Posted on 02/11/2013 8:01:11 AM PST by SeekAndFind
What's a more valuable tax deduction, a deadbeat boyfriend or a vicious guard dog? It depends on how big a deadbeat the boyfriend is.
No, this isn't a bad joke.
It's among the things taxpayers ask each year as they try to squeeze out whatever deductions they can.
And tax experts say they've heard it all.
Among the zaniest: How do I value a taxidermy I donated to charity? (It can involve estimating stuffing and mounting costs.) I'm putting a swimming pool in this year, I'm going to use it for exercise, can I deduct it as a medical expense? (Likely not.) What if my neighbor gives me a cow in exchange for help building a barn? (You must report the fair market value of that cow as ordinary income.)
Some people "are very creative and want to see if they can outsmart the tax code," says S. Miguel Reyna, a certified public accountant in Dallas.
Of course, many of the queries aren't so offbeat. Here's a sampling of questions that tax experts are often asked.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
For those who go to join a gym to lose weight, here’s one Q&A that would be of interest.
FROM THE ARTICLE....
Q: My doctor said that I need to lose weight. Can I deduct my gym membership?
A: In theory, some weight-loss-related expenses are deductible. In practice, deducting them is tough, say tax experts.
You only qualify if you need to lose weight because of a specific, doctor-diagnosed disease, says Gil Charney, principal tax research analyst at the Tax Institute at H&R Block HRB -0.46% .
The only costs that would then qualify as medical expenses would have to be specific to your weight-loss regimen. So a so-called general-use item, such as a gym membership, wouldn’t pass muster, but a specific weight-loss program would, he says.
Again, you can only deduct medical expenses once they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income for 2012.
What if my neighbor gives me a cow in exchange for help building a barn? (You must report the fair market value of that cow as ordinary income.)
Hahaha. That sort of thing happens all the time around the area where I live. Do you seriously think this sort of thing is EVER reported?
How do you think all the people around the rural area I live survive on $10 an hour? Everybody is fixing their buddy’s car for plumbing, or doing plumbing for electrical, or doing electrical for a bunch of beef. People just living their lives, government free.
It’s called a BARTER economy. Unless we have a Fascist, Communist or Nazi-like regime that spies on people, the IRS ( increasingly given snooping powers by the Fed ) cannot get anything out of it.
We seriously need a flat tax. 18 percent for all...no paperwork and no refunds. All these stupid rules for what? Nothing. I wonder if ANYONE does an accurate Tax assessment anymore. Most people probably get ripped off and pay more than they are supposed to.
Yes, when prescribed. Wife's best friend did this a few years back after open-heart surgery left her paralyzed.
It’s called a BARTER economy.
And to speak to Jesus’ words about taxes, Ceasar’s inscription is nowhere to be found on any of the livestock in my area.
RE: We seriously need a flat tax.
I would prefer a national sales tax. Look, I love our constitution and believe it is one of the greatest gifts our framers gave to posterity.
But it became a mess when Woodrow Wilson pushed the 16th amendment on the American people ( and our ancestors at that time foolishly ACCEPTED IT ).
Ever since then, the INCOME TAX has now become a basis for all sorts of social engineering. It has also given the IRS unprecedented police powers to tell you what kind of life you can live, up to and including going overseas to track down whatever income you have earned ( just ask the many LEGAL immigrants who have had assets overseas before they became US citizens ).
The very fact that we have the above article in this thread just shows how UNFREE a people we have become as a result of the 16th amendment. We now have to literally ask the Federal government whether we can do this or that in order to prevent them from taking more of our money.
There was a case some years ago, where a Man with Prostate Cancer was told by His Doctor to have SEX more frequently, maybe every day, the Doctor even wrote a prescription. The Mans Wife was not up to it, so He went to Nevada and began visiting Brothels regularly. He deducted All expenses as a necessary medical expenses. This went all the way through the Tax Court system and he PREVAILED because he had a Note from his doctor.
I’d rather see 10-15% staggered by income (three tiers: low, middle and high) and a 1-2% national sales tax excluding groceries. Scrap all other federal taxes like gas tax, death tax etc...
I like your plan a lot. I wonder if there was anyway to ban all state income taxes and have that come from a general fund. I guess if we had really good politicans even that might work but with their desire to spend, spend, spend, I guess that wouldn’t work.
>>Hahaha. That sort of thing happens all the time around the area where I live. Do you seriously think this sort of thing is EVER reported?<<
In their defense, they are just providing the official answer to the the question.
If the IRS ever got return that actually LISTED a bartered cow they would probably blow it up and frame it as a once in a country’s lifetime event!
>>I’d rather see 10-15% staggered by income (three tiers: low, middle and high)<<
In 5 years you would be back where we are now.
Flat tax or sales tax (not both) and nothing else.
I had been taking ACCESS, a shared ride program for the elderly and disabled, to and from medical appointments for several years till I found out those costs are deductible. There are deductions out there that aren’t publicized, which is one if the reasons I’ve been seeing my tax preparer, Bill, every year.
Changing the tax code would be paramount to a constitutional change so make any rates locked in and only changeable by state ratification or more than simple majority in both chambers.
There would also have to be same type of laws for spending and balance budgets mandatory. The states have got to have more say so when these entitlement spending bills come down the pike.
Repealing the 17th would help by putting senators again answerable to the states.
I am having surgery on my left elbow and wrist soon.
I am going to ask the doctor if golf, 3 times a week, could be incorporated into my rehab program.
But it became a mess when Woodrow Wilson pushed the 16th amendment on the American people ( and our ancestors at that time foolishly ACCEPTED IT ).
Ever since then, the INCOME TAX has now become a basis for all sorts of social engineering. It has also given the IRS unprecedented police powers to tell you what kind of life you can live, up to and including going overseas to track down whatever income you have earned ( just ask the many LEGAL immigrants who have had assets overseas before they became US citizens ).
The very fact that we have the above article in this thread just shows how UNFREE a people we have become as a result of the 16th amendment. We now have to literally ask the Federal government whether we can do this or that in order to prevent them from taking more of our money.
Spot on.
Political rewards for past contributions. Just try undoing any of them - somebody more influential than you will scream bloody murder.
Political rewards for past contributions. Just try undoing any of them - somebody more influential than you will scream bloody murder.
After all the calculations are done my effective tax rate is 10%. Why would I want to go up to 18%?
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