This is such a common source of confusion! I went through the exact same thing last year. Here's what I learned that might help: Box 1 (Gross Distribution) = Total amount that came out of your retirement account Box 2a (Taxable Amount) = Only the portion you need to pay taxes on Box 5 (Employee Contributions) = Money you already paid taxes on when you contributed it So yes, you're absolutely right - you only report Box 2a as taxable income on your Form 1040. The reason Box 2a + Box 5 = Box 1 is because Box 5 represents your after-tax contributions that you don't get taxed on again. For reporting on Form 1040: - If it's from an IRA: Box 1 goes on line 4a, Box 2a goes on line 4b - If it's from a pension/401k: Box 1 goes on line 5a, Box 2a goes on line 5b The key thing to remember is that the IRS doesn't want to double-tax you on money you already paid taxes on when you put it into the account. That's why there's a difference between the gross distribution and the taxable amount.

Just wanted to add another perspective that might help clarify things! I work as a tax preparer and see this confusion constantly during tax season. Here's a simple way to think about it: Think of your retirement account like a piggy bank with two compartments: 1. Money you put in BEFORE paying taxes (pre-tax contributions + all growth) 2. Money you put in AFTER paying taxes (after-tax contributions) When you take money out: - Box 1 shows the TOTAL from both compartments - Box 2a shows only the money from compartment #1 (the part you haven't paid taxes on yet) - Box 5 shows the money from compartment #2 (the part you already paid taxes on) The IRS only wants to tax you on compartment #1 money because you got a tax deduction when you put it in originally. Compartment #2 money was taxed when you earned it, so no double taxation. One pro tip: Always double-check that your 1099-R math adds up. If Box 2a + Box 5 doesn't equal Box 1, there might be an error on the form or there could be other factors like loan repayments or conversions involved. When in doubt, contact the plan administrator who issued the 1099-R for clarification!

I just went through this exact same situation about two months ago! Like everyone else here, I was completely baffled by the e-filing vs. processing center confusion. I spent hours trying to figure out where my TurboTax returns were "sent" before realizing it doesn't matter at all. What finally clicked for me was understanding that Form 8822 is essentially just telling the IRS "hey, I used to live here, now I live here" - and they route it based on where you used to live geographically. Nothing fancy about electronic processing centers or software companies. I'm in Virginia, so I used the Kansas City address, sent it with regular mail, and got confirmation about 5 weeks later when I received an IRS notice directly at my new address (no forwarding needed). The whole thing ended up being so much simpler than I made it out to be initially. One small thing that helped me feel more organized: I made a note in my calendar for about 6 weeks after mailing to check that any IRS correspondence was coming to my new address. That way I'd know if something went wrong and I needed to follow up. But honestly, it worked exactly as everyone described here - just took patience during that processing window.

I was in the exact same situation last year! Been e-filing through TurboTax for over a decade and was completely lost about where to send Form 8822. Like everyone else here, I went down this rabbit hole trying to figure out which processing center handled my e-filed returns before realizing it's completely irrelevant. The breakthrough moment for me was when I stopped thinking about this as a "tax filing" issue and started thinking about it as simply a "change of address notification." The IRS just needs to know where you used to live so they can route your form to the right office - it has nothing to do with where your electronic returns were processed. I ended up using the state-by-state breakdown that Hunter provided earlier in this thread (thanks Hunter!), sent it with regular first-class mail, and everything worked perfectly. Got my first IRS correspondence at the new address about 6 weeks later, which confirmed the change had gone through their system. One thing that really helped ease my anxiety was realizing this is such a routine process for the IRS. They handle millions of address changes every year - it's not some complex procedure that requires perfect knowledge of their internal systems. Just follow the geographic guidelines based on your old address and you're good to go!

Just wanted to add my experience from handling my uncle's estate last year. We had a very similar situation - house worth about $400k at death, sold for $398k, with $24k in selling expenses. The key thing I learned is that you need to be very careful about how you report this on the 1041. Even though mathematically it looks like a $26k loss, the IRS doesn't allow you to deduct losses on personal residences even for estates. The selling expenses do reduce the amount realized, but they can't create a deductible loss that flows through to beneficiaries. What I did was report the sale on Form 8949 attached to Schedule D of the 1041, showing the stepped-up basis as the cost basis and the net proceeds (after selling expenses) as the sales price. This resulted in a $0 gain/loss for tax purposes. One thing that helped me was keeping very detailed records of all the selling expenses - not just the realtor commission but also staging costs, minor repairs, attorney fees specific to the sale, etc. Even though they don't create a deductible loss, they do reduce any potential gain if the house had appreciated. Make sure your estate attorney can separate out any fees that were for general estate administration versus the house sale specifically, as those might be deductible as administrative expenses on a different part of the return.

