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Strategies & Market Trends : Income Taxes and Record Keeping ( tax ) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/13/2000 11:28:00 AM
From: Webhead	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5810

First let me say thank you all for providing a wonderful resource! I've been lurking since this thread started and have enjoyed picking up bits of interesting information. I've also come to the conclusion that I should avoid wash sales (and all discussion thereof) and any notion of qualifying for trader status like the plague! I have an unusual situation in that due to royalties on an invention I will have a much larger taxable income this year than last (and ever before). Is there some way to spread this income out over several taxable years? My mother (i.e. NOT a tax professional) thinks there is some way to average a large payment over proceeding and current years to spread the tax burden out. In my quick perusal of simple tax guides and the irs site I couldn't find any mention of this. I would greatly appreciate any information on this. Thanks! Ed

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/13/2000 8:56:00 PM
From: Dan Duchardt	Respond to of 5810

Steve, I'm remembering a little debate I had with Kaye Thomas, one of the resident experts around here, about this issue quite some time ago. I was arguing that the government should allow one to make the identification of lots at tax time, especially now that so many transactions are done without broker intervention of any kind. Kaye suggested I was missing the big picture, and that identification at the time of sale was not only the rule, but that it had some justification. There was no debate about the fact that you have to make the identification when you sell, or it is done be default following the FIFO method. All you can do is talk to your broker and see if they will make a notation on your confirmation slip identifying the lot the way you want it. Without that, I'm afraid you are selling your '94 shares whether you want to or not. Dan

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/14/2000 9:08:00 AM
From: Walter High	Respond to of 5810

Steve, I'm no expert in this area, but I am aware that you are supposed to identify to your broker which stock you are selling if you want to do something other than FIFO. I would think that one step you could take would be to fax a letter to your broker on the day of the sale telling him/her that your electronic sale of that same day is to be construed as a sale of the shares you bought on such and such a date rather than the oldest shares in the portfolio. I don't know if this would be acceptable to the IRS. Maybe one of the resident experts can comment on this proposed solution. Walter High

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/15/2000 1:02:00 AM
From: Surfer	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5810

Steve, If you want to hear it from horse's mouth, send a e-mail to IRS from the site below: irs.ustreas.gov Scroll down, you'll see a box for sending e-mail. May be someone will respond in a timely fashion. Good luck. Thanks.

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/15/2000 4:28:00 PM
From: Lynn	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5810

Hell Steve, This is one question I can help with because I just called Schwab about the very same question last week: I want to sell a few shares of a stock I bought in December rather than shares I have been holding of the same stock since 1986. Schwab told me that I should telephone them and specify which shares I intend to sell I before I place my online sell order. Once I place the order, I should telephone them again, just as an added measure. I asked what would happen should my sell order get filled in the minute or two between my placing the order and calling them back. They said--no problem, my original telephone call (which would be recorded) would be used to verify that I had specified the exact shares I had wanted to sell. If your online broker is Schwab, this is all you have to do. If you use another online broker, I suggest giving them a call to see how they handle sales such as this. Regards, Lynn

To: Steve Lamont who wrote (2713)	1/15/2000 6:14:00 PM
From: Didi	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5810

"Identifying stock or bonds sold If you can adequately identify the shares of stock or the bonds you sold, their basis is the cost or other basis of the particular shares of stock or bonds. If you buy and sell securities at various times in varying quantities and you cannot adequately identify the shares you sell, the basis of the securities you sell is the basis of the securities you acquired first." irs.ustreas.gov ............................ Hi Steve, Please relax. Agents are humans like all of us and often more pleasant than viewed. All they ask for is reasonable substantiation. Please know the rules, for taxpayers bear the burden of proof. Lots of free information on-line. I dropped several useful URLs at various websites. Please seek free "simple and plain English" information from the treasury's publications. You don't need fancy or complicated code or regs on most issues. Leave them to practitioners and the govt. Best of luck to you, Steve. di