[vpFREE] RE: Advanced Tax question: Not the basics

 

A complex subject.  Montyjones' comment that anyone with only $10,000 in total income for the year probably won't be paying income taxes seems apt.

Raising the stakes a bit, the first question would be, can you file as a professional?  If so, you can list the total of winning sessions and the total of losing sessions on Schedule C, also list business expenses, and carry only the net profit over to Form 1040 as income.  PROBABLY all states will also respect a professional's ability to calculate income in this fashion, but you should certainly check your own state's law carefully.

For the nonprofessional, the tax law's approach has always been to require reporting on a session by session basis.  The total of winning sessions goes on Form 1040.  The total of losing sessions goes on Schedule A.  Note that it's entirely possible that you might receive a Form W-2G for $10,000, but in fact have a much smaller win or even a loss for the full session, from the time you start playing until you stop.  You should be able to report the total SESSION result, rather than the essentially arbitrary figure shown on Form W-2G.  The function of these tax reports is to furnish the IRS INFORMATION through an independent source, rather than to define a person's taxable income.  That being said, if the calculation using the correct session approach results in a tax lower than would result from treating the amount reported on the Form W-2G as a session, I think you're very likely to get pushback from the IRS.

Nonprofessional Schedule A filers are at a severe disadvantage if, but for gambling income, they would not itemize deductions.  They essentially get taxed on some amount of phantom income, until the itemized deductions equal what the standard deduction would have been.  For state tax purposes, the situation is far worse, to the point of being sadistically punitive, in a growing number of states that don't allow the deduction of ANY losses on Schedule A, or that limit the deduction.  For gamblers in those states, it doesn't pay to wake up in the morning.  As others have noted, gamblers can also run into alternative minimum tax problems, or problems with any benefits the entitlement to which depends on AGI.

Canned programs like TurboTax will be virtually no help, and will probably be misleading or just plain wrong, on specialized issues like those faced by gamblers.

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[vpFREE] RE: Hitting royals decreases free play offers?

 

Think of it as Caesars loving only losers rather than disliking winners.  It's a rare player who will be a loser for the past six months or a year in a given casino after hitting a royal flush.  That's most of the story.  It's probably best not to try to make a detailed analysis publicly.

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[vpFREE] RE: Arrests for cashing freeplay for others

 

Whatever you think is the law, and whatever, objectively, the correct interpretation of the law should be, doing something that a judge or jury is likely to find outrageous is dangerous.  There's an expression--hard cases make bad law.  They can screw things up for everyone.

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Re: [vpFREE] Re: Dotty's Casino Countermeasures

 

I must be missing something, I play the same nsud at Dottie's and stations, but stingy stations gives me 5x the comps and free play ! 

Sent from my iPhone

On Feb 13, 2014, at 11:37 AM, Bob Dancer <bobdancervp@hotmail.com> wrote:

 

I found this thread intriguing.

Last week when I played at Dotty's, I only received single points. I thought it was a glitch in the software (rather than a change in policy) so I filed a point adjustment request. I haven't been back this week again to see if my request was granted. The fact that others are reporting the same thing leads me to conclude that it may well be a change in policy.

If my request is not granted and I'm indeed only receiving single points rather than the 2x points that are standard for when I play, I'll stop playing for four months or so and try again. In the past, staying away that long has been enough to "reset" your account to zero. If I play again in July and I'm still getting only single points, I'll give up on the place. If I'm getting 2x points when I play then, I'll start to play again.

It'll be a shame to give up on Dotty's. It was a juicy part-time play.

Bob

 

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RE: [vpFREE] Re: Dotty's Casino Countermeasures

 

I found this thread intriguing.

Last week when I played at Dotty's, I only received single points. I thought it was a glitch in the software (rather than a change in policy) so I filed a point adjustment request. I haven't been back this week again to see if my request was granted. The fact that others are reporting the same thing leads me to conclude that it may well be a change in policy.

If my request is not granted and I'm indeed only receiving single points rather than the 2x points that are standard for when I play, I'll stop playing for four months or so and try again. In the past, staying away that long has been enough to "reset" your account to zero. If I play again in July and I'm still getting only single points, I'll give up on the place. If I'm getting 2x points when I play then, I'll start to play again.

It'll be a shame to give up on Dotty's. It was a juicy part-time play.

Bob

 

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Re: [vpFREE] Re: Points multipliers at Sam's Town

 

Hi Jean,

Yes, as a non-local, my Sam's Town tier status runs on a year basis.  I believe it is a "sliding" year.  Tier points expire after 12 months.

Dennis
vp-connoisseur


Queen of Comps wrote:

<<My Boyd card score is based on a year, not 3 months.  Maybe its different for locals compared to non-locals.>>
 
I vaguely remember from some years back that someone did post that Boyd had different times to hit the tier requirements for locals and non-locals.  I think perhaps non-locals keep their tier status for one year while locals have to renew every 6 months.  Can some non-local verify this?????
 
<<Boys Card Score is based on your coin in for the present month plus the previous 2 months. When the present month ends, you lose the coin in from the first month of the previous 3 months.>
 
I was told this was called a “rolling 6-month.”  Once you have played for 6 months straight, that first month “drops off” from your tier score (they call it the Card Score) whether you play that 7th month or not.   If you don’t play the same amount each month or skip playing some months – or you don’t keep accurate coin-in amounts each time you play, this makes it complicated to figure out how much you need to play the month  your tier card expires to renew it.  It also makes it “impossible” for the clerks at the players club to explain it.
 
I find it easiest to keep track of this online, but as was pointed out, don’t try to do it until the 4th or 5th of the month since the Web site  does not always update promptly. 
 
------------------------------------------
Jean $¢ott, Frugal Gambler
http://queenofcomps.com/
You can read my blog at
http://jscott.lvablog.com/
 

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