eBay

dard93 · ‎03-20-2023

Is it a pain to file taxes ? I’m a new seller and it seems taunting. I don’t sell a lot but over $600.00. This is my side hustle.

toybrats · ‎03-20-2023

IT's always a pain but it's the law. It's not that bad. Remember, you get to deduct all of the expenses like shipping supplies, postage, ebay fees, the cost of the item. Start keeping receipts. Print through Ebay so that ebay keeps the total of what you paid on shipping. Any refunds will count as money received but also goes as a deduction for the refund. Get a box and put all of your receipts there. Get a notebook/journal and start writing down the prices of the items that you sold that you don't have a receipt. Do the best that you can to jot down a ballpark figure for that item.

Whatever your profit is, that number is X. X is then added to your other income and that then determines how much federal tax you will pay for ALL of your earned income. So if you sold 600 and your profit was 150 after all of your deductions, the 150.oo is added to the income that you earned from your work. Goodluck.

1786davycrockett · ‎03-20-2023

It can often be daunting, and I know that some individuals may feel that the IRS may be taunting them; but it's actually no big deal.

Have you never paid your taxes before? You say that eBay is a "side hustle." Haven't you been paying your income tax from your REAL job before now?

ms.rodriguez* · ‎03-20-2023

You are supposed to pay taxes on your "side hustles too!" Anyway, it's not that bad. Do what the others told you.

dbfolks166mt · ‎03-20-2023

You file taxes like you have always filed taxes the difference is you will need to include your eBay income when you file. This is generally done on a schedule C. You start with the gross revenue and deduct all of the expenses to include the eBay selling costs and the non-eBay selling costs like COGS, shipping supplies, POV and other related expenses. You may find that you are not making as much net revenue as you thought you were. It is possible to come up with negative income if you are not getting enough for your items to cover ALL of the costs.

caldreamer · ‎03-20-2023

IRS does care whether you are selling "personal items" or are a professional seller. All gross sales must be reported to IRS. EBAY sends 1099 to you and IRS.

nobody*s_perfect · ‎03-20-2023

Read through IRS Schedule C and its instructions, to get a better idea of how the IRS sees this. Schedule C is just added to your regular 1040 when you file your regular income tax return.

buyologist-3 · ‎03-20-2023

OK, all good advice, but there is tax help out there! Go to Staples or some other place that sells computer programs for those of us who are...challenged...when it comes to taxes and bookkeeping. (Yes, like me.) They are easy and at the end of the year you hit a button and the program does the rest! Save$ time and money. And you'll sleep great at night. Oh, and the cost is low, too. You'll do great! Just remember to keep your receipts! You'll only need them in case of an audit, which is slim to none, but it never hurts to be ready.

firesteel_surplus · ‎03-20-2023

@dard93 wrote:
Is it a pain to file taxes ? I’m a new seller and it seems taunting. I don’t sell a lot but over $600.00. This is my side hustle.

I like the fact that you are on here asking if it is a pain to file taxes.

Of course it's a pain.

Haven't you EVER filed before of any sort of taxes? The ebay side is just another form or two...or three...or four...

Mike

Firesteel Surplus

from_me_2_you · ‎03-20-2023

Also if you patronize yard sales and the like and have to drive to get to them, keep a mileage record, too.

**bleep** near everything you directly attribute to causing you to business maybe be deductible from your gross sales. Got a family in another state, visit them, buy some junk at a garage sales, take a few pic of where you were, stay at a motel, or house and buy groceries for the family, also deductible. If our mutual uncle does not agree and wants more tax money, no big deal. If you fail to report a small sale (or large) that is fraud! When I first started my other business, I was allowed to lose money 3 out of five years before it became to be a hobby and no longer were the expenses deductible. Use one part of your abode exclusively, check and see if you can deduct those expenses, too. Bottom line WITH ALL MY ADVICE and FOUR DOLLARS you can buy coffee, see what you get without FOUR DOLLARS...that is what my advice is worth. Howard who just turned in the figures for 2022 to his accountant! Not a great year, but I have had worse!