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If I could give 10 stars I would If I could give 10 stars I would Such an amazing service so needed during the times when EDD almost never picks up Claimyr gets me on the phone with EDD every time without fail faster. A much needed service without Claimyr I would have never received the payment I needed to support me during my postpartum recovery. Thank you so much Claimyr!
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An incredibly helpful service! Got me connected to a CA EDD agent without major hassle (outside of EDD's agents dropping calls ā which Claimyr has free protection for). If you need to file a new claim and can't do it online, pay the $ to Claimyr to get the process started. Absolutely worth it!
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Used this service a couple times now. Before I'd call 200 times in less than a weak frustrated as can be. But using claimyr with a couple hours of waiting i was on the line with an representative or on hold. Dropped a couple times but each reconnected not long after and was mission accomplished, thanks to Claimyr.
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Oliver Weber
With your income levels (~$230k + $105k), you're definitely going to want to file jointly. I'm a financial advisor and run these calculations all the time. MFJ will almost certainly be better than MFS in your situation. Regarding the Roth 401ks - just make sure you're not exceeding income limits. For 2025 filing, the income phase-out for Roth IRA contributions starts at $230k for MFJ. Your 401ks should be fine though.
Ava Williams
ā¢Thanks for the advice! Just to clarify - are there income limits for Roth 401k contributions? I thought those were just for Roth IRAs.
Oliver Weber
ā¢You're absolutely right, and I should have been clearer. There are no income limits for Roth 401k contributions - those limits only apply to Roth IRAs. With your combined income, you would likely be in the phase-out range for direct Roth IRA contributions, but your Roth 401k contributions are completely fine regardless of income level. That's one advantage of the 401k version.
Has anyone considered that they might be better off delaying the house purchase until they figure out their tax situation? My wife and I bought in 2024 and it completely changed our tax planning.
I wouldn't delay a major life decision like buying a house just for tax reasons. The benefits of homeownership typically outweigh any short-term tax optimization.
Good point. I guess I was just thinking about our experience where the timing of our home purchase affected which year we could first claim certain deductions. But you're right - probably not worth delaying such a major life decision.
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Emma Wilson
Just wanted to share my experience with stock options and Form 3921. When I exercised my ISOs in 2023, I didn't trigger AMT either, but I discovered that I needed to keep careful records not just of the Form 3921, but also all the documentation around the initial grant. The trickiest part came when I sold some shares in 2024. Without those detailed records from when I originally exercised, calculating the correct basis would have been a nightmare. My advice is to create a spreadsheet tracking each grant date, exercise date, FMV at exercise, and the exercise price - this makes tax time so much easier when you eventually sell.
Malik Thomas
ā¢Did you use specific tax software that handled this well? I'm worried about messing up the reporting when I eventually sell.
Emma Wilson
ā¢I actually used TurboTax Premier, which has a specific section for stock sales and options. It prompts you to enter all the information from your Form 3921 and walks through calculating your basis properly. H&R Block's premium version also handles this well, but I found TurboTax's interface more intuitive for entering multiple stock option transactions. Just make sure you have all your documentation ready before you start, as you'll need to enter details like exercise dates, fair market values, and exercise prices for each transaction.
NeonNebula
One thing nobody's mentioned yet - Form 3921 reporting gets more complicated if your company goes public after you exercise options. I had this happen and suddenly had to deal with calculating AMT adjustments for shares I exercised years ago!
That happened to my brother! The company IPO'd at like 5x the last private valuation and suddenly everyone was scrambling to figure out their tax situations. Did you end up owing a bunch in taxes that year?
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5 Don't forget to track EVERYTHING for your content creation. I'm a tax preparer who works with several influencers, and the biggest mistake I see is not keeping good records. Even if it seems small, document all income and expenses. Use a separate credit card for business purchases if possible, and take photos of receipts. For your level of income, you don't need a formal business structure - a Schedule C is fine. But good record-keeping will save you tons of headaches at tax time and protect you if you're ever audited.
9 Do you recommend any specific apps for tracking expenses? I always lose my receipts and then panic at tax time trying to piece everything together from bank statements.
