The TradeLog Top Ten

We’ve all heard the old anecdote “work hard, play hard”. But come tax season, there’s not much time for play when you’re trying to get your trading gains and losses together and fussing with incredibly complex IRS rules targeting active traders!

So say “hello” to TradeLog, the premier trader tax software program preferred by expert CPAs.   We’re going to give you the Top Ten reasons why TradeLog should be your go-to during the upcoming tax season.

1. Squash those wash sales!  Wash sale calculation is arguably one of the most intricate aspects of trader tax preparation. Can you even begin to imagine the mental gymnastics required for an active trader to manually go through hundreds or thousands of transactions, identify each wash sale trigger, calculate the loss deferrals and record everything on IRS Schedule D Form 8949? TradeLog does this for you automatically.  Tricky wash sale scenarios like “substantially identical securities” (ex. options and the underlying stock) or trades of the same security in your investing and IRA accounts are also handled accurately according to IRS regulations.  Better yet, TradeLog’s Potential Wash Sale Report can help you to plan exit strategies to minimize your loss deferrals and monitor your tax situation throughout the year.  By importing all of your transactions from different brokers into one spot, the software can flag potential wash sales for your review, regardless of how many brokers or accounts were involved.
2. Broker 1099’s don’t tell the whole story.  Asking for forgiveness rather than permission works in some situations, but it doesn’t generally work that way when you are dealing with the IRS. Simply sending in your 1099-B with missing cost basis from securities transferred-in from another broker account or other reporting issues can make an agent sit up and take a closer look at your entire trader tax return. Most brokers make an effort to release accurate Form 1099-Bs to their clients but, as the IRS has different reporting requirements for brokers than they do for individual taxpayers, your broker does not have the obligation to provide you with a taxpayer-friendly 1099 to file with your return. The burden of proof is on the taxpayer. The only accurate way to report cost basis and gains and losses is to work with the raw trade data from the broker in TradeLog.
3. Get every trade with the click of a button.  Import your trade history from over 40 brokers!  TradeLog’s brokerConnect function allows you to import directly from your broker’s web site and hold your data securely on your own computer.  Broker not currently supported? Simply ask them for an Excel file containing your trades.  Keep all of your trade history, for all of your broker accounts (including retirement accounts), in one tax file.  No more sifting through statements and papers, no more spreadsheets!
4. If you trade it, TradeLog can report it. The software offers a complete set of IRS forms for securities favored by investors and active traders alike. All versions now support Futures and Section 1256 contracts (regulated futures contracts, exchange traded and broad-based index options) and include a detailed Section 1256 report for accurately calculating the totals for IRS Form 6781. Do you trade stocks, options, single-stock futures, mutual funds, DRIPs, exchange-traded funds, ETFs/ETNs, bonds, warrants, futures, futures options, commodities, commodity options, broad-based index options, currency futures or FOREX?  We’ve got you covered.
5. Works well with others. You can prepare a Schedule D Form 8949 in TradeLog and then import the data into popular tax software programs such as TurboTax®, TaxACT® or TaxCut®. For most traders, we recommend the quickest, easiest and most accurate method to file your taxes which is electronically filing using Form 8453.
6. Complicated tax adjustments made easy. Traders need to account for material changes to a security such as stock splits, mergers, spinoffs, liquidation, option exercises and assignments, ticker changes, long/short conversions and other corporate events and the gains and losses associated with them.  Finding the affected trades and making these adjustments by hand can be very time-consuming and complicated.  TradeLog offers intuitive editing functions that make these a breeze.
7. Mark-to-Market accounting. TradeLog was designed to meet the special tax needs of active securities traders who have elected, or are about to elect the Section 475(f) mark-to-market accounting method.  Many traders who elect Section 475(f) seek professional tax services in order to properly qualify and take full advantage of trader tax status. TradeLog is the preferred tax software program used by industry leading trader tax professionals.
8. No annoying sales pitches! We promise not to bombard you with sales and marketing messages in our software, pestering you to upgrade to another version or trying to up-sell you on another product.
9. Help your accountant maximize your refund.  We’ve stopped counting the glowing reviews from CPAs that have thanked us for making their jobs a whole lot easier. TradeLog uses actual trade history direct from your online broker to generate IRS-ready reports needed by active traders and investors for tax filing. Accurate trade accounting ensures that you don’t overpay or underpay your taxes, and risk paying additional penalties.
10. We have a version for everyone.  Trader taxation isn’t a “one size fits all” situation.  Every investor or day trader has specific needs based on their volume of trading, number of broker accounts, securities traded and the IRS accounting method elected (cash vs. Mark-to-Market).  So choose which TradeLog version suits you best:  INVESTOR, TRADER, or ELITE.  If you find you need more trade records, simply upgrade to the next version and pay the difference.

           Create your own expert review of TradeLog! 

           Take a full tour of the software features with our 30-day free trial