Is my dad crazy for thinking my boss would help pay for me to build a new computer? (credit card, pay off)

[BryceE]

I was talking to my dad tonight and was telling him I was planning to build a new computer soon and he's like get my boss to help pay for it. Am I right for thinking that'll never happen because my dad is pretty sure it would work. The computer is mainly for my personal reasons, with doing some things for work on it, but not it's primary purpose. Should I give it a go and ask or just not and pay for it myself? Even if he would, it just seems weird to ask for help to pay for it lols.

The new computer I'm building anyways is gonna be for video editing, rendering, gaming, virtualization, etc. My job is a video editor, but I've got a 3 year old iMac that my boss had given me for the job. But honestly, one 1280x1024 screen is ****. I've got to minimize applications just to work on something else and it gets time consuming. The new computer will have at least 2-4 video cards so that I can have a good amount of monitors so I can have everything I'm working on opened at once. I like to multitask a lot. But the thing is, the new build is going to run me about $4,000 and I honestly can't really afford it without going to credit cards, which I don't want to. But, if I do get it, it'd probably pay for itself within a year most likely.

So, is my dad crazy for even suggesting I go to my boss for help with this or what? This is a work from home job and I've been working for him for about 8 months now.

[aslowdodge]

Are you an independent contractor? If so the cost is probably on you and the faster pc makes you more money if you get paid the same but can do it faster. But if all you do is cut your hours by being faster, how does it make you more money?
If you are an employee you could ask your boss to pay for it under the premise you can do more work for him making him more money, but when you leave he prolly gets the pc back.

[BryceE]

I"m an independent contractor. And yea, it's mainly for personal reasons, but while the iMac (the one he brought over for me) is digitizing or whatever it's doing, I could be using the personal computer to upload, do some other work for him, etc. I'm just wondering if I should even bother asking him for help on it or just do it myself.

[lovebrentwood]

According to the IRS, in order to legally keep you as an independent contractor and not an employee, your employer should NOT help you pay for the computer. Contractors are responsible for their own "tools."

Google this if you want to know more: irs rules for independent contractors

[BryceE]

Ah, thanks for that piece of information. Now, would I be able to write it off on my taxes if it helps me do business work or am I out of luck on that as well? I barely understand all this tax stuff.

[lovebrentwood]

If you're an independent contractor, you can certainly write it off. I'm not an accountant, but I've been a contractor for many years. Save all your receipts. (Of course, you can write it off if you use it for business purposes.)

[BryceE]

I can write it off even if I don't have a business?

[Bilirubin]

Originally Posted by BryceE

I can write it off even if I don't have a business?

Correct. It's been a while since I was in your boat as an independent contractor, but everything work related is tax-deductible (this does not = free, by the way). Mileage to and from the "job-site", equipment, anything specific for your work. This could include books on video editing, conferences, your PC. For me I deducted clothing that I only wore to work, and for no other purpose. If you have a "home office", where you have 25 square feet where you only do your work, that 25 square feet of your rent may be tax deductible.

You should consult with a tax person to see if you are an employee, independent contractor, or statutory employee - they all have different ways of paying taxes - and to see what is deductible, and how to keep your records.

I remember your earlier posts on moving out on your own, I hope things are going well for you.

p.s. Unless you know you can pay off your PC quickly (few months), I would not pay for it with a credit card. Pick out the components you want, make a list, and save up the money for a few months. Then when you go back to your shopping list, you'll see that everything you want has dropped in price 20%. It's a win-win-win situation.

[aldamon]

Originally Posted by BryceE

But the thing is, the new build is going to run me about $4,000 and I honestly can't really afford it without going to credit cards, which I don't want to.

Can you post your configuration? If you can't afford 4 grand, I'm sure we could help you cut out some things or downgrade with minimal impact.

[BryceE]

I'm looking at Macs now instead of building because that's what I'm used to for video editing. Also, I've got the programs I can just transfer over. Anyways, I like the cost of the iMac 24" 3ghz, but it doesn't have enough monitor expandability for me. I'll need at least 4 monitors to even be remotely productive. After 4-6 years of using dual-triple screens, one just doesn't cut it no more. So, I was looking at the Mac Pro Quad and 8 core and it's everything I need and want, but it's so damn expensive. Any ideas on what I should do? I've got about 10 external hard drives as of now hooked up over the network (for business) and they're all about 80% full now. So, I'd be needing a ton of hard drive space, but $300 per hard drive on the Mac Pro is just ridiculious. I wonder if I could install those myself for almost nothing? Are they special hard drives for just Macs or just any old SATA will do?