Hello Karen:

 The time is approaching fast!  Something to keep in mind so you are not killing yourself to beat the deadline, 4/15 is the deadline to file, if you owe this is also the date payment it due. If you do not have your return in by this date you will also be assessed a late penalty.  However, if you have a refund coming you have three years from the due date to file (4.15.2011).

I would recommend putting your receipts in piles.

Expenses: Advertising (business cards, newspaper ads, marketing items), Office Supplies (paper, pens, things that are used-up), Office Expense (printer, desk, computers, things that have a useful life), Insurance (E&O), Dues (MLS, NAR, Associations),  Legal and professional fees (tax prep- Schedule C & business forms used the previous years, gifts to clients, Continuing Education, Seminars and Taxes and license fees.

Home office:  Total square foot of your home, Total square foot of your home-office.  There are guidelines per IRS code that should be considered when claiming this deduction.  See Publication 587 for more details. You will be able to deduct a percentage (sq. ft of office/total sq. ft of home) of electric, home home owners insurance, mortgage interest (or your monthly rent) and property tax. (Other utilities may apply depending on the usage of your home office).  You will also be able to depreciate if you own the home.

For vehicle expense the IRS allows either standard mileage or actual. I would recommend keeping track of both mileage and actual expenses, at the end of the year add up both and which ever gives the bigger deduction you claim. (Keep in mind if this is your first year placing your car in service you may want to claim standard mileage, that way you have an option to change to actual expenses in later years).

Standard Mileage: The two main questions that the IRS is looking for is 1-do you have evidence to prove the deduction and 2-Is this evidence written.

You can be simple or complex with your mileage log as long as it covers the necessary information. The following is a simple method that would provide your evidence as well as be able to be used for the standard or actual methods:

1/1/2007 Start Odometer reading  :

12/31/2007 End Odometer reading:

Total Miles                                       ------------------

1/5    Gibbs Showing                  35 miles

1/7    Gibbs Home inspection      10 miles

1/25   Gibbs Closing                   18 miles

You would continue this log until the end of the year.  Add up all your miles to get Total Business Miles.  You do not have to put a description, however the more evidence you have in the event of an audit the better. 

If you are electing actual expense, you will need gas totals, repairs and maintenance, insurance, as well as the % of business use (business miles/total miles driven) the above log is used.   You will need to know the year and make of the vehicle and when you placed the car in service. 

You Cell phone is an expense for your business.  However, this is a listed property and one that is commonly abused for expensing purposes. To follow the IRS regulations for expensing purposes you need to determine what % is used for business use.  One sure way to prove 100% business use is to have a cell phone that is designated for business and one for personal use. If you determine that you use the cell phone 80% business and 20% personal than you would calculate your cell phone expense as follows: monthly charges X 80% = cell phone expense. 

Some other key things to keep in mind:

Run your business as a business. Open a separate business account to keep your business income and expenses separate than personal money.

Keep good records. 

Hope this helps.  I tried to keep it simple and save you some trips back home from the accountants office.  Your accountant should know that tax laws, so as long as you have the numbers you should be ready to go.

Karen your welcome!

Unfortunately I am in AL and could not make a recommendation.  Most accountants have a base rate for their forms and they should give you a quote up front.  You will need to file a 1040 (your personal return) then your Schedule C (profit and loss).  There are some other forms that can get expensive, but are worth the price for the deduction.  Do you see yourself having a loss or profit?  If you determine you will have a profit, then most of your big items purchased can be Section 179 written off versus depreciating. One less form and worksheet and you get to take the total expense to reduce your income.  However, if you have a loss you may want to depreciate big ticket items to spread out the expense over the next few years. If you have a working spouse your tax situation would change again.   Your accountant should be able to make the determination of which ways to go.  The accountant should want to make you a client for life, so spending some time with you and determining your financial goals, income projections for the next few years would help him/her determine the most beneficial way to file.

Mary:

The payment schedule for the stimulus rebate was released by the IRS early this month.  Originally, the first ones to file were going to be getting the rebate first, however the payment schedule came out based on SSN.  Then again the IRS may change their minds again.

 The following is a link to the IRS with the payment schedule.

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=180247,00.html