I'm dealing with a somewhat similar situation with my elderly father, and this thread has been incredibly helpful! One thing I wanted to add based on my experience is about the support test calculation. When determining if you're providing more than half of your mom's support, make sure to include the fair market value of the housing you're providing her. Even though you're not paying rent, the IRS considers the rental value of the room/space your mom occupies as part of the support you're providing to her. So if a comparable room would rent for $800/month, that's $9,600 annually in housing support you're providing, which really adds up when calculating total support. Also, don't forget to factor in things like transportation costs if you drive her places, clothing purchases, and any entertainment or personal care items you buy for her. These all count toward the support test. The way I track it is: take all the money you spend on her behalf (including housing value) and compare it to her total living expenses for the year. If your contributions exceed 50%, you're good for the dependent claim. Your situation sounds very solid for both the dependent test and HOH qualification. Just keep those records organized!

This whole thread has been incredibly informative! I'm in a similar caregiving situation with my disabled adult brother, and I've always been uncertain about HOH eligibility since we live in my parents' old house that they're letting us use. Reading through everyone's experiences, it's clear that the IRS really does focus on who's actually maintaining the household financially rather than who holds the deed. I've been covering utilities, property taxes, groceries, and all of my brother's care expenses, so it sounds like I should have confidence in filing HOH. One thing that's given me pause is that my brother receives some disability benefits. Does anyone know if Social Security Disability payments count toward the income threshold for dependent status? His SSDI is his only income, but I want to make sure I'm not missing anything that would disqualify him as my dependent. Also, for those who mentioned keeping detailed records - do you recommend any particular apps or methods for tracking all the household and support expenses throughout the year? I tend to lose track of smaller purchases and want to be better organized going forward. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences and advice. It's really helpful to hear from people who've navigated these complex family situations successfully!

Has anyone experienced an audit over household employee issues? I'm curious how common this is and how aggressive the IRS is about following up on situations like this.

I went through something very similar last year with our house cleaner who insisted she was an independent contractor despite working exclusively for us on a set schedule. After reading through these comments, I ended up using a combination of approaches that worked. First, I documented everything - all our text exchanges, her work schedule, photos of her using our cleaning supplies, etc. Then I clearly explained the legal distinction between household employees and independent contractors, emphasizing that this wasn't my personal preference but IRS requirements. When she still refused to cooperate, I filed the W-2 with "Applied For" in the SSN field as suggested by others here. I also sent her a certified letter explaining that I was required to report her wages and that her refusal to provide her SSN didn't change my legal obligations as an employer. The key thing I learned is that you can't let an employee dictate their own classification. The IRS has specific tests for this, and working in your home under your direction clearly makes someone a household employee. Don't let her unwillingness to understand tax law put you in a position of non-compliance. Make sure you also pay the employer portion of FICA taxes and file Schedule H with your return. Better to do everything correctly on your end even if she's being difficult about her part.

I went through this exact same situation last year with about 40 different stock purchases of the same company that I sold in one transaction. After researching extensively and consulting with a tax professional, here's what I learned: You technically cannot aggregate transactions with different purchase dates on Form 8949, even if they're all non-wash sales and long-term. Each unique acquisition date creates a separate tax lot that should be reported individually according to IRS guidelines. However, there are a couple of practical approaches that can help: 1. **Summary reporting with attachment**: You can report totals on Form 8949 and attach a detailed statement showing each individual transaction. Write "See attached statement" in column (a) and include your totals in the appropriate columns. 2. **Software import features**: Most tax software (including TurboTax) can import directly from major brokerages. This eliminates manual entry even if you still have multiple lines. 3. **Check your 1099-B format**: If your broker already aggregated similar transactions on the 1099-B they sent to the IRS, you might be able to match that reporting format. The key is maintaining detailed records of every transaction and ensuring your total numbers match what was reported to the IRS. Even if you use summary reporting, keep that spreadsheet with all individual transaction details in case of an audit. I know it's tedious, but better to be compliant than deal with IRS notices later!

I've been dealing with this same issue for the past few years as an active trader, and I've found a few strategies that work well within IRS guidelines. First, you're correct that each transaction with a different purchase date technically needs to be reported separately. However, there are some legitimate workarounds: **1. Check if your broker pre-aggregated anything**: Some brokers will group similar transactions on your 1099-B before sending it to you and the IRS. If Fidelity already combined any transactions, you can match that reporting. **2. Use the summary method**: You can report summary totals on Form 8949 and attach a detailed breakdown. This is especially helpful when you have many transactions. Just check the appropriate box (usually C for long-term with basis reported to IRS) and write "See attached statement" in the description field. **3. Consider tax software with import features**: TurboTax Premier can import directly from Fidelity and will handle the formatting automatically. It often gives you options to summarize similar transactions while staying compliant. **4. Keep detailed records**: Whatever approach you use, maintain a spreadsheet with every individual transaction. This protects you if the IRS ever asks for details. I typically use the summary method when I have more than 10-15 similar transactions. It's saved me hours of data entry while keeping me compliant with IRS requirements. The key is making sure your totals match what the IRS received from your broker.

Don't overthink this. I've been selling vintage toys for years and what I do is just track total inventory purchases vs total sales. I take my total purchase cost for the year, subtract the value of stuff I still have on hand, and that's my COGS. Easy peasy. Never had an issue with the IRS. Just keep your receipts in case they ever ask questions.

As someone who's dealt with similar inventory tracking issues in my small business, I'd recommend going with the retail inventory method that Camila mentioned - it's specifically designed for situations like yours where you have purchase records but can't match specific items to sales. Here's what worked for me: Calculate your average cost per item from all your Korean receipts (total spent ÷ total items purchased), then use that to value your ending inventory. The IRS accepts this approach for small businesses, and it's much more defensible than guessing or ignoring COGS entirely. Also, for future reference, consider using a simple spreadsheet or app to track inventory as you purchase it. Even basic descriptions in English will help enormously next year. You don't want to miss out on legitimate COGS deductions - they can significantly reduce your tax burden compared to just reporting everything as other income.

Small business owner here (5 employees). I handle my sales tax myself but use Gusto for payroll. Here's what I've learned: 1. Gusto is great for payroll taxes but remember they only file/pay the PAYROLL taxes. You still need to handle income tax estimates quarterly. 2. For sales tax, if you're only in one state, doing it yourself with Stripe's reports is totally doable. If you expand to multiple states, get help because nexus issues get complicated fast. 3. The specialist might be overkill now but could be worth consulting occasionally as you grow. Learning the basics yourself is smart - gives you better financial understanding of your business!

Has anyone compared Gusto with QuickBooks payroll? I'm using QB for accounting and wondering if their integrated payroll would be better than a separate system like Gusto?