Exam 6: Individual Deductions

Rachel is an accountant who practices as a sole proprietor. This year, Rachel had net business income of $270,000 from her practice. Assume that Rachel pays $50,000 wages to her employees, she has $20,000 of property (unadjusted basis of equipment she purchased last year), has no capital gains, and her taxable income before the deduction for qualified business income is $225,000. Calculate Rachel's deduction for qualified business income.

Margaret Lindley paid $15,000 of interest on her $300,000 acquisition debt for her home (fair market value of $500,000), $4,000 of interest on her $30,000 home-equity loan, $1,000 of credit card interest, and $3,000 of margin interest for the purchase of stock. Assume that Margaret Lindley has $10,000 of interest income this year and no investment expenses. How much of the interest expense may she deduct this year?

Congress allows self-employed taxpayers to deduct the cost of health insurance above the line (for AGI) because:

For married taxpayers filing separate, excess business losses are defined as aggregate business deductions over the sum of aggregate business gross income or gain of the taxpayer plus $250,000.

Alexandra operates a garage as a sole proprietorship. Alexandra also owns a half interest in a partnership that operates a gas station. This year Alexandra paid or reported the following expenses related to her garage and other property. Determine Alexandra's AGI for 2018.

Taxpayers filing single and taxpayers filing married separate have the same basic standard deduction amount.

To qualify as a charitable deduction the donation must be made by cash or by check.

Andres and Lakeisha are married and file joint. Andres is 72 years old and in good health. Lakeisha is 62 years old and blind. What amount of standard deduction can Andres and Lakeisha claim in 2018?

Lewis is an unmarried law student at State University, a qualified educational institution. Last year Lewis borrowed $30,000 and used the proceeds to pay his university tuition. This year Lewis paid $1,500 of interest on the loan. Which of the following is a True statement if Lewis reports $40,000 of salary and no other items of income or expense?

Which of the following is a True statement?

Misti purchased a residence this year. Misti, age 32, is a single parent and lives with her 1-year-old daughter. This year, Misti received a salary of $160,000 and made the following payments: Misti files as a head of household. Calculate her taxable income this year.

Which of the following is a True statement?

Bruce is employed as an executive and his wife, Marie, is a self-employed realtor. Besides Bruce's salary, Bruce and Marie own a warehouse that they rent to a local business for storage. This year they paid $1,250 for electric service in the warehouse. Marie also paid self-employment tax of $6,200 and Bruce had $7,000 of Social Security taxes withheld from his pay. Marie paid $45 fee to rent a safe deposit box to store records associated with her realty operation. Which of the following is a True statement?

Hector is a married self-employed taxpayer, and this year he paid $3,000 for his health insurance premiums (not through an exchange). Under which of the following alternative conditions can Hector deduct the cost of the premiums for AGI?

Chuck has AGI of $70,000 and has made the following payments Calculate the amount of taxes that Chuck can include with his itemized deductions.

Campbell, a single taxpayer, has $400,000 of profits from her general store that she operates as a sole proprietorship. She has no employees, $40,000 of qualified property, and $500,000 of taxable income before the deduction for qualified business income. How much is Campbell's deduction for qualified business income?

Which of the following costs are deductible as an itemized medical expense?

To be deductible, business expenses must be directly related to a business activity.

Mason paid $4,100 of interest on a loan that paid tuition for him to attend a private university this year. How much of this payment can Mason deduct as interest expense on an educational loan if he files single and reports modified AGI of $90,000?

Campbell, a single taxpayer, has $400,000 of profits from her general store that she operates as a sole proprietorship. She has $100,000 of employee wages, $40,000 of qualified property, and $500,000 of taxable income before the deduction for qualified business income. How much is Campbell's deduction for qualified business income?