TradeMatcher.com
FAQ's
| How
long will the
process take? |
Normally, the
results are
returned to you by
the next business
day. If any
additional time is
required, we will
let you know
immediately on
first
contact. A
processing time
beyond 24 hours
would generally
only occur during
the week of a tax
filing deadline.
|
| Do
you account for
wash sales? |
Yes, we do.
All ordinary
traders must report
and correctly apply
the wash sale rule
over their
transactions. We do
this, and generate
the wash sale items
correctly on the
Schedule D-1
continuation pages.
Of course, if you
have elected
mark-to-market
accounting and are
not subject to the
wash sale rule, we
can generate the
correct forms as
well.
|
| Do
you handle
mark-to-market
accounting (MTM) or
generate Form 4797?
|
Yes, we do.
Additionally, for
the Schedule 4797
we produce a
worksheet like the
Schedule D-1
continuation pages
as the IRS had
stated that even
for Form 4797 the
full detail is
required. We
provide an
appropriate detail
sheet in pdf form.
|
| Do
you offer your
software for sale? |
We no longer
offer our software
for sale. It
simply did not
prove economical to
support the
software at the
price point at
which we can do the
process as a
service.
We have
found that the best
all-around
solution was
to split the
process so that our
clients need only
obtain their
dataset from the
brokerage, and let
us concentrate our
expertise on any
special
circumstances in
the
dataset.
So the
tradeoff from your
standpoint is that
we can do this for
you for $99.95 as a
service. If
you must have
software to do it
yourself, then you
would generally
have to pay
substantially more
each year and learn
the features of the
software and the
details regarding
the applicable
rules.
Vendors which
provide such
software include
Gainskeeper,
TradeAccountant,
TradeLog,
etc. We
invite you to
compare their
offerings because
we are confident
that if you do, you
will find our
method far less of
a burden on you for
substantially less
cost! In
addition, we
believe our
application of the
wash sale rule is
the most accurate
in the
industry.
With thousands of
applications since
1998 we have never
had a client report
that the IRS
challenged our
application.
In two instances,
our clients have
reported that they
used our
documentation to
correct instances
where their
brokerages had
misreported their
activity to the
IRS.
|
| What
exactly will I
receive from you? |
The ordinary
trader will receive
pdf documents by
email of the actual
Schedule D with
trading totals
completed for the
dataset(s)
provided. You
will also receive
the long and short
term Schedule D-1
continuation pages
in pdf form which
contain the full
detail required by
the IRS. You
will also generally
receive a
spreadsheet
formatted document
in the event you
wish to perform any
additional analysis
on the results or
to document a basis
in positions still
open. If you
have elected
mark-to-market
accounting, or
otherwise specify
for us to do so, we
will generate the
Form 4797 and an
accompanying detail
worksheet in place
of the Schedule D
and D-1 pages.
|
| Is
the process secure? |
Yes.
Because you
retrieve your trade
history, we never
access your trading
account or have any
account
password. We
don't need any
identifying
information related
to the account,
only the raw trade
history for which
we do the matching
and return the
results. When
compared with
software that
directly accesses
your account our
process is far more
secure.
Additionally, our
payment process is
handled through a
third party
processor (PayPal)
which specializes
in that business,
and we never
receive your credit
card details
directly.
The only
downside is that
because we do not
accept or receive
your social
security number you
will need to
manually add the
identifying
information on the
pdf printout.
In contrast, any
software that you
might use to
directly download
the transactions
from your account
poses a potential
security risk and
is only as good as
the vendor which
created it.
We invite you to
compare our
transparency by
giving us a call
and then try and do
the same with
regard to any other
vendor you are
considering.
Can you find
their principal or
founder? Can
you reach a person
there by
phone? We
take pride in our
firm and believe
our approach is
inherently the most
secure
method. As an
attorney, Mr.
Durden knows well
the importance of
maintaining
confidentiality and
the firm makes
extraordinary
efforts with regard
to your trade
history as well.
|
| Can
your results be
exported to tax
software programs ? |
We can produce a
TXF file which is
the standard import
file for such
programs.
HOWEVER, the
leading tax
software vendors
simply do not
correctly handle
wash sale
items. If you
have any doubt that
this is the case,
we invite you to
review the opinion
of our competitors
in this
regard. In
fact, the TXF
format (even as of
latest version
.041) is not
consistent with
correctly entering
a wash sale
transaction line
without increasing
the total sales
(which is the
reconciliation
check the IRS
receives from your
brokerage).
We are attempting
to get the format
itself amended to
allow a straight
pass through of a
correctly
calculated wash
transaction so that
the tax software
can simply import
our file and use it
directly as is
without
alteration.
However, until that
should occur, what
we recommend is
that you simply use
our totals carried
into the software,
generate a paper
filing and then use
a printout of our
prepared Schedule
D-1 continuation
pages thereafter
which will
correctly show the
wash sale
items. If you
are using a tax
professional, you
would simply
provide our
Schedules to your
professional and
they will generally
use them directly.
|
| Do
you offer discounts
for multiple
accounts? |
It depends upon
the
circumstances.
In general, we do
not because most of
our staff time is
in the initial
processing of the
data sets.
There is generally
no savings in our
office and usually
more staff time is
involved because
special care must
be taken to ensure
that all of the
data sets are
transformed to the
identical format
before matching and
additional time is
required to make
sure the entire
results match up
with multiple
brokerage
totals.
Please remember,
you are getting
approximately
twenty to thirty
minutes worth of a
professional's time
working on your
account for the
price of our
service and there
is not much room
for additional
discount.
Occasionally, a
customer has
multiple datasets
at the same
brokerage where
little or no
additional review
is required.
