I used to work in payroll. The backslash in box 14 is sometimes used for state-specific items. What state do you work in? Some states have mandatory disability insurance or other programs that get reported there. Check your state's tax department website - they often have guides explaining common box 14 entries. For example, California has SDI (State Disability Insurance), New Jersey has SUI (State Unemployment Insurance) contributions, etc.

I work in manufacturing payroll and can offer some insight here. The backslash symbol (\) in box 14 is often used by manufacturing companies for safety-related deductions or equipment rentals, which matches what you mentioned about the $873 amount and your biweekly deductions. Since you figured out it's likely safety equipment rental based on your bank statements, you're on the right track. In TurboTax, this would typically go under "Other" in the box 14 dropdown, and you can describe it as "Safety equipment rental" when prompted. The key thing to remember is that if this was deducted pre-tax from your paychecks (which equipment rentals usually are), it already reduced your taxable wages shown in box 1 of your W2. So you're not getting an additional deduction - you're just properly categorizing what the employer reported for informational purposes. If you want to be 100% certain, a quick call to your company's payroll department would confirm this, but based on the amount and your industry, safety equipment rental is very likely what the \ symbol represents.

Don't forget to check if your state has any inheritance tax too! Federal and state tax treatments can be different. I'm in Pennsylvania and was surprised to learn we have an inheritance tax even when there's no federal estate tax due. Cars might be exempt depending on your state, but it's worth checking.

This is a great question that highlights how inheritance tax rules can create unexpected situations! Just to add one more consideration - make sure you keep detailed records of everything: the loan payoff amount, sale documentation, and whatever evidence you can gather for the car's fair market value at the time of inheritance. Since you sold relatively quickly after inheriting, you might also want to consider whether there were any additional costs involved in the transfer process (title fees, registration, etc.) that could be added to your basis. These aren't usually large amounts for vehicles, but every bit helps when calculating your actual gain. Also, depending on the total amount of your capital gains for the year, you might want to consider the timing of any other asset sales to manage your overall tax situation. If this puts you over certain thresholds, it could affect other parts of your tax return.

Anyone else feel like the government is just trying to squeeze more tax money out of regular people with these new 1099-K rules? Most people using Venmo and CashApp are just normal folks splitting bills, not businesses trying to evade taxes! 😡

This is such a timely question! I went through the same panic last year when I first heard about the 1099-K changes. Here's what I learned after doing a lot of research and talking to a tax professional: The $600 threshold only applies to payments you RECEIVE that are marked as "goods and services" - not personal transfers like splitting dinner bills or paying rent to roommates. So if you're mostly sending money TO friends rather than receiving it FROM customers, you're probably fine. For the money you received from selling stuff on Facebook Marketplace, you'll only owe taxes if you made a profit. If you sold your old couch for $200 but originally paid $500 for it, that's actually a loss and not taxable income. My suggestion is to go through your transaction history ASAP and categorize everything: - Personal transfers (splitting bills, paying friends back) - Sales where you lost money (sold for less than you paid) - Actual profit from sales Keep screenshots and receipts as documentation. The IRS isn't trying to tax you on money that was never really income in the first place, but having good records will save you stress if questions come up later. Don't panic - most casual users aren't going to owe anything significant even if they do get a 1099-K!

I went through an audit for this exact situation about 3 years ago, so I can share what actually happened. I had been filing HOH while living with my grandmother and supporting my two kids. The IRS selected my return for review (I think because my income seemed low for HOH status). They requested documentation showing I was maintaining a household for my qualifying dependents. I provided: - Bank statements showing regular payments to my grandmother for "rent" - Grocery receipts (I had saved most of them) - Utility bills that showed I was paying the electric and internet - School records showing my kids lived at that address - Medical records showing I was taking my kids to appointments The auditor explained that they needed to verify I was paying more than half of the household expenses for me and my kids. Since I was paying $600/month to my grandmother plus utilities and groceries, and my kids' total support was clearly more than half from me, I qualified. The key was having some documentation, even if informal. The auditor didn't care that I didn't own the house - they just wanted proof I was financially responsible for maintaining the household where my qualifying dependents lived. The audit took about 4 months but resulted in no changes to my return. Start keeping better records now if you're worried - even simple things like taking photos of receipts with your phone can help establish a pattern of support.

This is really helpful information from everyone who's shared their experiences! As someone who's been in a similar situation, I wanted to add that it's also worth checking if your state has any specific requirements or interpretations for HOH filing status that might differ from federal guidelines. I discovered that my state tax agency had slightly different documentation requirements during an audit a few years back. While I qualified for federal HOH status living with my parents and supporting my daughter, the state wanted additional proof that I was maintaining a separate household unit within the family home. The lesson I learned is to keep records not just of your financial contributions, but also evidence that you're running an independent household for you and your dependents - things like being the one who takes your kids to school, handling their medical appointments, buying their clothes, etc. This helps establish that you're truly the head of your own household, even if it's located within someone else's property. Also, if your parents are filing their own tax return, make sure they're not claiming any expenses that you're actually paying for. The IRS can cross-reference returns, and you want to avoid any conflicts between what you're claiming and what your parents are deducting.

Don't forget about the special scholarship exception! IRC Section 530(d)(4)(B)(iii) lets you withdraw up to the amount of tax-free scholarships without penalty. You'd still pay tax on the earnings portion but avoid the 10% penalty. So with your $3,455 scholarship, you could actually withdraw up to that amount above your qualified expenses without penalty. Since your overwithdrawal is only $465, you're well within this exception.

This is incredibly helpful information! I had no idea about the scholarship exception under IRC Section 530(d)(4)(B)(iii). So if I understand correctly, since my son received $3,455 in scholarships and my overwithdrawal is only $465, I can actually use this exception to avoid the 10% penalty entirely? That would mean I'd only owe regular income tax on the earnings portion (about $146 as calculated earlier) but no penalty at all. This seems like a much better option than scrambling to redeposit the $465, especially since I'm not sure if I'm still within the 60-day window. Quick question though - do I need to do anything special on my tax return to claim this scholarship exception, or does it just happen automatically when I report the overwithdrawal? I want to make sure I handle this correctly since this is my first time dealing with 529 distributions and scholarships in the same year. Thanks everyone for the detailed explanations - this community has been incredibly helpful in sorting through what seemed like a really complicated situation!