Friendly reminder to those who use eBay, PayPal, Venmo... etc...

[gman1971]

The COVID 19, 1.9 trillion dollar package that passed last year made a change to the tax code to "pay for it" (LOL) That change went into effect at the beginning of this year, Jan 1-2022, and that change is that anyone who uses Paypal, eBay, etc, will have a 1099 created and sent to the IRS automatically if they sell over $600.00 in a year (regardless of how many transactions). Prior amount was $20,000.00 in a year and 200 transactions.

Anyhow, those sites, Paypal, eBay, etc, will be asking for your social security number and other potentially sensitive information... so if you are worried about privacy and your SSN leaking out, etc, this might be a serious concern.

I think things like Paypal "Friends and Family" etc, are supposed to be excluded, but who knows...

DISCLAIMER: You have to declare to the IRS every dollar you earn as income... and all I am doing here is reminding people of what happened, for their consideration.

 

Anyhow, I've already noticed a sharp drop in 2nd hand radio equipment on eBay, in just this two past weeks..... so if you had plans on starting that XPR7550e collection from eBay... you might be too late...

Cheers.

G.

[MichaelLAX]

Exactly!

Why should PayPal and Venmo escape the same regulations imposed upon banks?!?

Last time I checked, we must give our SS # to banks, as well.

[Radioguy7268]

I haven't sold anything off on Ebay in almost 2 years. For me, it was mostly the ever-increasing seller fees. Lucky for me, I had already sold off most of the oldest junk that was just taking up space. I'm thinking someone will eventually create a new version of the Silk Road where we can barter radios for crypto...

[PACNWComms]

I left selling items on eBay when it started to become known as ePay, with shipping fees being highly recommended being paid by the seller and for the US Postal Service to be the carrier. As Radioguy 7268 mentioned, that pushed the cost up a lot. I was also tired of the buyer having all the power, and the seller having to keep up with the many scams being played upon them/me. I sold a Motorola Maxtrac service manual, and several people told me that $12.95 for shipping was too much, and that I could have placed that manual in an envelope. When I showed these people details, that the manual is in a 2.5 inch thick three ring binder and was insured for replacement amount, I lost money on shipping charges. 

Thank you OP for the warning on the IRS side of the situation, I hit that limit of $20k many years ago, and was just as fed up then. Local amateur club and cash is the way to go it would seem.

[MichaelLAX]

1 hour ago, PACNWComms said:

Thank you OP for the warning on the IRS side of the situation, I hit that limit of $20k many years ago, and was just as fed up then. Local amateur club and cash is the way to go it would seem.

What taxes are you trying to avoid?!?

Income tax on those huge capital gains you make from selling amateur radio manuals??? 

[gman1971]

You must always report income to the IRS, not two ways about that: it is the law.

With that said, it is my opinion that lowering the threshold for a 1099 sent to the IRS down to a meager 600 a year puts everybody, including "little guy", "grandma" etc into the business category... with additional paperwork that most folks have never filled, and the very real possibility of getting audited for no reason other than potentially being in the wrong side of the political spectrum for selling your sofa for 601 bucks, or some other thing like that.

While I am not directly affected by this, as I don't sell anything anymore on eBay... since the last thing I sold a year or so back ago, a TM-v71a, eBay took a huge chunk of money, and so did PayPal... I made the decision to not sell anything there anymore. Now, adding onto those hefty fees there is now the potential risk of being audited for any reason, thus putting the burden on you to prove that you indeed sold items at a loss.

I think this explains part of the reason why I am seeing less radios being sold on eBay... but I am pretty sure a lot of people are going to be caught with their pants down next year, when they get a 1099 for a large amount of money.

Cash and local clubs, indeed, but don't forget to report that money you earn... it is the law.

G.

[PACNWComms]

8 hours ago, MichaelLAX said:

What taxes are you trying to avoid?!?

I wasn't trying to avoid, more in....not paying as much. At that time I had a boss that liked to throw out Motorola service manuals. they come in two types "detailed" and "basic" but usually costing no more than $100-150, but it seemed like people were willing to pay about $100 for used manuals at that time. After a few months of selling those manuals, I get a notice saying that my earnings are being reported to the IRS. Those sales added up pretty quick. The way Motorola is going, I expect future manuals to be downloadable DRM content eventually as software as a service is also creeping in with them. I just hate paying fees to auction sites that get higher and higher, then the IRS red tape, as many people do. Of course I file my taxes every year, and earnings. But, I also see barter as becoming more necessary with our current issue of inflation, and see some in the neighborhood doing exactly that for lawn service, car washes, and auto repair type of gigs.

Edited January 13, 2022 by PACNWComms
action changed to auction, added "and"

[gman1971]

The statement from @MichaelLAX"Whole political class" pretty much sums it all up.  

And truth is nobody knows what the "whole political class" really does, and why; and that is one more problem in the long list of problems we face...

 

[n4gix]

Hmm... This is likely to present a problem for me as I work part time on-line gig with a firm in Canada creating 3d CAD models of aircraft, as well as programming avionics training packages under US Gov contract for our armed forces.  For the past ten years I've been paid monthly via PayPal. My only other 'income' is my very modest SS check each month.

