Here are ten facts from the IRS about gains and losses and how they can affect your Federal income tax return.

1. Almost everything you own and use for personal purposes, pleasure or investment is a capital asset.

2. When you sell a capital asset, the difference between the amount you sell it for and your basis – which is usually what you paid for it – is a capital gain or a capital loss.

3. You must report all capital gains.

4. You may deduct capital losses only on investment property, not on property held for personal use.

5. Capital gains and losses are classified as long-term or short-term, depending on how long you hold the property before you sell it. If you hold it more than one year, your capital gain or loss is long-term. If you hold it one year or less, your capital gain or loss is short-term.

6. If you have long-term gains in excess of your long-term losses, you have a net capital gain to the extent your net long-term capital gain is more than your net short-term capital loss, if any.

7. The tax rates that apply to net capital gain are generally lower than the tax rates that apply to other income. For 2010, the maximum capital gains rate for most people is 15%. For lower-income individuals, the rate may be 0% on some or all of the net capital gain. Special types of net capital gain can be taxed at 25% or 28%.

8. If your capital losses exceed your capital gains, the excess can be deducted on your tax return and used to reduce other income, such as wages, up to an annual limit of $3,000, or $1,500 if you are married filing separately.

9. If your total net capital loss is more than the yearly limit on capital loss deductions, you can carry over the unused part to the next year and treat it as if you incurred it in that next year.

10. Capital gains and losses are reported on Schedule D, Capital Gains and Losses, and then transferred to line 13 of Form 1040

 

Bartering is the trading of one product or service for another. Usually there is no exchange of cash. However, the fair market value of the goods and services exchanged must be reported as income by both parties.

Here are four facts about bartering that the IRS wants small business owners to be aware of:

1. Barter Exchange A barter exchange functions primarily as the organizer of a marketplace where members buy and sell products and services among themselves. Whether this activity operates out of a physical office or is internet based, a barter exchange is generally required to issue Form 1099-B, Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions, annually to their clients or members and to the IRS.
 
2. Barter Income Barter dollars or trade dollars are identical to real dollars for tax reporting. If you conduct any direct barter – barter for another’s products or services – you will have to report the fair market value of the products or services you received on your tax return.

3. Taxes Income from bartering is taxable in the year it is performed. Bartering may result in liabilities for income tax, self-employment tax, employment tax, or excise tax. Your barter activities may result in ordinary business income, capital gains or capital losses, or you may have a nondeductible personal loss.

4. Reporting The rules for reporting barter transactions may vary depending on which form of bartering takes place. Generally, you report this type of business income on Form 1040, Schedule C Profit or Loss from Business, or other business returns such as Form 1065 for Partnerships, Form 1120 for Corporations, or Form 1120-S for Small Business Corporations.

 

• How much – if any – of your Social Security benefits are taxable depends on your total income and marital status.
• Generally, if Social Security benefits were your only income for 2010, your benefits are not taxable and you probably do not need to file a federal income tax return.
• If you received income from other sources, your benefits will not be taxed unless your modified adjusted gross income is more than the base amount for your filing status.
• Your taxable benefits and modified adjusted gross income are figured on a worksheet in the Form 1040A or Form 1040 Instruction booklet.
• You can do the following quick computation to determine whether some of your benefits may be taxable:
  • First, add one-half of the total Social Security benefits you received to all your other income, including any tax exempt interest and other exclusions from income.
  • Then, compare this total to the base amount for your filing status. If the total is more than your base amount, some of your benefits may be taxable.
• The 2010 base amounts are:
  • $32,000 for married couples filing jointly.
  • $25,000 for single, head of household, qualifying widow/widower with a dependent child, or married individuals filing separately who did not live with their spouses at any time during the year.
  • $0 for married persons filing separately who lived together during the year.

Links:
Publication 915, Social Security and Equivalent Railroad Retirement Benefits

Note:
Social Security Benefits are exempt from North Carolina income even if taxable on the federal return.

 

To help taxpayers understand the differences between taxable and non-taxable income, the Internal Revenue Service offers these common examples of items not included as taxable income:

• Adoption Expense Reimbursements for qualifying expenses
• Child support payments
• Gifts, bequests and inheritances
• Workers’ compensation benefits
• Meals and Lodging for the convenience of your employer
• Compensatory Damages awarded for physical injury or physical sickness
• Welfare Benefits
• Cash Rebates from a dealer or manufacturer

Some income may be taxable under certain circumstances, but not taxable in other situations. Examples of items that may or may not be included in your taxable income are:

• Life Insurance If you surrender a life insurance policy for cash, you must include in income any proceeds that are more than the cost of the life insurance policy. Life insurance proceeds, which were paid to you because of the insured person’s death, are not taxable unless the policy was turned over to you for a price.
• Scholarship or Fellowship Grant If you are a candidate for a degree, you can exclude amounts you receive as a qualified scholarship or fellowship. Amounts used for room and board do not qualify.
• Non-cash Income Taxable income may be in a form other than cash. One example of this is bartering, which is an exchange of property or services. The fair market value of goods and services exchanged is fully taxable and must be included as income on Form 1040 of both parties.

