Has anyone in this thread used TurboTax for multiple LLC situations? Their interface seems to struggle with two separate Schedule Cs with different QBI calculations. I'm wondering if the OP's spreadsheet might actually be better than commercial software for this specific case.

This is really impressive work! As someone who's been through the frustration of CPAs missing obvious deductions, I totally get why you went the DIY route. Your spreadsheet approach sounds comprehensive. One area I'd suggest double-checking is the interaction between your home office deduction and the QBI calculation. The home office deduction reduces your Schedule C profit, which then reduces your QBI base. But if you're also claiming the home office deduction on Schedule A (for the non-business portion), make sure you're not double-dipping anywhere. Also, have you considered how state tax implications might affect your federal deduction strategy? Some states don't follow federal bonus depreciation rules, so maximizing federal deductions could actually increase your state tax burden. The fact that you're covering 13 different forms shows you're really thinking holistically about this. That's exactly what most tax preparers miss - they focus on individual forms instead of optimizing across the entire return.

Just want to add something important about dual-status aliens and Form 5471 that hasn't been mentioned yet. Even though you don't need to file Form 5471 for shares sold before becoming a US resident, you might still need to report the sale on your dual-status return. If the sale of those foreign shares resulted in a capital gain, you'll need to report it on Schedule D and Form 8949, but only if it was US-source income or effectively connected with a US trade or business. Foreign-source capital gains realized during your non-resident period are generally not taxable in the US. Double check if you have any dividend income from those shares before selling them too. Depending on the source, those might need reporting.

Has anyone used TurboTax for a dual-status return with foreign income issues? I'm trying to figure out if it can handle Form 5471 correctly for part-year residents.

Can someone tell me if the gift tax applies to non-family members too? I'm planning to give my close friend about $30k to help with medical bills and I'm confused if I need to do anything about taxes.

Just wanted to add another important point that might help with your house down payment situation - if your parents are married and you're also married, they can actually give up to $68,000 per year without any gift tax forms! Here's how it works: Each of your parents can give $17,000 to you AND $17,000 to your spouse (that's $34,000 per parent, or $68,000 total). This is completely separate from the medical/tuition exemptions others mentioned. So for your $120,000 down payment, your parents could give you $68,000 this year with no paperwork, then give you another $52,000 next year (again, no forms needed if it's $68,000 or less). This way they could avoid filing any gift tax returns entirely while still helping you with the full amount over two years. Even if you're not married yet, this might be worth considering if you're planning to get married before buying the house - the timing could save your parents some paperwork hassle!

Quick question - does this extension situation affect how I should handle this? I also have a duplicate 1099-NEC on my transcript and filed an extension. Is there any special consideration or form I need to file because I'm past the normal deadline?

I went through this exact same situation two years ago with a duplicate 1099-NEC from a consulting client. The key thing that helped me was creating a simple spreadsheet that matched my bank deposits to each 1099-NEC I received. This made it crystal clear which ones were legitimate and which was the duplicate. When I filed, I reported only the actual income received and included a brief statement on my Schedule C explaining the discrepancy. I also kept screenshots of my income transcript showing the duplicate, along with my bank statements proving I only received one payment. The IRS never contacted me about it, but having all that documentation organized gave me peace of mind. Don't overthink it - just report what you actually earned and keep good records showing why there's a difference between your transcript and your return.

Has anyone used TurboTax to file Form 709? I'm trying to figure out if their Premier version actually handles gift tax returns properly or if I should just do the paper form. The software costs so much and I don't want to pay if it can't handle this form correctly.

Just wanted to share my experience since I was in a very similar situation last year. I gave my sister $65,000 for her business startup and was completely lost on Form 709. The key thing that helped me was understanding that Part 2, Line 4 is where you enter your AVAILABLE unified credit, not the total lifetime exemption amount. Since this was my first gift over the annual exclusion, I entered the full unified credit amount of $5,113,800 (which corresponds to the $12.92 million exemption). The taxable gift amount ($60,000 - $17,000 annual exclusion = $43,000) gets calculated in Part 1, and then Part 2 figures out how much of your credit you're using. One mistake I almost made was forgetting to attach Schedule A with all the gift details. Make sure you complete that first before moving to the main form. The IRS needs to see exactly what you gave, to whom, and when. Good luck with your filing!