Author Topic: Questions about business loss after hurricane.  (Read 904 times)

Tempname23

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Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« on: October 30, 2018, 06:11:42 AM »
 Hi all,
  We were self employed, we retailed seafood from a boat.
 The recent hurricane, demolished the boat, we had no insurance.
We are done and have retired, unless there is some great reason
not to.
  I need some idea how the business losses are handled, are they limited to the $3,000
a year, like stock losses?
  How do I value the boat, it cost me about $6k 16 years ago, but I salvage a damaged
pontoon boat and had a structure built on it, put in my own electrical, and added all the items
to make it like home. Such as heat, air conditioning, microwave, toaster oven, two burner stove,
TV, VCR, Digital video recorder, etc.
Plus a drawer full of knives and my tools, and dozens of misc items.
  We had about 6000lbs of shrimp in freezers, and had to sell it below cost just to save it,
as we lost power. So far we have only received 1/2 of the payment, the business that bought
it didn't really want it, and offered to just store it and we could sell it, but we can't sell it.
 It was just not the type of shrimp he sells. I don't know if I will get the rest of the money
at the time.
  We also have twelve 25cuft chest freezers and two 400lb/day ice makers.
 We need to dispose of them, but I think we will only recoup about $2,000 for the freezers and
$500 to $1,000 for the two ice machines.
  OK, so I need to know how do I handle the business loss, the ins and outs.
                                     Thanks

 

Tempname23

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Re: Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« Reply #1 on: October 31, 2018, 08:35:50 PM »
Hi  all,
I know we have several accountants here, anyone have input on to handle business loss tax wise?
  I have an appointment with a new accountant (old one died) in about 10 days, but want to know enough soI know what questions to ask.
                   Thanks

expatartist

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Re: Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« Reply #2 on: October 31, 2018, 09:25:29 PM »
Sorry to hear about your losses OP. I don't have suggestions for your situation but recommend you post the question in a regional or boating forum where there will be more experts for the specifics of your situation.

CareCPA

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Re: Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« Reply #3 on: November 01, 2018, 11:27:50 AM »
The term you're probably looking for here is "Casualty Loss." IRS guidance can be found here:https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc515
Essentially, you should be able to take a loss for your adjusted basis in the property when it was destroyed. The mechanics for claiming this will be slightly different for a business than an individual (and it sounds like you'll be claiming it for both).

CNM

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Re: Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« Reply #4 on: November 01, 2018, 11:30:37 AM »
Not sure as I'm not a CPA, but you may have already taken depreciation loss over the years for your equipment.  You'll need to check how it was handled in the past.

Tempname23

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Re: Questions about business loss after hurricane.
« Reply #5 on: November 01, 2018, 03:29:14 PM »
Quote
Essentially, you should be able to take a loss for your adjusted basis in the property when it was destroyed. The mechanics for claiming this will be slightly different for a business than an individual (and it sounds like you'll be claiming it for both).

Our business was us, it was a sole proprietorship. I'm not sure how that fits your business/individual  equation, I think it is all personal, no LLC, S corp or corporation
  Looking at my 2017 Depreciation Detail Listing, I only have 5 items, Boat, Freezers, Generator, Ice machine and our Van. They have all been completely depreciated.
  However, I have many items I never put on a depreciation schedule, some were just a write off when I bought them, such as, Window air conditioner, Small scales, large scales, Gloves, Bags.
  Others were just accumulations or items we moved from ours to business use, TV, VCR, DVR, Microwave oven, Fan, Heater, refrigerator, hand tools, knives, tackle box, clock, silverware, and food.
  I'm starting to think as I sell the left over items, Freezers, ice machines, Van and generator I'll be adding more income for the year. And the boat will just be a wash, no loss because it has been fully depreciated.
  I would like to complete the dissolution in 2018, but I doubt, I'll be able get all the leftovers sold this year, especially with the poor internet service I have. I can't even seem to get a picture sent yet.
 Your feedback is appreciated.