Don't forget to check if your state has additional tax breaks beyond the federal ones! I live in Oregon and we have additional credits and deductions at the state level that saved me about $350 last year. Most tax software covers this but sometimes they miss state-specific breaks.

As someone who recently went through this same confusion, I'd recommend starting with the basics that will likely apply to your situation. Since you're taking community college classes, definitely look into the American Opportunity Tax Credit or Lifetime Learning Credit - these can be worth up to $2,500 and $2,000 respectively and are actual credits (not just deductions). Also check if you paid any student loan interest during the year - you can deduct up to $2,500 of that even if you don't itemize. And if you moved for work or had any unreimbursed work expenses (like uniforms, tools, etc.), those might be deductible too. TurboTax will catch the obvious ones if you answer the questions correctly, but it's worth double-checking because sometimes the questions are confusing or you might not realize something qualifies. The IRS website has some good worksheets and tools to help you figure out what applies to your specific situation.

This thread has been incredibly educational to follow! As someone who's dealt with similar private company share situations, I wanted to add one more angle that might be helpful. Since you mentioned receiving K-1s from multiple states (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, etc.), this suggests the company has operations or assets in multiple jurisdictions. This multi-state presence could actually work in your favor for valuation purposes - it often indicates a more substantial business than a simple local operation. Multi-state businesses typically have higher valuation multiples due to geographic diversification and operational complexity. When you're calculating that capitalization of earnings analysis mentioned earlier, you might want to research industry multiples specifically for companies with multi-state operations rather than using single-location business multiples. Also, the administrative complexity of maintaining compliance in all those states suggests significant revenue scale - small businesses rarely justify the compliance costs of multi-state operations unless the income is substantial. One tactical suggestion: when you send that formal written response declining their offer, consider asking them to explain how they determined that a multi-state operation with 5 years of growth is worth exactly what you paid. Force them to defend their methodology in writing. You've built an incredibly strong case here. The combination of financial evidence from the K-1s plus the potential legal issues gives you serious leverage. Don't let them rush you into anything!

Reading through this entire thread has been fascinating - you've essentially conducted a masterclass in private company valuation using K-1 analysis! One final piece that might be worth investigating: check if your K-1s show any "Section 704(c) built-in gain" adjustments. When companies have appreciated assets (real estate, equipment, intellectual property), these adjustments can reveal hidden value that wouldn't show up in the basic income/distribution analysis. Also, since you mentioned this is related to an acquisition deal from when you first invested, there might be earnout provisions or contingent value rights that weren't fully reflected in your initial purchase price but could have matured over these 5 years. Check your original investment documents for any language about additional payments based on future performance milestones. The fact pattern you've uncovered - earnings manipulation, multi-state complexity, clear appreciation indicators, plus potential fiduciary breaches - suggests this executive seriously underestimated your ability to analyze the situation. Your response is going to be a wake-up call for them. Document everything discussed in this thread, get that formal valuation if the numbers justify it, and don't be afraid to mention consulting with legal counsel if they continue playing hardball. Sometimes just mentioning you've researched fiduciary duty issues is enough to shift negotiations dramatically. You've gone from having "no clue where to start" to having a comprehensive strategy backed by solid evidence. Impressive work!

This is such a helpful thread! I'm dealing with a similar situation on my transcript and was completely lost until I read through all these explanations. The way everyone broke down the 898 code and those confusing future dates really cleared things up for me. I had the same panic when I saw "Refund applied to non-IRS debt" on mine - I thought the government was secretly taking my money for something I didn't know about! But now I understand it's actually their way of showing they did their due diligence checking for any debts and found nothing to offset. It's crazy how something as simple as "you got your full refund" gets turned into this cryptic code system that makes everyone think something's wrong. The IRS really needs to hire some of you folks to translate their documents into normal human language! 😂 Thanks to everyone who contributed to this discussion - you've probably saved a lot of people from unnecessary stress and confusion!

This thread has been so educational! I'm bookmarking it for future reference. The way everyone explained the 898 code and those confusing IRS processing dates really helped demystify what looks like complete gibberish on these transcripts. It's wild that "we checked for debts and found none, so you get your full refund" gets translated into cryptic codes that make everyone panic. The IRS could save so much confusion by just using plain English! But thanks to this amazing community, at least we can help each other decode their ancient hieroglyphics 😂 For anyone else stumbling across this thread with similar transcript confusion - this is definitely the place to get answers!

Did you check the envelope the 1099 came in? Sometimes companies print their EIN on the return address or other materials included with the tax form. Also, if this company has ever paid you before, check last year's 1099 if you have it. One other thing to try - if it's a company with a website, sometimes they include their EIN in the footer of their website or on their "About Us" page if they're government contractors or do certain types of business.

If you're still having trouble reaching the company and need to file soon, I'd recommend documenting your attempts to get the correct TIN. Keep records of when you called, emailed, or otherwise tried to contact them. This shows good faith effort on your part. You can absolutely file with "unknown" in the payer TIN field as others have mentioned. The IRS is primarily concerned with accurate income reporting. Just make sure you report the full $5,800 on your Schedule C and include a brief note in your tax software or on paper explaining that you attempted to obtain the payer's TIN but it was not provided on the form. Also, since this is freelance income over $400, don't forget you'll need to pay self-employment tax on this amount in addition to regular income tax. Make sure your tax software is calculating that correctly when you enter the 1099-MISC income.

FYI, I've filed the final 990-N for two small organizations and it's super easy! You just go to the IRS website, log in to the e-Postcard system, and there's literally a checkbox for "This is the final return." You check that, enter the dissolution date, and that's pretty much it. The whole process took me maybe 10 minutes.

Just want to add that you should definitely not ignore the IRS notice, even for a dissolved nonprofit. I learned this the hard way when I thought I could just let a tiny organization "fade away" without proper closure. The IRS will eventually revoke your tax-exempt status retroactively, which can create complications if anyone ever questions the organization's tax status during the years it was active. Even though your nonprofit only had minimal income, having a clean closure on record protects you from any future issues. The 990-N filing really is straightforward once you know what to do. Since you already transferred the assets to the parent organization in 2023, you have everything you need to complete the final filing. Just make sure to use 2023 as your dissolution date when you file the final return.