All other items—including income such as wages, salaries, tips and unemployment compensation — are fully taxable and must be included in your income unless it is specifically excluded by law.

These examples are not all-inclusive. For more information, see Publication 525, Taxable and Nontaxable Income, which can be obtained at http://www.irs.gov or by calling the IRS at 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).
Link:

Publication 525, Taxable and Nontaxable Income

Contact our office if you’d like more details or clarification about these tax rules.

 

If so, repayment of the credit begins this year, and the first installment is due with your 2010 tax return.

You might already have received a letter from the IRS summarizing how much you received and what amount you need to repay. Generally, your installments will be spread in equal amounts over the next fifteen years.

Example. Say you received the maximum credit of $7,500. Since $7,500 divided by 15 is $500, that’s how much you’d add to your tax liability, beginning with your 2010 return.

In some cases — such as if you sell your home or convert it to a rental — you may have to pay back some or all of the credit before the end of the 15-year “recapture” period. The repayment is due in the tax year that the ownership or use of your home changes.

In other situations, including when you move due to military or certain other government service orders, your repayment could be reduced or eliminated.

Other exceptions may apply. Please call if you have questions about how the payback requirements affect you.

 

Even Small Rental Property Owners Face 1099 Rules

Starting in 2011, there is a new tax requirement for landlords. All landlords who receive $600 or more in rent for the year must send a 1099 to all service providers that the landlord paid $600 or more during the year, such as plumbers, carpenters, yard services, and repair people.  The recently enacted Small Business Jobs Act contained one provision that may have escaped the notice of taxpayers who own rental property, but will affect them starting in January 2011.

The act subjects recipients of rental income from real estate to the same information-reporting requirements as taxpayers engaged in a trade or business. The new requirement applies to owners of both residential and commercial property. Prior to 2011, this requirement had only applied to those involved in full-time property management, but now the requirement covers all types of landlords. Landlords will need to gather federal tax ID numbers from service providers in order to file the 1099s. Failure to file the 1099s with the IRS can result in fines of $30-$100 per 1099 not filed with the IRS. In 2012, these requirements will expand to cover providers of good to landlords.

While rental property owners will not actually issue the required 1099s until early 2012, they need to start keeping adequate records of payments starting Jan. 1, 2011, so they will be prepared to issue correct 1099s. They will also need to obtain the name, address and taxpayer identification number of the service provider, using Form W-9 or a similar form.

Exceptions

The law provides exceptions for individuals who can show that the requirement will create a hardship for them. The IRS is directed to issue regulations on this, but has not done so yet, so there is currently no guidance on what constitutes sufficient hardship to qualify for the exception or how a taxpayer would demonstrate that hardship.

The law also contains an exception for individuals who receive rental income of “not more than a minimal amount.” Again, the IRS is directed to issue regulations to determine what constitutes “not more than a minimal amount” but has not done so yet.

The law also contains an exception for members of the military or employees of the intelligence community if substantially all their rental income comes from renting their principal residence on a temporary basis.

If such guidance is not forthcoming before Jan.1, all individuals who receive rental income should start keeping records of payments to service providers so they are prepared to issue 1099s in 2012.

Expanded 1099 Reporting After 2011

Currently, payments to corporations are excepted from the 1099 information reporting requirements, but starting for payments after Dec. 31, 2011, businesses (including, now, individuals who receive rental income) will be required to file an information return for all payments aggregating $600 or more in a calendar year to a single payee, including corporations (other than a payee that is a tax-exempt corporation). This change was made by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which was enacted in March. That act also expanded the information reporting requirements to include gross proceeds paid in consideration for goods (not just services).

 

Why? When you no longer have to repay a business debt because it’s been reduced or forgiven, cancellation of debt (COD) income can result. In general, unless your business qualifies for an exception, COD income is taxable.

Exceptions include bankruptcy, insolvency, indebtedness incurred in direct connection with farming, and qualified real property debt.

Note that these exceptions apply only to COD income. Depending on the kind of debt forgiven, restructuring could lead to other types of income. For instance, say you have a nonrecourse loan, where the lender’s only option in the case of default is to take the property back. In this situation, you’ll generally have a gain or loss on a sale instead of COD income.

The form of your business can also affect tax consequences. For example, when you operate as a partnership, the determination of whether the insolvency exception applies is made at the partner level. That means even if your partnership has more liabilities than assets, COD income could be taxable to individual partners.

Other rules may apply, including the possibility of deferring certain COD income you receive in 2010 to later years. Please contact us if you need more information.