One of our members left this year making a profit of about
$150.00. How should the club and the member file their
taxes. We are new at this and have not come accross with
this situation before. can anyone give us some advice????
Thanks...Lab Ratz.

> One of our members left this year making a profit of about
> $150.00. How should the club and the member file their
> taxes. We are new at this and have not come accross with
> this situation before. can anyone give us some advice????
> Thanks...Lab Ratz.

This message came into me around 7 last night and it still hasn't been
answered, unless Bivio did so privately. So let me see what I can do!

Lab, If you club the started in 2004 and the member departed in 2004, then
forget about everything for a year! However, if your club started in 2003,
regardless of when the member departed, YOU NEED TO FILE YOUR TAXES!

There seems to be some misinformation out there that says, "if I didn't buy
stock or make any money, I don't have to file." That's not true for
individuals OR clubs. As long as you have filed for an EIN or Social
Security number, the IRS wants to know what you're doing! Even if all
that's on the form is your club's name and address!

So, that means you file. If you haven't purchased stock and, subsequently,
haven't received dividends, I'm betting you certainly had club expenses
and/or maybe bank charges or interest. If you are using Bivio accounting,
it will automatially put all this information on the correct lines of your
IRS Form 1065 and K-1s. You don't need income to file a return. But I bet
every member in your club who owns a home would love the opportunity to
declare a "LOSS" on their taxes from their club K-1, which is what it will
show if all you had were expenses!

Check your Bivio club account transactions against your bank account and/or
broker account. Are all the deposits properly credited to the members? Are
all the expenses properly coded (you get many choices!)? Did you have any
bank charges or interest to bne declared. After all is done, you are ready
to run your taxes.

But wait! What about that departing member!? Did you already pay him off?
If not, you can do this on the Accounting|Members page. Bivio's instructions
are very easy to follow.

Once that's done, simply go to Accounting|Reports|Taxes page. There's a
little interview you will have to take. Don't worry! If you don't know the
right answers, you can retake it as many times as you like! Just come back
to the board and ask us for help. After the little interview, it simply
lets you print your forms! You will need one 1065 for the IRS, the club,
and possibly the State if you have state income tax. You will need one K-1
for all members, the IRS, the club and possibly the State. There are other
forms there, as well. Just click on them and see if they are blank. If so,
forget them. If not, I always print and mail them to the IRS.

OK, after all this rambling, if you are writing because you don't have Bivio
or any club accounting, then you'd all better cough up the dough! You HAVE
TO file. You can either go to www.irs.gov and get the forms and
instructions and do it yourself, or you can pay Bivio for their tax program.
Either way, it's gotta be done.

And one more thing (no pressure!!), the IRS doesn't care that you are not a
CPA. They expect you to file properly and reach out to make sure you have
done everything you need to. If you have an EIN number, you are considered
a business, just like GE or 3M or Citigroup. And you get the same
penalities for failing to file taxes properly. So take this seriously.

Write back if you have questions. We're all willing to help.

Lynn Ostrem, Minneapolis
garbagecop@foxinternet.net
www.bivio.com/crowriver