Has anyone mentioned that if the house was the father's primary residence, he might have qualified for the $250,000 capital gains exclusion? Might not need to worry about basis at all.

The property tax assessment approach should work fine for your situation, especially since the difference between your 2021 assessment ($187,500) and 2024 sale price ($195,000) is relatively small. That $7,500 gain over 3 years actually suggests the assessment was pretty close to market value at the time of death. A few practical tips from someone who's been through this: First, make sure you have a copy of the official 2021 property tax assessment document - not just the amount, but the actual assessment notice. Second, consider pulling a few comparable sales from late 2021/early 2022 in your neighborhood as supporting documentation. You can find these on sites like Zillow, Redfin, or your county's property records website. The IRS generally accepts property tax assessments for establishing FMV, especially when they're reasonable compared to eventual sale prices. In your case, the numbers tell a logical story. Just keep good records and you should be fine. The stepped-up basis is one of the few tax breaks that actually works in your favor!

Don't forget that you need to keep really good records if you're deducting medical expenses! I learned this the hard way when I got audited two years ago. Make sure you have proof of when you actually paid each bill (receipt with date or credit card statement). Also, the threshold is 7.5% of AGI which is higher than it used to be. For many people it doesn't make sense to itemize anymore unless you have really high medical costs or other big deductions like mortgage interest.

Great thread everyone! I just wanted to add that if you're using HSA (Health Savings Account) funds to pay for medical expenses, the same timing rules apply. You can only reimburse yourself from your HSA for expenses that were incurred after your HSA was established, but the key is when you actually paid for the expense, not when the service was performed. So if you had that December 2024 procedure but paid in January 2025, you could reimburse yourself from your 2025 HSA contributions for that expense. Just make sure to keep good records showing the service date AND payment date, especially if you're not reimbursing yourself immediately. The IRS allows you to reimburse yourself years later as long as you have proper documentation. Also, remember that HSA reimbursements are tax-free, so if you're eligible for an HSA, that might be a better option than trying to itemize medical deductions on Schedule A, especially with that 7.5% AGI threshold.

I went through this exact same frustration about 3 weeks ago! The transition caught me completely off guard too. I ended up choosing LOGIN.GOV and it was actually pretty straightforward once I got past the initial confusion. Here's what I learned: your old EFTPS account and all your information is still there - they just added this new security layer on top. After setting up LOGIN.GOV (took about 10 minutes), I was able to access my same account with all my payment history, saved bank accounts, and even my scheduled quarterly payments. The IRS apparently made this change as part of a broader security upgrade across all their systems. While it was annoying at first, I have to admit the new authentication feels much more secure than the old PIN system. I'd recommend just biting the bullet and setting up one of the new login methods - LOGIN.GOV seems to be the more popular choice based on what I've seen here. Don't worry about losing your account data - it's all still there waiting for you once you get through the new login process!

I went through this same transition about two weeks ago and wanted to share my experience since it sounds like a lot of people are dealing with this surprise change. The new LOGIN.GOV requirement initially frustrated me too, but once I got through the setup process, I actually prefer it to the old PIN system. The multi-factor authentication gives me more confidence that my tax payment information is secure, especially with all the identity theft issues we hear about these days. One thing that helped me was doing the LOGIN.GOV setup on a desktop computer rather than my phone - the interface seemed cleaner and easier to navigate. The verification process was straightforward: just email confirmation and a text message code to my phone. After connecting through LOGIN.GOV, I was relieved to find all my saved payment methods, scheduled payments, and payment history exactly where I left them. The IRS definitely could have communicated this change better to users, but the actual transition preserves all your existing account information. For anyone still on the fence about making the switch, I'd recommend just getting it done before your next payment deadline. It's a one-time setup that takes about 15 minutes, and then you're back to making payments as usual with better security.

I'm in almost the exact same situation as you, Paolo! Started an LLC about 18 months ago, got the EIN, but never actually used it for anything. I've been putting off dealing with the dissolution because the IRS guidance online is so confusing. After reading through all these helpful responses, I'm feeling much more confident about the process. It sounds like the key steps are: 1) complete the state dissolution first, 2) send a simple notification letter to the IRS via certified mail, and 3) keep good records of everything. One question I have is about timing - is there any deadline for sending the IRS notification letter after the state dissolution is finalized? I want to make sure I handle this properly but also don't want to stress about rushing if there's no specific timeframe required. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this thread has been incredibly valuable for demystifying what seemed like a complicated process!

This has been such a comprehensive and helpful discussion! I'm actually dealing with this exact situation right now - formed an LLC last year, got an EIN, but never used it for any business activities before deciding to dissolve it. Reading through everyone's experiences has really put my mind at ease about the process. The consensus seems clear: you can't "cancel" an EIN, but sending that notification letter to the IRS after your state dissolution is complete is definitely the right move for keeping everything clean. I particularly appreciated the practical tips about using certified mail for proof of delivery and waiting for the official state dissolution confirmation before sending the IRS letter. Those details make a huge difference for doing this properly. One thing that struck me from reading all these responses is how much confusion there is around this topic initially, but how straightforward it actually becomes once you understand the basic steps. The IRS website really does make this seem more complicated than it needs to be! For anyone else in this situation who might be reading this thread later, the key takeaways seem to be: 1) Complete your state dissolution first and get official confirmation, 2) Send a simple, straightforward notification letter to the IRS via certified mail, 3) Keep detailed records of everything, and 4) Check if your state has any additional filing requirements even for inactive LLCs. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - this community knowledge is invaluable for navigating these business administrative tasks that aren't always well-documented elsewhere!

Anthony, I had a very similar situation last year and it drove me crazy trying to figure it out! One thing that helped me was requesting a transcript of my tax account from the IRS to see exactly how they calculated my Child Tax Credit. You can get your transcript online at irs.gov or by calling them. The transcript shows line-by-line how your credit was calculated and any adjustments that were made. In my case, I discovered there was a coding error where my filing status wasn't properly matched to my income, which triggered an automatic reduction. Since both you and your tax professional got the same result, there might be something in your tax record or a form that's causing the system to automatically reduce your credit. The transcript will show you the IRS's actual calculation versus what you expected, which should help identify the disconnect. It's frustrating when you're counting on that money, especially with young kids. Hope you can get it sorted out!

I've been through something very similar and know how frustrating this can be! One thing that caught my attention - you mentioned being out of work for 3 months but still earning $46,000 total. This suggests you had a decent income when you were working, which is good for the credit calculation. Here's something specific to check: Look at your Form 1040 line 19 (Child Tax Credit) and compare it to what you calculated manually using the Child Tax Credit worksheet. Sometimes tax software has glitches or doesn't properly account for all circumstances. Also, double-check that your children's ages are entered correctly in your tax software. The system is very literal - if there's any discrepancy in birthdates or if a child aged out during the tax year, it can affect the calculation. Since both you and the professional got the same result, I'd lean toward either a systematic issue with how your specific situation is being processed, or there's a piece of information that's being consistently entered incorrectly. The transcript suggestion from Mei Wong is spot-on - that will show you exactly what the IRS sees and calculated. Don't give up! With your income level and two qualifying children, you should definitely be getting a substantial Child Tax Credit.