Be careful about timing here. I tried this route last year and was denied because I waited too long. I filed in February, discovered the offset in March, but didn't contact my loan servicer until May thinking I could take my time gathering documentation. Turns out most servicers have a 90-day window from the offset date, and I missed it by about 2 weeks. Now I'm on an IBR plan but that money is gone for good. The worst part? If I had set up the IBR a month earlier, the offset might never have happened in the first place.

This is such valuable information! I wish I had known about these options when my refund got hit with an offset two years ago. For anyone reading this thread, I want to emphasize what several people mentioned about timing - don't wait like I did. I assumed the money was just gone and didn't even try to fight it. Now I'm kicking myself seeing that there were actually options available. The 60-90 day window seems to be pretty standard across servicers, so if this happens to you, act immediately. Also, document EVERYTHING - take screenshots of your bank balance, save any overdue notices, and keep records of all your calls. Having worked in customer service myself, I know that detailed documentation makes a huge difference in how seriously your case gets treated.

Has anyone used TurboTax to handle a situation like this? I have similar rental losses and wondering if the software can handle all these passive activity rules correctly.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation after inheriting my aunt's duplex last year. One thing I learned that might help - make sure you're calculating your depreciation correctly with the stepped-up basis. Since you inherited the property, you get to depreciate based on the fair market value at the time of inheritance ($1.6M in your case), not what your grandfather originally paid for it. This is actually beneficial because it likely gives you much higher annual depreciation deductions. Also, keep detailed records of any time you spend managing the property - even if it's just reviewing tenant applications, coordinating repairs, or doing research about rental rates. If you can document more than 100 hours of participation annually, you might qualify for that $25,000 active participation allowance that Dylan mentioned earlier. Every hour counts toward potentially being able to use those losses against your other income! The depreciation recapture when you eventually sell is something to consider long-term, but for now, maximizing your current deductions while following the rules is probably your best strategy.

Has anyone actually received their refund after filing 1040-NR with treaty benefits? I filed mine 4 months ago claiming a treaty exemption and still haven't gotten anything. I'm worried I did something wrong.

I went through this exact same situation last year with treaty benefits from Canada. The key thing that helped me was making sure I understood the difference between reporting the income and claiming the exemption. You'll report your gross income from the 1042-S in the appropriate income section of the 1040-NR (like line 8 for royalties), then on line 24 you'll enter that same amount as exempt under the treaty. Write your country name and the specific treaty article number next to line 24. For line 34, that's your refund amount - it should equal the 30% that was withheld shown on your 1042-S. Make sure you've entered the withholding amount correctly on line 25e first. One thing that tripped me up initially was thinking I only needed to put the income on line 24, but you actually need to report it in both places. The IRS needs to see the full picture of your income and then the treaty exemption that applies to it. Also double-check your country's specific treaty to make sure you're citing the right article. Most royalty income falls under Article 12, but some treaties have different numbering or special provisions.

Has anyone actually calculated how much tax difference this makes? I'm in a similar situation but wondering if it's worth the effort to figure all this out vs just using what's on the 1099-B.

This is such a common issue that catches so many people off guard! I went through the exact same thing last year with my RSU sales. The key thing to remember is that you've already paid taxes on the RSU income when it vested, so you definitely don't want to pay again. One thing that really helped me was creating a simple spreadsheet to track everything. I listed each RSU vest date, the number of shares, and the fair market value per share on that date (which becomes your cost basis). Most equity platforms like Schwab or Fidelity will show this information in your transaction history or under "Tax Lots." Also, don't forget that if you sold immediately after vesting, you might actually have a small capital LOSS due to market fluctuations between vesting and selling. This can actually reduce your overall tax burden slightly. The paperwork is tedious but totally worth it - I saved about $8,500 in taxes by properly reporting my cost basis instead of accepting the $0 basis on my 1099-B. Form 8949 is your friend here, and make sure to use the correct codes for non-covered securities.

Has anyone used TurboTax to handle something like this? I'm in a similar situation but worried it won't handle the home sale loss correctly.

I'm dealing with a very similar situation right now - bought my house 10 months ago and need to sell due to my company relocating me. The advice here about primary residence losses not being deductible is spot on, but I wanted to add something that might help with your basis calculation. Make sure you're including ALL the costs that can be added to your basis, not just the obvious closing costs. Things like title insurance, recording fees, transfer taxes, and even some of the loan origination fees can be added to your purchase basis. On the selling side, realtor commissions, title fees, and other selling expenses reduce your realized gain (or increase your loss). Since you mentioned you're at around a $25k total loss after all expenses, you're definitely in personal loss territory that won't be deductible. But at least documenting everything properly will ensure you're not accidentally creating a taxable gain when you shouldn't have one. The job transfer angle mentioned by others is definitely worth exploring for the partial exclusion, even though you probably won't need it given your situation.