Episodes

  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 75, Passive Activity Loss Carryovers

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 75, Passive Activity Loss Carryovers
    Mar 31 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • Suspended passive losses are not permanently lost; they are carried forward indefinitely to future tax years. • Carryover losses are first used to offset passive income from any source before being applied to nonpassive income. • A complete, taxable disposition of a passive activity unlocks all suspended losses associated with that specific activity. • Upon death, suspended losses are deductible on the final return, but reduced by the step-up in basis. • When a passive activity is gifted, the suspended losses are added to the recipient's basis and are not deductible by the donor. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    4 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 74, Form 8863 - Education Credits

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 74, Form 8863 - Education Credits
    Mar 30 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The AOTC is a per-student credit with a 40% refundable portion, while the LLC is a per-return credit and is entirely non-refundable. • Qualified education expenses must be reduced by tax-free assistance like scholarships and grants before any credit is calculated. • A student who can be claimed as a dependent cannot claim an education credit, even if the parent does not claim them. • AOTC qualified expenses include required course materials purchased from any vendor, whereas LLC expenses are more restricted. • Taxpayers with a Married Filing Separately status are ineligible to claim either the AOTC or the LLC. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    Not Yet Known
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 73, Form 8962 - Premium Tax Credit Reconciliation

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 73, Form 8962 - Premium Tax Credit Reconciliation
    Mar 29 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • How to reconcile Advance Premium Tax Credits (APTC) with the final allowable Premium Tax Credit (PTC) on Form 8962. • The role of Modified AGI, the Federal Poverty Line (FPL), and the applicable figure in calculating a taxpayer’s required contribution. • Why the second-lowest-cost silver plan, or benchmark plan, is critical for determining the final PTC amount. • How income-based repayment limitations can cap the amount of excess APTC a taxpayer must pay back, a common exam trap. • A mnemonic to remember the PTC calculation and reconciliation process for exam day. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    3 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 72, Household Employment Taxes

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 72, Household Employment Taxes
    Mar 28 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • The critical difference between the $2,700 annual FICA threshold and the $1,000 quarterly FUTA threshold for household employees. • That all household employment taxes (FICA and FUTA) are reported on Schedule H, which is filed with the employer's Form 1040. • Why a household employee must receive a Form W-2 and never a Form 1099-NEC, a common point of confusion on the exam. • That withholding federal income tax is optional and requires an agreement between the employer and employee via Form W-4. • How to apply the control test to determine if a worker is an employee, triggering Schedule H, or an independent contractor. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    4 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 71, Cancellation of Debt Income

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 71, Cancellation of Debt Income
    Mar 27 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • That cancelled debt is generally taxable income reported on Form 1099-C, but exam questions focus on the exceptions. • The insolvency exclusion is strictly limited to the amount by which total liabilities exceed the FMV of total assets immediately before the debt cancellation. • Debt discharged in a Title 11 bankruptcy case is always fully excluded from income, regardless of the taxpayer's solvency. • Excluding COD income under most exceptions requires a reduction of tax attributes on Form 982 in a specific, testable order. • Qualified Principal Residence Indebtedness exclusion requires a direct reduction to the basis of the home, not the standard attribute reduction order. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    3 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 70, Like-Kind Exchanges under Section 1031

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 70, Like-Kind Exchanges under Section 1031
    Mar 26 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • Why Section 1031 tax deferral now applies exclusively to real property and not personal property. • How to navigate the strict 45-day identification and 180-day receipt timelines, including a common exam trap involving tax return due dates. • The rule for recognizing gain when "boot," such as cash or debt relief, is received in an exchange. • The essential role of a Qualified Intermediary in preventing constructive receipt of funds. • That losses are never recognized in a like-kind exchange, a key distinction from gain recognition rules. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    4 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 69, Installment Sales and Form 6252

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 69, Installment Sales and Form 6252
    Mar 25 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • How to calculate the gross profit percentage to determine the taxable gain recognized from each payment. • Why depreciation recapture under Sections 1245 and 1250 must be recognized in the year of sale. • The rule prohibiting dealers from using the installment method for sales of their inventory. • Key restrictions for installment sales of depreciable property between related parties. • The mnemonic "Dealers, Depreciation, and Dependents Don't Defer" to remember key exceptions. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    3 mins
  • Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 68, Basis of Inherited Property

    Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 1] 68, Basis of Inherited Property
    Mar 24 2026
    This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: • Inherited property’s basis is generally its Fair Market Value (FMV) on the decedent's date of death, and the holding period is always considered long-term. • The alternate valuation date (six months after death) can only be elected if it reduces both the gross estate value and the estate tax liability. • If an asset is sold within six months of death and the alternate valuation date is elected, its basis is the selling price, not the FMV on the alternate date. • In community property states, both the decedent's and the surviving spouse's shares of the property get a basis adjustment to FMV. • Income in Respect of a Decedent (IRD), such as a traditional IRA, is a major exception and does not receive a stepped-up basis. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
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    3 mins