Thanks for mentioning this! Do you know what the income limits are to qualify? My mom's on a tight budget but not sure if she'd be considered low-income enough for assistance.

The income limits vary by state since these are state-administered programs, but generally for the QMB program (most comprehensive one), income needs to be at or below 100% of the Federal Poverty Level, which is about $1,215/month for an individual in 2025. Assets typically need to be under $9,900 for an individual (excluding your primary home and car). There are other programs with higher income limits though. The SLMB program (which pays just the Part B premium) allows income up to 120% FPL, and the QI program allows up to 135% FPL. Definitely contact your state's Medicaid office or local SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) counselor - they provide free assistance with these applications.

Be careful with those Medicare Advantage plans though. They look great with the $0 premiums but then restrict which doctors you can see. My dad switched to one and then couldn't see his cardiologist anymore because they weren't in network. And the out-of-network costs were insane!

Terrible advice. The IRS computers automatically match ALL W-2s against your filed return regardless of amount. Skip it and you're pretty much guaranteed to get a letter demanding the additional tax plus interest and penalties. The system is fully automated for this kind of matching, it's not about them "choosing" to come after you.

You're probably right, and I wouldn't recommend anyone else do what I did. I got lucky that year, but it's not worth the risk. The IRS matching system doesn't catch everything immediately, so sometimes issues like this can surface years later with added penalties. Better to deal with it properly upfront rather than potentially having a bigger headache down the road.

Great question! The reason tax professionals generally advise reporting it is because the IRS has already received a copy of that W-2. If you don't report it, their automated systems will flag the mismatch. The ideal solution is absolutely to get the company to issue a corrected W-2, but that can take time and companies aren't always responsive. If you can't get it corrected before the filing deadline, you have two options: 1) File Form 4852 (Substitute for W-2) explaining the discrepancy, or 2) Report the income and then file an amended return later if the company issues a correction. Either way, it's important to document your attempts to resolve the issue with the employer. Keep copies of emails, names of people you spoke with, and dates of your communications. This documentation is valuable if the IRS questions the situation later.

That makes sense! So it's more about avoiding the automated flag than actually paying tax on money you never received. I guess $63 wouldn't be much tax anyway, but it's the principle of the thing. Thanks for explaining!

I'm definitely guilty of using my personal Amazon account to buy supplies for my business. Is that a big no-no? Should I be setting up separate accounts for everything?

Using a personal Amazon account isn't ideal, but it's not a disaster if you keep meticulous records. The best practice is to use your business card/account for all business purchases to maintain clear separation. What's more important is having a dedicated business checking account and never commingling funds. Don't deposit business income into your personal account, and don't pay personal expenses directly from your business account. If you use a personal account for a business purchase, reimburse yourself properly with documentation. The goal is maintaining a clear paper trail showing your business operates as a separate entity. Small occasional crossovers with proper documentation won't necessarily void your liability protection, but consistent mixing of finances definitely could.

Good point! Also, some places have something called a "gross receipts tax" that applies to LLCs but not sole props in certain jurisdictions. I got hit with this in my city and wasn't prepared for it.

Isn't there also some rule about the total percentage of your income you can contribute across all retirement accounts? I thought I read somewhere that you can't put more than 25% of your income into retirement accounts total?

There is a percentage limit, but it only applies to the employer contribution portion of retirement plans. For a Solo 401k, you can contribute up to 25% of your net self-employment income as the "employer" contribution, on top of your "employee" contribution (the $23,000 limit). This doesn't affect Roth IRA eligibility or contribution limits at all. Your Roth IRA contribution is completely separate and only limited by the annual maximum ($7,000 for 2025 if under 50) and having enough earned income to cover it. Since your income is around $31,500, you're well within these limits and should be able to contribute to both accounts without any problem.

I've been doing my taxes wrong then! I thought the 401k limits were completely separate from IRA limits (which they are), but I didn't realize that the total contribution still had to be less than my business profit. My side hustle only makes about $15k but I've been maxing my solo 401k from it thinking I could use my W2 income to "cover" the rest of the contribution. Is that not allowed??

Does having multiple entities create more paperwork and higher accounting costs? I'm in a similar situation with my flooring business and some rental properties, but my accountant charges me per entity for tax filings.

Yes, having multiple entities does increase paperwork and accounting costs. I pay about $800 more annually in accounting fees and have additional state filing fees. However, the tax benefits and liability protection far outweigh these costs in my situation. The biggest advantage is clarity - there's no question about which expenses belong to which business. This makes documentation much cleaner if you ever face an audit. It also helps with planning because you can see the true profitability of each venture. My landscaping business seemed less profitable than it actually was when I was running some development costs through it incorrectly.

I'm curious about your point #3 regarding having your business be a contractor for your own real estate projects. I do electrical work and have rental properties too. How exactly do you document this to make sure it passes muster with the IRS? Do you create formal contracts between your entities?