I went through this exact scenario when settling my father's estate two years ago. One additional consideration that hasn't been mentioned yet - if your mother's estate is large enough to require filing Form 706 (federal estate tax return), the treatment of the home sale might have some additional implications for the estate tax calculation. Also, since you mentioned this is your first time as executor, make sure you're aware of the timing requirements. The 1041 is generally due by the 15th day of the 4th month after the estate's tax year ends (typically April 15th if using a calendar year). You can request extensions, but there are specific procedures to follow. One practical tip: if you haven't already, consider opening a separate estate checking account if the proceeds from the home sale will be sitting in the estate for any period of time. Any interest earned would be taxable income to the estate and need to be reported on the 1041. The stepped-up basis rule you mentioned is indeed your friend here - it essentially resets the property's cost basis to the date-of-death value, which typically eliminates most capital gains on inherited property. This is one of the key tax benefits of inherited assets versus gifted assets.

As someone who's dealt with this exact situation, I can confirm what others have said - rent reimbursements from roommates aren't taxable income even if you get a 1099-K. The key is documentation. I'd recommend setting up a simple spreadsheet tracking: (1) money received from your sister each month, (2) the full rent payment to your landlord, and (3) screenshots of the Cash App transactions with clear descriptions like "July rent - Paolo's half." One thing I haven't seen mentioned - if your sister is also on the lease, that actually strengthens your case that this is just cost-sharing between co-tenants, not rental income. The IRS differentiates between someone paying you rent as their landlord versus splitting costs as co-tenants. Also consider asking your sister to include a memo with each transfer like "My half of rent for [Month]" - it makes the purpose crystal clear if anyone ever reviews the transactions.

I went through this exact same situation last year and can offer some practical advice. Like others have mentioned, the rent money passing through your account isn't taxable income - it's a personal reimbursement between co-tenants. Here's what I did to protect myself: I created a simple monthly routine where I screenshot each Cash App transaction from my roommate with the rent description, then screenshot my bank account showing the full rent payment going to the landlord. I keep these in a dedicated folder on my phone and back them up to cloud storage. When I did receive a 1099-K, I worked with my tax preparer to report it properly. We included the full 1099-K amount on Schedule 1, then used the "Other adjustments" section to deduct the non-taxable roommate reimbursements, effectively zeroing out that portion. The IRS never questioned it because the documentation was clear - consistent monthly amounts labeled as rent, matching outgoing payments to the landlord, and both names on the lease showing we're co-tenants splitting costs rather than a landlord-tenant relationship. One tip: consider having your sister add your apartment address in the Cash App memo field along with "rent" - it makes it even clearer what the money is for if anyone ever reviews the transactions.

I work as a tax advisor and want to reinforce what everyone else has said - you absolutely did everything correctly! The Cincinnati address for payments with Form 1040V and the Fresno address for tax returns is exactly how the IRS system is designed to work. What many people don't realize is that the IRS actually processes over 240 million tax-related documents each year, so they've had to create highly specialized workflows to handle this volume efficiently. Payment processing centers like Cincinnati are equipped with check scanning equipment and staff trained specifically for payment handling, while document processing centers focus on reviewing returns and running compliance checks. Your payment will definitely be matched to your return. The IRS uses what they call their "Integrated Data Retrieval System" which automatically matches payments to returns using multiple identifiers from your 1040V form. I've been doing this for 12 years and have never seen a properly submitted payment get lost in their system. Since you mailed it 10 days ago, I'd expect to see your check clear within the next 5-10 business days, and your payment should appear in your IRS online account transcript within 2-3 weeks after that. You can sleep easy knowing you followed the instructions perfectly!

This whole thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm a first-time tax filer who just went through the exact same panic about mailing addresses. I sent my payment with Form 1040V to Cincinnati and my tax return to a different address, then spent the weekend convinced I'd completely screwed everything up. Reading all these explanations from tax professionals and experienced filers has been such a relief. I had no idea that the IRS had specialized processing centers - it actually makes perfect sense from an operational standpoint, but it's definitely not intuitive when you're just trying to follow the instructions and do everything right. The advice about setting up an IRS online account to track the payment processing is gold. I'm going to do that today instead of worrying myself sick waiting for my check to clear. Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences and expertise - this community is amazing for helping newcomers navigate these confusing processes!