@Lexi_lex_Lex wrote:
What's the best paying mystery shopping companies you work for?
@rebshopin wrote:
Specific reply to MFJohnston: I hope you don't get audited, because the IRS considers reimbursements taxable income. The 1099-Misc that you get includes the amount that you are paid in reimbursements.
@ShopGuy9 wrote:
I envy you people who live in areas of dense settlement on the East and West coasts, where you can drive through half a dozen large population areas in a single day. I'm in the Austin area, and I can pick up jobs in San Antonio now and then when there are enough worth doing on a weekend day. There are a few small towns around us, but like Austin and San Antonio they must be heavily shopped by other people in the area since I rarely see any with decent bonuses. Beyond that, I could be driving for 3+ hours before I even reach a town worth visiting (Houston) and all the other little towns closer than that never have more than one or two shops to do in a day and even those are rare to find with decent bonuses or "make an offer".
For the most part, though, I shop just for a few extra bucks in my retirement account at the end of the month so that I can get out of the full time job in about 15 years instead of 20+. I'm cracking about $400 a month from fees on average, but I mostly stick to shops where I don't have to interact with other people too much more than normal. Being a severely shy person makes it hard to do the shops where you have to pretend to be buying things and they want you to hold a long conversation with a sales person.
@rebshopin wrote:
You can believe it or not, but I have also been doing income taxes for 30+ years.
@walesmaven wrote:
In addition to what JAS mentioned, some of the best paid shops happen when you get invited to join a small team that is specially trained to do ALL of a particular client's shops.
There is a huge MSC that I had not done a shop for in about 10 years, but I got an invite to become such a team member because I had a good record with another MSC. Schedulers DO talk to one another. And, there are very, very few shortcuts in this business.
Careful with that. If I was an auditor, it would be a definite red flag. You'd have to show how much time you were spending on the Internet as a whole and how much was spent on mystery shopping. Could be a quagmire and even if part of it was disallowed, you open yourself up to penalties.@Shoptosay1 wrote:
I have thought about my internet as a write off.. what percentage do you think is appropriate?
Incorrect. If the oil change is a necessary expense to complete the job, it's not taxable. I think you need a new tax professional.@rebshopin wrote:
The amount you get reimbursed for that oil change is DEFINITELY taxable income. You get the value of that service paid by the company. If the IRS considers bribes, gambling winnings, and the value of items that you steal as taxable income, then the value of that oil change certainly is. Please refer to IRS Pub 525 and 334. Cash, products, and services you receive are taxable income. There is a section on "Bartering Income," which is similar to what we do. We exchange our work, the report or evaluation, for the reimbursement of the cost of the goods or service we receive.
@Pro Evals-Audits wrote:
Glad to see your response ShopGuy9. I was thinking the same thing, though for me it seems even worse because I live in a very small town over an hour North of Austin, so EVERY assignment requires a minimum of a 40 mile round trip and most are actually a 140 mile round trip.. And the fees for this area are what I perceive as low. If I am lucky, they want to pay $12 per assignment and yet the shop requires you to spend 30 minutes preparing, minimum of 30 minutes on location and then narrative-heavy reports taking up lots more time.
There must be a great deal of competition because I see shops posted that will only pay $7-$10 flat fee and requires a minimum $4 purchase, and I think, "I'll wait until they have to raise the pay to a decent amount." But others snap them up at those low rates.
I have to work routes or I can't even justify the driving and time. Thankfully I actually like the route work and don't mind all the driving, but as bgriffin said, this takes time to plan and juggle between MSCs. I will have schedulers contact me and ask me to take 7 evals at $10 each that will require over 350 miles round trip. They seem not to understand why I either need a significant bonus or time/flexibility to try to arrange enough other work along the route to justify even taking the assignments.
I actually love doing this work, but I do audits and evaluations as a business, not to get free food or entertain myself. Eating burgers all the time is not my family's idea of a good time or healthy diet. That said, I am finding it hard to make a credible profit at this business with all the requirements, lengthy reports, unreimbursed/uncompensated time, and transportation expense. Maybe I am in the wrong state or area to get decent fees for the work. Maybe I am not doing it "right," (For example, editors seem to love my reports, but I hate how much time it takes to do them - am I writing more than I really have to and still get a 10?) I try to stay really busy, so don't have much time left over to read and participate on this forum, but grateful to have it here for guidance and reality checks.
@ShopGuy9 wrote:
I envy you people who live in areas of dense settlement on the East and West coasts, where you can drive through half a dozen large population areas in a single day. I'm in the Austin area, and I can pick up jobs in San Antonio now and then when there are enough worth doing on a weekend day. There are a few small towns around us, but like Austin and San Antonio they must be heavily shopped by other people in the area since I rarely see any with decent bonuses. Beyond that, I could be driving for 3+ hours before I even reach a town worth visiting (Houston) and all the other little towns closer than that never have more than one or two shops to do in a day and even those are rare to find with decent bonuses or "make an offer".
For the most part, though, I shop just for a few extra bucks in my retirement account at the end of the month so that I can get out of the full time job in about 15 years instead of 20+. I'm cracking about $400 a month from fees on average, but I mostly stick to shops where I don't have to interact with other people too much more than normal. Being a severely shy person makes it hard to do the shops where you have to pretend to be buying things and they want you to hold a long conversation with a sales person.
@rebshopin wrote:
The 1099-Misc that you get includes the amount that you are paid in reimbursements.
@Professional Guest wrote:
I also second-guess myself at times, thinking the same thing as you - "Am I writing more than I really have to and still get a 10?" I take pride in my writing, and editors and clients appreciate my efforts, but it seems that it takes me significantly longer to submit a narrative-heavy than many who post on this forum.
Keep pluggin' along.
@LisaSTL wrote:
When in doubt, I don't deduct. As BG said, the amounts can be so insignificant compared to the headaches. Nothing compares to my mileage and I am can easily prove the miles. I stick with deductions where there is no question they are strictly for mystery shopping, like video equipment and travel expenses, and just suck it up for anything that would involve designating percentages for work versus personal.