Lee, with all due respect the point I think lambette is trying to make is that if you're receiving free service from Pristine which has some value, you probably ought to be reporting it as income. Even bartering, where there is no exchange of cash, is still reportable. Consider, for example, if I gave you a $100,000 property in exchange for $100,000 worth of securities. Further assume our respective basis is $50,000. As far as the IRS is concerned, I've sold $100,000 worth of property, you've sold $100,000 worth of securities, and we each have $50,000 in taxable gains. I'm reasonably certain the same applies to services (labor, investment advice chat rooms, etc) as well. Bear in mind I'm no tax professional, so I strongly advise you to consult your CPA on the matter.
I agree Lambette is probably being disruptive (baaaad lambette!) but she may very well be saving you some trouble during a potential, future audit. If you got investment gains to cover it, the "income" from the free service is probably deductible and probably a wash - but it's still reportable. Again, please consult your CPA. I'd ask mine for you but he'd bill me. :-)
Here's a link from the IRS. It says "Bartering occurs when you exchange goods or services without exchanging money. ... The fair market value of goods and services exchanged must be included in the income of both parties."
irs.gov
You did mention you were a volunteer. I think the IRS instructions on this are pretty clear too. That is, you probably aren't considered a volunteer since Pristine is a for-profit company. More details can be found here:
ftp.fedworld.gov
You really should go elsewhere, 'cause you'll not hear from me again.
You keep saying that, but you persist in hurling names (at least until last night) at my associates despite their already being suspended. Enough is enough, already, so let's do one another a favor, lay off, and keep the discussion civil please. I consider the discussion of how to report income for bartered services relevant - perhaps not to this thread but certainly this site. I do NOT consider discussions of your personal filing history relevant as it's not any of my business, so I'm none too happy to leave it alone.
Lee... I'm posting this to you respectfully and frankly. I'm not being disruptive... Rather, I'm just pointing out an area of tax law of which you may not be aware. If anything, I'm trying to help by illuminating the situation. Please do consult your tax professional on these matters as I'm certainly not qualified to advise anyone on anything tax related.
And I wonder too why none of you use your real names
If you parse it properly, smchan is my real name. Here's a hint, it's my initial concatenated with my last name. Do aliases really matter? If so, do you mind that Jenna uses Jenna? How about this gentleman, is that his or her real name? Member 8986460
Is it really worth bringing up or arguing about? IMHO, not really, so let's drop it, please.
Sam
PS If I didn't mention it already, please consider consulting your tax professional or CPA. <g> |
