Anyone know if short term disability payments affect other tax things like the Earned Income Credit? I was on STD for 3 months last year and my tax software is showing a lower credit than I usually get.

This is such a confusing area of tax law! I went through something similar when my wife was on short-term disability after our baby was born. The key thing I learned is that it ALL depends on how the premiums were paid. If your husband paid the premiums with after-tax dollars (meaning they came out of his paycheck AFTER taxes were taken out), then the benefits should NOT be taxable at all, regardless of what the check stubs say. But if the employer paid the premiums or if they were paid with pre-tax dollars through a cafeteria plan, then yes, they're fully taxable. The fact that they only withheld Social Security and Medicare taxes but not federal income tax is actually a red flag to me - it suggests the insurance company might not be clear on the tax treatment either. I'd recommend calling your husband's HR department first to confirm exactly how the disability premiums were paid. Get it in writing if possible. Then contact the insurance company with that information to make sure they're reporting the payments correctly for tax purposes. As for forms, you'll likely get either a 1099-MISC or it might be included on his regular W-2 if the employer processed the payments through payroll.

This is exactly why these misconceptions persist - people hear about the "6,000 lb rule" and think it's a magic bullet for tax savings! Your partners are mixing up old information with current rules. Yes, Section 179 applies to vehicles over 6,000 lbs GVWR, but as others mentioned, SUVs have that $28,900 cap for 2025. The key thing they're missing is that this only applies if the vehicle is used MORE than 50% for business. Before anyone makes a $78k purchase decision, here are the real questions you need to answer: 1. Will this Escalade truly be used more than 50% for business? (Personal commuting doesn't count) 2. Can you document and justify this business use? 3. Does your consulting firm actually NEED a luxury SUV for legitimate business purposes? The IRS scrutinizes luxury vehicle deductions heavily. If you can't show clear business necessity and proper usage documentation, you're setting yourself up for an audit. A $78k vehicle purchase to save maybe $10-15k in taxes (assuming legitimate business use) doesn't make financial sense for most small businesses. Wait for your accountant to return and get proper advice before making any major purchases!

As someone who just went through this exact scenario with my consulting firm last year, I can't stress enough how important it is to get proper professional advice before making any large vehicle purchases based on tax benefits. We almost made the same mistake your partners are pushing for - buying a luxury SUV thinking we could write off the entire cost. Thankfully our CPA stopped us and explained the real rules. The $28,900 Section 179 limit for SUVs is very real, and the business use requirements are strictly enforced. What really opened my eyes was when our accountant showed us the math: even with legitimate 75% business use, we'd only save about $21,675 in taxes (75% of $28,900 limit). That's nowhere near enough savings to justify a $78,000 purchase! Plus, we'd still be on the hook for the remaining $49,100+ that couldn't be deducted. The IRS has closed most of the vehicle loopholes that existed years ago. Your instinct to wait for your accountant is absolutely right - don't let anyone pressure you into a major financial decision based on outdated or misunderstood tax advice. A good CPA will help you find legitimate tax strategies that actually make sense for your business size and cash flow.

Has anyone dealt with address issues after moving? I'm worried because I moved after filing and didn't update my address with the IRS before they might have sent the check.

I went through this exact same situation last year! The "Where's My Refund" tool is notoriously unhelpful when it comes to rejected direct deposits - it often shows the refund as "sent" even when the bank has already returned it to the IRS. Here's what typically happens: When your bank rejects the deposit (which they definitely would for a closed account), they send the funds back to the IRS within 1-2 business days. The IRS then has to process the returned funds and issue a paper check, which usually takes 2-3 weeks from the date of the rejected deposit. Since your refund shows as deposited on February 15th, I'd expect your bank rejected it around February 16th-17th, meaning your paper check was likely issued around early March. You should be receiving it any day now if you haven't already! One thing to double-check: make sure the mailing address on your tax return is current. If you moved and used your new address on the return, you should be fine. If not, definitely set up mail forwarding with USPS just in case. Don't panic - your money isn't lost! The IRS is just slow to update their systems when these situations occur.

It might be worth asking your grandparents to spread out larger gifts if they're planning to give you more than the annual limit. My parents paid off $25,000 of my loans in one year and had to file a gift tax form even though they didn't owe any actual tax!

This is such helpful information for anyone dealing with family help on student loans! One thing I'd add is to make sure your grandparents are aware that the $18,000 annual exclusion is per recipient, per giver. So if they're also helping other grandchildren with education expenses, they need to track all their gifts to stay under the limits for each person. Also, it's worth keeping simple records of the payments even though you don't need to report them - just in case the IRS ever has questions down the road. A simple spreadsheet showing dates and amounts should be sufficient. Your loan servicer statements will also show where the payments came from, which provides good documentation. You're really fortunate to have such generous grandparents! This kind of help can save you thousands in interest over the life of the loans.

This is such a helpful thread! I'm in a similar boat with my small jewelry business and was completely overwhelmed by the tax implications. One thing I wanted to add that I learned the hard way - make sure you understand the difference between gross revenue and net profit when calculating those tax estimates. I initially panicked thinking I'd owe taxes on my full $8k in sales, but after deducting all my materials, booth fees, travel expenses, and those card processing fees, my actual taxable profit was only about $3k. Also, for anyone using Square or similar mobile readers - they provide really nice year-end reports that break down all your fees and sales by month. Super helpful for tax prep! I wish I'd known to enable that feature from day one instead of trying to piece everything together from individual transaction emails. The 25-30% savings rule mentioned above is solid advice. I started with 30% and ended up with a nice little buffer that I rolled into my business expansion fund. Much better than scrambling to find tax money in April!

As a CPA who works with a lot of small craft businesses, I wanted to chime in with some official guidance that might help clarify things! For your situation with expected revenue of $6-8k, starting as a sole proprietorship (self-employed) is definitely the right move. The LLC decision can wait until you're more established. A few key points that haven't been fully covered: **Regarding those mobile payment fees:** Yes, they're 100% deductible as business expenses on Schedule C, Line 10 (fees and commissions). Keep good records of all processing fees - they add up quickly! **Self-employment tax reality check:** Remember you'll owe both regular income tax AND self-employment tax (15.3%) on your net profit. So if you profit $6k, expect roughly $918 in SE tax alone, plus regular income tax at your bracket rate. **Quarterly payments:** The $1,000 threshold mentioned earlier is correct, but there's a safe harbor rule - if you pay 100% of last year's tax liability through withholding/quarterlies, you won't owe penalties even if you underpay the current year. **Business bank account:** Even as sole proprietor, get a separate business checking account. Makes record-keeping infinitely easier and looks more professional to the IRS if you're ever audited. The tax situation really isn't as scary as it seems once you get organized. Focus on good record-keeping from day one - that's 90% of the battle!