Ok, I am a total loser. Let's establish that. I survive by cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, ironing, home repairs, being the errand girl, secretary, report proofreader and so on for my SO who keeps me on a no allowance budget. I have tried to get work but can't, that is a long story that you would probably not be interested in anyway. But I really need to make a little money.

I have the idea to make a little money from home by selling things I made online and by doing proofreading/translating work. The online websites I have looked at all require a Paypal business account, which seems to require a registered business to open. So I am considering registering an LLC.

I want to make sure that I start this in the right way. I will need to buy a computer and I would like to have a website built. I want to know the smartest financial way to go about this.

As I will likely have negligible income for the first year (two, three, forever?) I want to be able to write off business expenses as far into the future as possible. So is it better for me to buy the computer before or after I register the business for tax purposes. Is it better to have the website built before or after I register the business?

Are there other things I could do in a smarter way that I might not even know?

I understand that maybe it is possible to depreciate the computer over the course of 5 years. Does it matter when I buy the computer to do this? Is this the best way to handle the computer expense?

Those are the sorts of questions I have. I have been googling for answers but I have not found anywhere that has a lucid, comprehensive explanation of anything related to this.

Thank you very much if you would help me. It would be like giving $20 to a bum. You could feel good about your humanity. Maybe God will know you by your works. Or maybe it is a waste of your time with no reward. Whatever the case, thank you from one person to another.

Why won't this site let me edit? It seems glitchy. Sorry about that.

This site is really glitchy. I tried to edit "write off" but can't do it. I tried to reply, can't do it. What is going on?

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Ok, I am a total loser. Let's establish that. I survive by cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, ironing, home repairs, being the errand girl, secretary, report proofreader and so on for my SO who keeps me on a no allowance budget. I have tried to get work but can't, that is a long story that you would probably not be interested in anyway. But I really need to make a little money.

I have the idea to make a little money from home by selling things I made online and by doing proofreading/translating work. The online websites I have looked at all require a Paypal business account, which seems to require a registered business to open. So I am considering registering an LLC.======>Your Small business can use PayPal to accept payments from individuals /buyers who have not registered for a PayPal account. An LLC is an entity created by state statute/
An individual owner of a single-member LLC that operates a trade or business is subject to the tax on net earnings from self employment in the same manner as a sole proprietorship. You need to sile sch / Sch SE and need to pay quarterly estimated taxes as;longas the amount on SCh C line 29/ 31 is $400 or exceeds $400; If you are filing as a sole proprietor and/or a self-employed individual, you generally have to make estimated tax payments if you expect to owe tax of $1Kor more when you file your return. You do not have to pay estimated tax for the current year if You had no tax liability for the prior year
;You were a U.S. citizen or resident for the whole year; Your prior tax year covered a 12 month period. SMLLC, Unlike sole proprietors, SMLLC owners have separation between their business assets and debts and their personal finances. This means that if the business is sued for injury or other damages, your personal assets are not normally at risk. Your personal assets are also not usually accessible for creditors when your business doesn't pay its debts.



I want to make sure that I start this in the right way. I will need to buy a computer and I would like to have a website built. I want to know the smartest financial way to go about this.

As I will likely have negligible income for the first year (two, three, forever?) I want to be able to write off business expenses as far into the future as possible.=====> Businesses don’t always earn a profit. This is particularly likely to occur when they are first starting out or when economic conditions are bad. You can carry forward your business losses, net operating g losses , I mean , for twenty years. You may also apply an NOL to past two tax years by filing an application for refund or amended return for those years. This is called carrying a loss back. As a general rule, it’s advisable to carry a loss back, so you can get a quick refund from the IRS on your prior 2 years’ taxes. However, it may not be a good idea if you paid no income tax in prior years, or if you expect your income to rise substantially in future years and you want to use your NOL in the future for 20 years when you’ll be subject to a higher tax rate.

So is it better for me to buy the computer before or after I register the business for tax purposes.===>>I guess you need top buy the computer after you register your business so that you can claim depreciation on the computer as your biz purpose, Not personal use.

Is it better to have the website built before or after I register the business?=======>>I guess you may have the website built before you register the business; however, you may contact website biz adviser.

Are there other things I could do in a smarter way that I might not even know? =>> As mentioned above.

I understand that maybe it is possible to depreciate the computer over the course of 5 years. ==>
Correct; but if you want, you can claim all of the purchase price of the computer when you apply it to your business ny claiming sec 179 deduction. Sec 179 allows a business to deduct, for the current tax year, the full purchase price of financed or leased equipment and off-the-shelf software that qualifies for the deduction Computers qualify for sec 179 deduction; when you take a Sec 179 deduction, the deduction reduces your taxable income. It does not directly give you a refund, it will only reduce taxes owed. Section 179 cannot be used to create a loss, NOL I mean, for your business activity however when you sell the computer back later at a gain then you need to recapture sec 179 deduction as ordinary income taxed at 25%.

Does it matter when I buy the computer to do this? Is this the best way to handle the computer expense?
=========>>>>as mentioned above; However, UNLESS you have taxable income, you may not claim sec 179 dedcution;sec 179 deduction for any taxable year may not exceed your aggregate income from the active conduct of trade or business by you for that year, So if yoyu have NOL , you can not claim sec 179 since sec 179 cannot be used to create a loss

Thank you so much for your reply. You cleared up so many things for me. I have a further question about the cost of building a website. If I understand you correctly, if I have it built after I register the business, say next year sometime, then is it a business expense that would cancel any earnings so that I would have fewer profits? If I have more costs than earnings in that year, including the cost of the website then I can carry that forward to future years as well?

#1;Correct
#2; Correct; as said , You can carry forward your business losses, net operating g losses , I mean , for twenty years to future years.

Cool! I think I get it now. I have a plan of action. I joined one site and already got two tiny translation jobs. So maybe someday I could turn this into a small income and pay off my student loans that are hanging around my neck like a boulder. Thank you so much for helping me. I feel pretty confident now about what to do.

Good luck~~