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Location: Oregon | I just bought my permit and plan on going a little bit locally this year. Wondering if anyone would be willing to share any advice or tips for someone just starting out? Like how do you all file your taxes? Do you set it up as a business or are you able to write off some of your expenses without doing that? Any and all advice would be helpful. Thank you!! | |
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 Famous for Not Complaining
Posts: 8848
   
Location: Broxton, Ga | If you win you will get a 1099.....that being said I kept up my miliage and entry fees.....and turned all in as personal ...my tax man would do some magic with it......I think to be a business one would really be hauling on a professional level....maybe not so much weekend warriors.....
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 560
Location: Where the buffalo roam | My advice would be to get with someone that has had a card for awhile and learn the ropes of entering. That is an art unto itself. There are a lot of variables depending on the type of rodeo you are entering (1 go, 2 go, slack, etc.). I am extremely glad when I first got my permit and then my card that I was able to learn from someone that had gone to the NFR so I would better understand things. | |
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 Saint Stacey
| You really need to set it up as a legitimate business. Otherwise you could find your tail in a crack with the government. Separate checking account, business cards, accurate mileage records, receipts, the whole 9 yards. The IRS loves people that do things half ass. And trust me...they will catch you eventually. Also, if you do claim horse stuff, suck up the cost and let an actual accountant do your taxes. You are much less likely to get audited by using an accountant than doing it yourself with the help of Turbo Tax. | |
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12704
| SKM - 2019-02-01 7:42 AM You really need to set it up as a legitimate business. Otherwise you could find your tail in a crack with the government. Separate checking account, business cards, accurate mileage records, receipts, the whole 9 yards. The IRS loves people that do things half ass. And trust me...they will catch you eventually. Also, if you do claim horse stuff, suck up the cost and let an actual accountant do your taxes. You are much less likely to get audited by using an accountant than doing it yourself with the help of Turbo Tax.
Agree with all this except - LLC. Become an LLC and it will simplyfy the need for separate accounts and accounting. You will still have to separate out the LLC expenses at the end of the year.
So totally agree with the accountant. Once you are organized as any kind of business you need to stick with the pros. We do a schedule F for the farm and a schedule E for our rental properties. I would be lost beyond trying to do the depreciation and stuff for both! And I did my own taxes including a lot of dividend information until 2001 when we got the farm up and going. | |
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| Just speaking here from my own experience, so definitely speak to your accountant/tax person about your particular situation, however we have found you do not need to actually “set” up a business because you ARE the business. All of your winning and expenses will be in your name and you will receive a 1099 at the end of the year showing how much you won. If you compete year round you will want to file a schedule C with your return. If you only compete part of the year you can show it as hobby expenses which allow you to write off expenses equal to your winnings.
You will want to keep meticulous records. Have a separate checking account for this and write checks for your entry fees. You will also need an account for RodeoPay to deposit your winnings in. Keep a calendar of rodeos you attended and track your mileage to and from. You should pull a Carfax or other service record at the beginning and end of the year confirming the mileage on your truck so you can figure the percentage of use of your vehicle. If you have any flyers or advertising from that barrel race/rodeo you will want to keep those too. Any travel expenses you will want receipts. Keep track of your feed, hay, vet, farrier, etc. for the horse(s) you compete on. Clothing, boots, tack, etc. can also be written off but you don’t want to go too crazy with expenses, especially if you haven’t won much. I find that paying for travel expenses with a debit card is easiest because your monthly statements correspond with your travel dates, so it’s easy to track and proof if you get audited. It’s all right there in one place.
But like I said, definitely speak to your own accountant or tax person before proceeding just to ensure you are handling correctly. It can be tricky.
And like the others have said, find someone to mentor you. If you can haul with them that's great! You can learn tons by going with someone else. In the very least, find someone who can advise you on the different rodeos in your circuit. You will want to know what the the arenas are like and what days you may want to try to enter for... the ground maybe better one day as opposed to another. Things like parking and if stalls are available are always good to know ahead of time.
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