5 I usually recommend QuickBooks Self-Employed for content creators as it lets you categorize transactions easily and tracks mileage automatically if you travel for content. It also helps separate business from personal expenses. For a simpler option, many of my clients use free apps like Everlance or just a dedicated spreadsheet with photos of receipts stored in Google Drive. The key is consistency - pick a system you'll actually use and stick with it all year rather than scrambling at tax time.
17 Just a heads up - since you made less than $5,000, you don't need to worry about quarterly estimated tax payments yet. I made that mistake my first year and paid penalties. But definitely report the income on Schedule C! You can deduct things like equipment, software, courses to improve your content, portion of internet/phone used for business, etc. Keep all your receipts and maybe track the % of time you use devices for content vs personal use. The self-employment tax hits hard if you're not prepared for it.
14 This isn't entirely accurate. The requirement for quarterly estimated taxes isn't based on a specific income threshold but whether you'll owe $1,000+ at tax time. Even with $3-4K in side income, you could potentially hit that depending on your overall tax situation.
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Avery Saint
One thing nobody mentioned - check your last paystub of the year and compare the YTD 401k contribution total with what's on your W-2 in Box 12 with code D. They should match. If not, your employer might have made an error. My company somehow transposed numbers in my 401k contribution amount one year and it caused a huge headache at tax time. Better to catch it early!
Taylor Chen
ā¢Is there a deadline for when employers have to fix W-2 errors? My company is notoriously slow with correcting payroll issues and I'm worried if something's wrong with my 401k reporting, they'll take forever to fix it.
Avery Saint
ā¢Employers are supposed to issue corrected W-2s (W-2c) as soon as they discover errors, but there's no strict deadline specifically for corrections. However, if you find an error, report it to your employer immediately - they should issue a W-2c within a reasonable time. If your company drags their feet, you can actually report the discrepancy directly on your tax return. The IRS has Form 4852 (Substitute for W-2) where you can report what you believe are the correct numbers based on your pay stubs if your employer won't fix their mistake in a timely manner.
For anyone wondering, the 401k contribution limit for 2025 is $24,000 (or $30,000 if you're over 50). Make sure you're not exceeding that across all your jobs if you have multiple employers with 401k plans. Your W-2 Box 12 code D amounts from all jobs get combined for this limit.
Ezra Bates
ā¢Does the employer match count toward that limit? I'm putting in about $20k myself but with my employer's 6% match it would go over $24k.
Amara Eze
I've worked as a tax preparer and here's something people don't realize: the IRS is actually pretty reasonable about payment plans. The key is communication! They'd much rather have you filing and paying something than avoiding them completely. One thing to consider - if your income has changed significantly, you might qualify for an Offer in Compromise where you pay less than the full amount. It's not easy to qualify, but worth looking into if you're truly in financial hardship. Whatever you do, don't use those "pennies on the dollar" tax resolution companies you see advertising on TV. They charge thousands upfront and often deliver nothing.
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StarStrider
ā¢Thanks for this advice. My income has actually decreased quite a bit since 2022 (lost my higher paying job). Would that potentially help me qualify for an Offer in Compromise? And is that something I can apply for myself or do I need a professional?
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Amara Eze
ā¢Yes, a significant decrease in income could definitely help qualify you for an Offer in Compromise. The IRS looks at your current income, expenses, asset equity, and future earning potential to determine if you can reasonably pay the full amount owed. You can absolutely apply yourself using Form 656, though it's a complex process requiring detailed financial documentation. There's a $205 application fee, but it's waived if you meet low-income certification guidelines. If you decide to go this route, be extremely thorough with your financial information. The IRS rejects most offers that are incomplete or don't accurately reflect your ability to pay. There are good resources on the IRS website to help you through the process if you want to try it yourself.
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Giovanni Greco
I dunno if this helps but I didn't file for like 4 years and then got hit with a huge bill. I just called the IRS and said I can't pay it all and they put me on a payment plan for like $120/month. Super easy. Just file ur returns and call them.
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Fatima Al-Farsi
ā¢Did they charge you a lot in penalties? I'm in a similar situation and worried about how much extra I'll end up owing beyond the original taxes.
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