[CrendKing]

I have no idea what "wash sale" is. I only heard that term when I was reading the help page in TurboTax, which I'm effectively forced to use.

Seriously, I doubt there is more than 100k people in US that have this "wash sale" any year. I'm so tired of every time someone suggests automatic tax filling, there is always one guy bring up some tax term that 99.99% people never heard of. Sure, if auto tax filling doesn't solve your wash sale calculation, feel free to go back to TurboTax. Let the other 99% people who have one job and no other complicated tax situation skip this yearly nonsense.

[sseagull]

Beware the paradox of averages. I bet a lot more than 99% of people have some wrinkle with their return.

One person has a wash sale, another has some real estate stuff, another became disabled, another has child care stuff, another has education credits, etc etc etc.

Actually now I am curious how many people file the “simplest” return (wage only, standard deduction, and absolutely no other adjustments).

[ghaff]

It’s probably less than 99% but it could be the majority in a given year.

[mindslight]

> TurboTax, which I'm effectively forced to use

FWIW TurboTax is easily piratable. There are even instructions out there to crack it yourself with a .NET assembly editor.

I do my taxes in a VM without Internet access and mail in the filings, so there's no way for any information to be backhauled to Intuit or anyone else.

[geraldwhen]

Literally anyone that owns stock could generate a wash sale.

[fbdab103]

Only 15% of Americans directly own any stock[0]. Vast majority of people who do is done through a 401k or other retirement vehicle.

[0] https://usafacts.org/articles/what-percentage-of-americans-o...

[ac29]

Wash sale rules apply to mutual funds and ETFs also, not just directly holding stocks.