k, and I'm never going back! The solo 401k was handled perfectly with clear sections for both employee and employer contributions. One thing nobody's mentioned yet that I found super helpful was the comprehensive audit assistance. Since 1099 workers get audited more frequently, I liked having that extra protection. And the customer service was shockingly responsive when I had questions - got answers within hours instead of days.
Did you find FreeTaxUSA easy to navigate for business expenses? I do photography as a side hustle and have a ton of different expense categories. TurboTax makes it so complicated I'm afraid I'm missing deductions.
Lola Perez
One thing to consider: make sure you check if your current doctors are in-network for any plan you're considering on Healthcare.gov. I made that mistake when I lost my job in 2023 and ended up having to find all new providers. Also, look closely at the prescription coverage if you take any regular medications. Some plans have really high deductibles before prescription coverage kicks in.
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Aurora St.Pierre
AuthorI didn't even think about checking if my doctor is in-network! Thanks for pointing that out. I take a maintenance med for high blood pressure so I'll definitely check the prescription coverage too. Is there an easy way to see which plans include specific doctors? The Healthcare.gov site seems a bit overwhelming with all the plan options.
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Lola Perez
Most plans on Healthcare.gov will have a link to the insurer's website where you can search for specific doctors. But honestly, the most reliable method is to call your doctor's office directly and ask which marketplace plans they accept. The online directories are sometimes outdated. For prescriptions, look for the plan's "formulary" - that's their list of covered medications. Different tiers have different costs, so check which tier your medication falls into. Some plans also offer prescription discounts before you meet your deductible, which can make a big difference.
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Nathaniel Stewart
What state are you in? That makes a huge difference for coverage options. Some states run their own exchanges instead of Healthcare.gov.
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Aurora St.Pierre
AuthorI'm in Illinois. From what I've seen, we use the federal Healthcare.gov site, right?
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Riya Sharma
Yep, Illinois uses Healthcare.gov. But worth noting that some states have additional programs beyond what's on Healthcare.gov. For example, if your income is low enough during your unemployment period, you might temporarily qualify for Medicaid in Illinois, which could be free or very low cost until you find a new job.
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