MS on Event Tickets
Apr 21, 2019, 10:31 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 5
MS on Event Tickets
I stumbled across an opportunity with a ticket broker friend who is now telling me what event tix to purchase and letting me rack up the points so he can resell the tix.
The reason he needs my help is there are limits on how many tickets people can purchase for a given event. It's been a win/win scenario so far. He keeps my risk low by not letting me buy things that are not of value and pays my card directly the same day.
It's a lot easier than multiple trips to Walmart and some cards, like the Capital One Savor, offer 4% back on entertainment.
Has anyone else had luck with other types of MS that don't involve money orders and such? I hate dealing with the people of Walmart.
The reason he needs my help is there are limits on how many tickets people can purchase for a given event. It's been a win/win scenario so far. He keeps my risk low by not letting me buy things that are not of value and pays my card directly the same day.
It's a lot easier than multiple trips to Walmart and some cards, like the Capital One Savor, offer 4% back on entertainment.
Has anyone else had luck with other types of MS that don't involve money orders and such? I hate dealing with the people of Walmart.
Apr 21, 2019, 2:39 pm
#3
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Miami, Mpls & London
Programs: AA & Marriott Perpetual Platinum; DL & HH Gold
Posts: 48,950
This is not manufactured spending, it's a business buying and reselling tickets. Keep full records of each transaction, and any incidental expenses, because any net profit is subject to income tax.
Apr 21, 2019, 3:01 pm
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 5
Yes, all events, you name it. Celine Dion, Hamilton, WWE.
Apr 21, 2019, 6:57 pm
#6
Join Date: Dec 2017
Posts: 463
This sounds a lot like "buying clubs', where people in the club buy products that have a limit per person, then are reimbursed by the person who wanted them bought. I have no personal experience with buying clubs so I can't say if they're good or bad, but I have heard of them.
Apr 21, 2019, 9:42 pm
#7
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 2,824
If I go to a restaurant with a group of friends, and I pay the tab, and my friends each reimburse me, does that mean that I am in “the business of buying and reselling restaurant meals”? No, of course not. But I have increased the spending on my credit card, without actually increasing my own spending. If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, then it is manufactured spending.
Apr 21, 2019, 10:56 pm
#8
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 204
OP is buying tickets, and selling them to his friend at cost. That's a business, and based on IRS rules the OP should be filing a schedule C on their tax return. If his friend pays him over 20k in a year, OP's friend should also be filing a 1099k to report the transactions to the IRS.
Apr 22, 2019, 6:56 am
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 5
OP is buying tickets, and selling them to his friend at cost. That's a business, and based on IRS rules the OP should be filing a schedule C on their tax return. If his friend pays him over 20k in a year, OP's friend should also be filing a 1099k to report the transactions to the IRS.
Apr 22, 2019, 8:53 am
#10
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 2,824
OP is buying tickets, and selling them to his friend at cost. That's a business, and based on IRS rules the OP should be filing a schedule C on their tax return. If his friend pays him over 20k in a year, OP's friend should also be filing a 1099k to report the transactions to the IRS.
Should I be filing with the IRS when my friends reimburse me for the restaurant meals we share?
Apr 22, 2019, 9:12 am
#11
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Miami, Mpls & London
Programs: AA & Marriott Perpetual Platinum; DL & HH Gold
Posts: 48,950
Does the agency immediately reimburse for the full cost of the tickets, or is reimbursement contingent on re-selling the tickets or otherwise delayed?
Closer analogy would be if your employer requires you to pay your own expenses and provides reimbursement. You still need to keep records of your expenses that are satisfactory to the IRS.
Closer analogy would be if your employer requires you to pay your own expenses and provides reimbursement. You still need to keep records of your expenses that are satisfactory to the IRS.
Last edited by mia; Apr 22, 2019 at 9:35 am
Apr 22, 2019, 10:03 am
#12
Join Date: Sep 2009
Posts: 2,824
Apr 22, 2019, 10:58 am
#13
Moderator
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Miami, Mpls & London
Programs: AA & Marriott Perpetual Platinum; DL & HH Gold
Posts: 48,950
The tickets are purchased on behalf of a ticket broker. The friendship is irrelevant. The broker will record the reimbursement, and use it for their own accounting and tax purposes to establish the cost of goods sold. The broker should send the OP a 1099 to document the payment. We cannot know if this will actually happen, but I would keep good records.
Apr 22, 2019, 11:30 am
#15
Join Date: Mar 2016
Location: North Texas
Programs: SWA A-List, Marriott Platinum, Hilton Gold
Posts: 188
The tickets are purchased on behalf of a ticket broker. The friendship is irrelevant. The broker will record the reimbursement, and use it for their own accounting and tax purposes to establish the cost of goods sold. The broker should send the OP a 1099 to document the payment. We cannot know if this will actually happen, but I would keep good records.
But I agree with MIA, detailed records should be kept even if there is no "profit motive" from the OP. Though I would think the IRS could argue that the fact that OP's trying to gain points is a profit motive. It all seems pretty low risk either way.
