Can I write off all of this music equipment that I purchased last year?

I had purchased a few thousand dollars worth of equipment last year, and for me that is about a third of what I made as an after school teacher (I was laid off in June.) Does anyone know where to direct a do-it-yourselfer to begin looking for how to accomplish this (or if it can be done.) I can't afford to get a tax guy, but I could figure it out and then roll the dice... but I have no idea where to begin. Either that or I could make a nice collage with all of these receipts I kept.

ANY INFO WOULD BE A NICE STARTING POINT!


Thanks,

Erik

[Hydro Hellsing]

Taxes and writing off music equipment I'm gonna look into it myself cuz I bought an M-Audio KeyRig that set me back a little.

[kurtdaniel]

post pics of your gears..id love to hear more about M-Audio KeyRig..
check this: flute music

[Erik Jurado]

@ Hydro Hellsing: Thanks! I will definitely look into that. I found a couple of pages that had info, but it was very general info.

@ kurtdaniel:


PHOTOS: My Music Gear This is the equipment I am using in my recording project.

I purchased all but the Fender, Ibanez Destroyer, the first Ibanez Classic Acoustic shown. There is some used equipment that I bought at a local shop, but I don't think that would work cause the receipt only has the price I paid. I don't care too much about that.

Maybe after looking at the cheap carp (not a typo - I substitute animals for swearing quite often) I purchased last year I'm sure somebody would be able to tell if it's worth the headache.

Erik

[Vin]

USA AND THE IRS

Okay you want to write off all your music gear etc.
?are you using it in an active business or profession, if so you can write it off,
you could depreciate most items that have a lifetime of over a year, or you can expense them all the year bought there are advantages to both, you'll need to file a schedule C, which explains the business that your in, keep all your receipts
Gross Receipts,Cost of goods sold, Gross Profit, Other Income, Expenses would include Advertising,Car and Truck expenses,commissions and Fees,Contract Labor,Depletion,Depreciation,Employee Benefit Programs,Insurance (other than Health), Mortgage Interest (paid to banks Etc.) Other Interest, Legal and Professional Services, Office Expense,Pension and profit sharing plans,Rent or Lease,Repairs and Maintenance,Supplies,Taxes and Licenses, Travel ,Meals,Entertainment,Utilities,Wages,Employment Credits,Other Expenses this Category covers all ordinary and necessary business expenses not entered on other lines of part 2,Other Expenses should be Itemized in part V on the 2nd page of sch C...
Remember this Personal are Never Deductible as a Business Expense, If an Expense is partly personal and partly business,Only the business portion is deducted on sch C.
Then besides Sch C you'll be doing a Sch SE which is for Self-Employment Tax
and you'll probably be filling a form 4562 Depreciation and Amortization, you must pay attention to the rules when filling this form.
There is also what is called a 179 expense deduction which allows a taxpayer
to deduct up to 250,000 dollars of the cost of certain property in the year it is placed in service, instead of recovering that amount under MACRS . Certain Depricable property is not eligible for the 179 expense deduction.
Okay so also Hobby Vs.Business There are differences in the tax treatment of businesses and hobbies.Most Importantly, on an individual return, business losses can offset other income,but hobby losses cannot! therefore, it is critical to determine the correct tax treatment of these kinds of activities.
For an activity to be considered a business, it must have a profit motive. the taxpayer does not necessarily need to make a profit,but does need to continue efforts to further the interest of the business. Alternatively,a hobby is something primarily for personal pleasure or recreation.
There are other things let see you have me typing away now. The Three-Years-Of Profit Test-The IRS generally presumes an activity is engaged in for profit
if the activity was profitable in three of the last five years , including the current year, The Irs has stated that taxpayers can rely on this presumption.
Even so it is not Law!
You May also want to look up Passive and Nonpassive income as if you receive $10 dollars or more in royalties you'll need to report that in come, so if your a self employed Writer,Inventors, and originators of creative works enter that amount on Sch C.
For other Inventors, Writers, originators of creative works who are not in the
business for doing this type of work(but who have a profit motive in mind the amount would go on a sch E line 4, if the creative activity is a hobby, the amount goes on form 1040 line 21.
So I hope this gets you on the right track, you may want to consult your tax professional as I only took a few classes and skipped out most of the time because it's so boring.
Good luck to you, aND THIS IS A DISCLAIMER THAT NONE OF WHAT i WROTE ABOVE IS TO BE TAKEN AS ADVICE AND i STRONGLY SUGGEST YOU SEEK A tAX lAWYER OR PROFESSIONAL AS THIS WAS JUST GENERAL COMMENTARY.
sEE yA vIN.

[Erik Jurado]

AWESOME POST VIN!!!

I have all of my receipts and I have a tax person (my ex-wife - of all people!) and I'm just waiting for my W-2.

Thanks a bunch.


Erik