If you feel your
situation might
fall into this
category, feel free
to call to see if
special
arrangements might
be made.
|
| How
can you offer such
service at this
price? |
We hope you agree
this is an
exceptional service
for the cost.
There are several
factors which
enable us to offer
better quality at
lower cost than is
typical in the
industry. In
order to understand
how we can do this,
let us reveal a bit
of our "back
story."
First, our firm is
very small and
"flat."
It consists of
attorney Wayne
Durden and two
executive
assistants.
Mr. Durden has a
combination of
specialties
including law,
software
development and
long time active
trading
experience.
As a result, we can
develop our
software "in
house" and
make changes to
reflect IRS
clarifications or
form changes more
quickly and at less
cost than our
competitors.
If you call us, you
will almost
certainly speak
directly with
Wayne, as he makes
it a point to be
the direct customer
contact whenever
possible.
Second, the firm is
located adjacent to
Mr. Durden's
residence, so
office expenses,
commute times, etc.
are
minimized.
Because our
software work flow
is automated once
the dataset is
reviewed and placed
in the proper
format, the actual
staff time is about
as low as can
possibly be
achieved.
Even so, a
checklist of
factors is
automatically
applied to
ensure there
can be no doubt as
to accuracy or
correctness.
The combination of
all of these
factors allows us
to offer an
exceptional service
at this
price. Furthermore,
to dispel any doubt
with regard to our
capabilities, we do
not require any
payment until the
process is
completed and you
have results in
hand.
Finally, if you
have any questions
regarding the
qualifications of
the firm, Mr.
Durden has a long
history of
achievement.
He graduated
valedictorian of
both his high
school class and of
his college class,
and was inducted
into the Order of
the Coif at the
completion of his
law school
study.
He practiced as a
trial attorney for
ten years at one of
the most reputable
law firms in
Savannah, Georgia
before leaving the
practice to become
a full time trader
and software
developer. He
has received three
American
Jurisprudence
Awards in the
subject areas of
Property, Evidence
and Trusts and
Estates. As a
trial attorney he
defended some of
the largest
corporations in the
United States as
sole or lead
counsel in cases of
devastating or
catastrophic
injury. He
also served as
plaintiff's counsel
in large cases
including a class
action suit
successfully
concluded against
the State of
Georgia.
Despite success as
a trial attorney,
Mr. Durden's
passion was in
software
development and a
life style that
would allow him
more availability
to his two
children.
This was the basis
for the formation
of this firm, and
these are the
reasons you can get
an unlimited number
of trades correctly
matched and
properly documented
for only $99.95 for
a single trade
year, single
account. If
you still have any
doubts about
whether we are for
you, simply give us
a call at the
number below and
speak with
Wayne. We
expect that within
5 minutes of
discussion, if you
need a service we
offer, you will
choose to become
one of our
recurring clients.
|
| What
if my brokerage
only offers a pdf
format of my trade
data? |
In general, a pdf
format is not our
preferred method of
receiving your
trade data.
The formatting is
rarely uniform even
where the
appearance seems to
be.
Conversion
utilities are
rarely completely
successful in
generating a
uniform data file
from the original
pdf.
Fortunately, in
almost all cases,
another option is
available from your
brokerage such as
Excel or CSV.
If you can't find
it directly,
normally a call to
your brokerage's
support staff will
quickly walk you
through the
download
process. If
pdf remains
absolutely the only
format available
call us to discuss
your
situation.
|
| Will
the results
reconcile with my
1099 figures? |
It is commonly
thought that the
Schedule D sales
figure should
exactly match the
1099 figure.
In reality, the
reconciliation is
often multistep.
Let us explain in
some detail and
with some
background
first. The
root factor behind
the lack of a
direct
reconciliation is
that in reality two
different things
are being
shown. This
has a basis in the
fact that the
information the IRS
requires from the
brokerage is really
not the same
information
required of the
taxpayer who is
reporting gains or
losses on capital
transactions.
The IRS requires
the broker to
report the total
amount of sales in
the tax period, and
the requirement has
historically only
been for equities
(while most
brokerages now
supply an
additional figure
for options as
well). The
taxpayer is
reporting on
capital gains so
the IRS can get its
portion. This
requires a closed
or round trip
transaction which
is the event
triggering the gain
or loss.
Options are part of
the capital gains
of the
taxpayer. The
fact is that there
is often a
divergence between
the total sales and
the sales that are
part of a closed
gain triggering
event.
If a taxpayer had
an open short
position at year
end, that sales
transaction would
be part of the
brokerage report of
total sales, but it
would not yet have
triggered a capital
gain reporting
event for the
taxpayer.
While an open short
entry can be placed
on the Schedule D
to explain this
situation, if the
taxpayer closed a
short from a prior
year, those sales
figures would be in
this year's gain
report from the
taxpayer, but would
not be in the
brokerage sales
figure and so the
figures would still
differ..
So to
make a long story
short, if the
trader was solely a
day trader in
stocks with no
carryover
positions, then the
figure should
reconcile
completely.
Otherwise, the
crosscheck involves
adding in options
sales to the
brokerage sales
figure and netting
out the short sale
positions carried
at year
end. In
any case, the
taxpayer shouldn't
worry, our results
will be calculated
properly for
the dataset
supplied, and the
IRS is now well
aware of the
limitations in that
it has asked for
"apples"
from the brokerage
and
"oranges"
from the taxpayer.
|
Call
us at (912) 897-0435
if you have any questions.
$
99.95 covers any single
account for a single tax
year no matter how many
trades
|
Have questions or need more
information?
Feel free to contact
us for specific details. We are
always happy to answer your
questions. Our primary growth
is by word-of-mouth, and we would
be delighted to add you to our list
of satisfied customers.
(912) 897-0435
wdurden@tradematcher.com
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