Most people seem to get this a bit mixed-up....
If you sell $600 on Ebay, you will get a 1099.
If you are not a business (like most casual sellers), then you must report this as hobby income.
Since the TJCA was passed, one cannot deduct any of the costs associated with the hobby...ergo, not "cost basis"...the entire sale is added into your AGI.
Of, there are issues such as safe harbor, etc, which the casual user aren't going to bother with.
The end result: if you sell just your good china on Ebay for $1200, you will owe tax on the entire amount.
Depending on one's outlook, you could see this as just fair...after all, the increased personal deduction under the TJCA is supposed to "cover" that. On the other hand, you could see this as government casting too wide of a net and unfairly penalizing small folks by paying tax on the china twice....once, when you paid tax on your income when you bought, and again when you sell it...