SS is of course non-taxable, but my yearly pittance of $11,400 has so far been below the taxable level. I wonder now how this might affect me next year, if at all.

[MichaelLAX]

27 minutes ago, n4gix said:

SS is of course non-taxable...

You'd better double check that conclusion with your tax advisor.

[SteveShannon]

Social security is taxable income. 

[MichaelLAX]

3 hours ago, Sshannon said:

Social security is taxable income. 

Another example: retirees having to pay increased income taxes because of Republican sponsored tax cuts to the wealthy and ultra-wealthy!

[gman1971]

@MichaelLAX, are you doing it on purpose?

[MichaelLAX]

56 minutes ago, gman1971 said:

@MichaelLAX, are you doing it on purpose?

Or on porpoise? 

Which national political party is known for its relentless cutting of taxes on the wealthy and ultra-wealthy?

You agreed with me before when I referred to the Republicans as a "whole political class."

On 1/13/2022 at 9:57 AM, gman1971 said:

The statement from @MichaelLAX"Whole political class" pretty much sums it all up.  

That leaves the rest of us, including retirees, to pay higher taxes to make up the difference.

[gman1971]

Again, putting words in my mouth. So "Whole" now means "One side"? Interesting... I still fail to see how is that by agreeing with "Whole political class" it means that I am "agreeing with just one political class only" care to explain that?

G.

[MichaelLAX]

31 minutes ago, gman1971 said:

Again, putting words in my mouth. So "Whole" now means "One side"? Interesting... I still fail to see how is that by agreeing with "Whole political class" it means that I am "agreeing with just one political class only" care to explain that?

G.

I do!

It was a simple misunderstanding based upon two different legitimate uses of the word "whole."

You thought I was using it as an adjective, meaning: "all of" or "entire."

I was actually using it as an adverb, meaning: "used to emphasize the novelty or distinctiveness of something;" as in: There is a "WHOLE political class" that is virtually ALL of the Republicans support reducing taxes on the wealthy and the ultra-wealthy.

It is certainly not an issue supported by Democrats in general, nor is it an issue that is divided among the Republicans. So a whole political class, the Republicans, supports it.

I apologize for the misunderstanding.

When did I put words in your mouth in the past?

[gman1971]

The Original Post on the thread was meant to be a reminder as to what was passed last year, regardless of who and why it was passed, it passed, and the fact that it passed might potentially affect some people, and that was the extent of the OP.

Michael, I respect your opinion in the tax matter, and all I can tell you is that please be aware that "for every person who thinks that one side is guilty of doing something, there are always two who believe the contrary is true."

G.

[MichaelLAX]

7 minutes ago, gman1971 said:

Michael, I respect your opinion in the tax matter, and all I can tell you is that please be aware that "for every person who thinks that one side is guilty of doing something, there are always two who believe the contrary is true."

Thank you.

Perhaps, but more importantly, time will tell us which side was correct about the guilt or lack thereof! 

At the end of the day, it is hard to argue that "breaking and entering" into the US Capitol is not a crime.

And it's doubtful that President Biden will be issuing any pardons in the matter, either! 

[gman1971]

Well, again, I respect your opinion about what you believe "breaking and entering", etc, but just like I said on my previous post: "for every person who thinks something happened one way, two other people think it happened a different way, or that it didn't happen at all" 

Now, what I can state beyond any shadow of doubt is that legislation to send 1099s to the IRS after the ceiling was lowered from 20k to 600 dollars was passed last year.  That is the point of this thread.

G.

[MichaelLAX]

Noted.

[WyoJoe]

On 1/13/2022 at 1:44 PM, n4gix said:

SS is of course non-taxable, ...

 

On 1/13/2022 at 2:12 PM, MichaelLAX said:

You'd better double check that conclusion with your tax advisor.

 

On 1/14/2022 at 8:25 AM, Sshannon said:

Social security is taxable income. 

There are a lot of ways of looking at this. If you live only on Social Security, there is a good possibility that your income is below the threshold for paying federal taxes. Depending on the state in which you reside, you may or may not be exempt from paying taxes on S.S. income. It is entirely possible that you wouldn't pay any income tax if you're on S.S., or you could pay both state and federal income tax on it depending on your overall income situation.

Obviously, what applies to one may not apply to all. I agree with Michael on this one: check with your tax advisor.

[BoxCar]

You'll always be liable for Federal tax on SS, most states exempt it from state tax.

[MichaelLAX]

My guess is that if you qualify for no federal tax on your Social Security, you are not in any economic position to be buying legacy radio equipment on eBay! 

Selling off your inventory of radios... YES!

[MichaelLAX]

Speaking of Social Security and taxes: my medicare Part A&B premium (Not my Supplement) which is automatically deducted from my monthly Social Security payment went from $148.50 per month in 2021 to a new January 2022 deduction of $442.30!

I am trying to get ahold of Social Security/Medicare to find out what the basis of the increase is.

Any ideas?

[n4gix]

On 1/13/2022 at 4:12 PM, MichaelLAX said:

You'd better double check that conclusion with your tax advisor.

At what age is Social Security not taxable?

 

At 65 to 67, depending on the year of your birth, you are at full retirement age and can get full Social Security retirement benefits tax-free.

 

That is directly from the IRS FAQ.

 

I'm 73 now, so...