Multiple businesses?

[melissahusebo]

I have 1099 income from several different theater companies as well as income from companies that did not issue me a 1099 because my earnings were less than $600. My husband has 1099 income as a referee for a sports league. When I am calculating mileage expenses, do I consider all of my acting gigs as one business with a net profit or loss? It would seem that all of my gigs fall under one business - my acting, although I lost money on some gigs and made money on others. Is my husband considered a separate business from myself or should I lump all of his 1099 income and expenses in with my own?

[ThomasM · Accepted solution]

You and your husband have separate businesses, and that's the way you'll enter your respective income & expenses in TurboTax.  Your business is "acting" and your husband's is "referee," and TurboTax will prepare a Schedule C for each of you.

Once you've gone thru the business setup process and entered one business, you'll be returned to the business summary screen where you'll see the button for Add a business.  That will take you thru the setup process for the other business.

Treat each one separately, and each Schedule C will have its own bottom line.

Here's a handy link to the TurboTax support page for Schedule C filers:  https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tools/tax-tips/Self-Employment-Taxes/Reporting-Self-Employment-Busin...

[Deb F]

I have several businesses, rental properties in MN & WI, online auction in MN and laundromat in MN. Will the Turbotax Home and Business work for me?

[Opus 17]

---

@Deb F wrote:

I have several businesses, rental properties in MN & WI, online auction in MN and laundromat in MN. Will the Turbotax Home and Business work for me?

---

Yes.  Be aware that each different business will require a separate schedule C so you can keep the income and expenses segregated by business.  It is possible that all your rental activities could be reported on one schedule C (although you might want an accountant's advice on that), but the auction and laundromat activities should be placed under separate businesses.

However, if any of your businesses are partnerships with more than one person (either as an unincorporated partnership or as a multi-member LLC), you will have to follow different rules, even if one of the partners is your spouse, and you will need different software.  Post back if you need more details on that.