The guy who caught Barry Bonds record breaking homerun ball might have to pay taxes on the ball he simply caught! A MLB baseball goes for about $14 dollars at Walmart. But the IRS says it will be valued at around half a million in taxable income and that skyrockets this guys tax base and he is just a college student. How can the IRS say that? This is crazy! Can you say taxation out of control...
2007-08-09 04:50:56 · 11 answers · asked by American Ponderer 1 in Sports ➔ Baseball
The IRS hasn't made any statement at all on this, as far as I can tell. You're listening to a lot of tax lawyers and accountants tickled pink to be talking to the press about this. Murphy will likely sell the ball quickly, and likely be taxed only on the proceeds of that sale. A sale is taxable income, like it or not.
2007-08-09 05:02:27 · answer #1 · answered by ? 6 · 3⤊ 0⤋
They will not tax him UNLESS he sells the ball for a profit but not before. The IRS is simply telling him that if he sells the ball for a profit this will be considered income and taxed appropriately.
Now... to this end, he could sell the ball and then from the amount he receives he could deduct the cost of the ticket to the game, the gas to get there and back, the cost of sale (auction fees and such), storage fees, display case fees, authinication cost, etc. However, since the price he can get for it will probably exceed $400,000 the amount he can deduct will be pennies on the dollar so those deductions won't really add up to much.
But again, he can't be taxed until he actually sells the ball or if he uses the ball as collateral in a loan (for he then declared the ball as valuable income).
I wouldn't say that taxation is out of conrol, but the fact that ANYONE would pay over $14 for a baseball is out of control.
Just my thoughts!
2007-08-09 04:59:41 · answer #2 · answered by wrkey 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It won't stick. Just having the ball doesn't give him income...it gives him the potential for income, which he will have to pay taxes on when he sells it.
They are trying to use the same basis as...if someone buys you a car as a thank you present, well it is an increase to your income because you did not have to put out the money for it. So you have to pay taxes. They are saying him catching the ball is an increase, even though the ball has no real value until he sells it. If he never sells it or appraises it then the open market value is 0 because it is not being bid upon.
2007-08-09 04:58:46 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
That's the most asinine thing I've heard in a long time! Can you believe the IRS has the balls (pun intended) to try to say what a mere baseball is worth & tax this poor guy just for the sake of owning it?! That's our government for you though! How else are we going to pay for all those $42/each aspirins we have stored in a warehouse somewhere expiring as we speak?
Now, if the dude sells it...well...that's a different story. Of course, at the tax rate they quoted...I think it was $210,000 taxes owed if it sells for $600,000....they might as well tell him to bend over. Ridiculous!
2007-08-09 06:13:33 · answer #4 · answered by Pamela 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I agree, I read that and was completely floored. How can something you aren't going to sell count as income? If he sells, sure it's income, but to tax if he doesn't sell it, completely ridiculous!! Though, I don't agree on your logic about the price of the ball. A $14 ball at Wal-Mart is just a ball. What he caught is a piece of sports history. It adds value to the ball, though I don't think a accountant is the right person to appraise its value.
2007-08-09 04:59:55 · answer #5 · answered by tnk3181979 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
He doesn't HAVE to sell the ball. He only has to pay taxes IF he wants to sell the ball. It's perfectly fair. I mean, he basically got a huge windfall. If someone worked for years to make that amount of money, they would have to pay tax. Why shouldn't he pay the same tax just because he didn't have to work for it?
2016-05-17 22:56:35 · answer #6 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yeah i understand. The govt does tax things like mad. But we are still less taxxed then europe for example..
Think about it like this. If you buy a stock and make alot of money on it when it skyrockets you have to pay capital gains tax. Im sure you are ok with that.. right? And If you catch a ball that skyrockets in value you have to pay tax on that. Same concept but it doesnt get applied nearly as often.
2007-08-09 04:57:52 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
he needs to burn that baseball and then throw the ashes in the ocean. that ball has so much negative karma surrounding it aint funny. any money he would recieve it selling will only come back to bite him in the rear, again that baseball just has so much real bad negative energy attached to it.
2007-08-09 05:20:20 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 0⤋
The IRS does whatever they want I guess.
2007-08-12 19:13:35 · answer #9 · answered by SF Giants 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the irs actually never commented on if they were gonna tax him it is just poeple speculating.
2007-08-09 04:56:18 · answer #10 · answered by yaboysupadave 3 · 4⤊ 0⤋