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Finance Exam Prep: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Ran Chen, EA, CFP
Finance Exam Prep is a daily podcast designed to help future tax and finance professionals pass their certification and licensing exams with clarity and confidence. Built and operated by OpenExamPrep, this podcast breaks down major tax exams into focused, easy-to-digest episodes covering the CPA & Enrolled Agent (EA) Exam, including Part 1 (Individuals), Part 2 (Businesses), and Part 3 (Representation, Practices, and Procedures). Each episode targets one key tax concept, common exam trap, or high-frequency test topic—making it ideal for studying during commutes, workouts, or short study sessions. Created by Ran Chen, EA, CFP®, a financial professional and exam specialist who has personally passed multiple professional licensing exams, Tax Exam Prep was developed from firsthand experience with how complex—and often poorly explained—tax exam material can be. The goal is simple: make tax exam preparation clearer, more accessible, and more effective through structured explanations and modern learning tools. Whether you’re preparing for the EA Exam, transitioning into a tax career, or reviewing before test day, this podcast is designed to guide you step by step—one concept at a time. Free practice tools, AI-powered explanations, and additional exam prep resources are available at: https://open-exam-prep.com/
Latest Episodes
The most recent episodes — sign up to get AI-powered summaries of each one.
- Today3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 51, Bad Debt Deduction — Specific Charge-off
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Why business bad debts are valuable ordinary deductions, while nonbusiness bad debts are treated as short-term capital losses. - The critical difference in timing: business debts can be deducted when partially worthless, but nonbusiness debts must be wholly worthless. - That the specific charge-off method is the only permissible method for deducting bad debts for most taxpayers. - How the exam uses the repealed "reserve method" as a common incorrect answer choice to trap test-takers. - The importance of documentation to prove a valid debt existed and became uncollectible, distinguishing it from a non-deductible gift. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- Yesterday3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 50, Involuntary Conversions — §1033 Deferral
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - How to calculate realized gain, recognized gain, and deferred gain in a §1033 transaction. - The critical tax impact of failing to reinvest the full amount of proceeds received. - The specific replacement periods: two years for most casualties and three years for condemned business real property. - The difference between the strict "similar use" test and the more lenient "like-kind" standard. - How to calculate the basis of the new replacement property after deferring a gain. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 2 days ago3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 49, Like-Kind Exchanges — §1031 (Real Property Only)
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The post-TCJA rule restricting §1031 exchanges exclusively to real property held for business or investment. - The non-negotiable 45-day identification period and 180-day exchange period for deferred exchanges. - How to calculate the recognized gain, which is the lesser of the boot received or the realized gain. - The correct formula for determining the basis of the new replacement property by subtracting the deferred gain from its fair market value. - The mandatory role of a qualified intermediary in holding sale proceeds to avoid constructive receipt. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 3 days ago3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 48, Section 1231 — Sale of Business Property
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - That net Section 1231 gains are treated as long-term capital gains, while net losses are treated as fully deductible ordinary losses. - How to correctly net gains and losses from the sale of multiple Section 1231 properties to determine the final tax character. - The function of the five-year lookback rule, which recharacterizes current Section 1231 gains as ordinary income to the extent of unrecaptured Section 1231 losses from the prior five years. - That property must be used in a trade or business and held for more than one year to qualify for Section 1231 treatment. - That depreciation recapture under Sections 1245 and 1250 must be calculated *before* determining the amount of a Section 1231 gain. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 4 days ago3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 47, Section 1250 Depreciation Recapture
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - The key difference between Section 1250 recapture for real property and Section 1245 recapture for personal property. - Why ordinary income recapture on Section 1250 assets is rare for property placed in service after 1986. - How to calculate unrecaptured Section 1250 gain, which is the lesser of total gain or accumulated straight-line depreciation. - That unrecaptured Section 1250 gain is taxed at a special maximum rate of 25%. - That gains and losses from the sale of business real property are reported on Form 4797. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 5 days ago2 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 46, Section 1245 Depreciation Recapture
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Section 1245 recaptures depreciation on personal property as ordinary income. - The recapture amount is the lesser of the gain realized or the total depreciation taken. - Any gain exceeding the recaptured amount is typically treated as a Section 1231 gain. - Section 1245 applies to assets like equipment and vehicles, not buildings (which are Section 1250). - All transactions involving Section 1245 property are reported on Form 4797. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 6 days ago3 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 45, Alternative Depreciation System (ADS)
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - When the Alternative Depreciation System (ADS) is mandatory for property such as foreign use and tax-exempt use property. - The consequences of a real property trade or business electing out of the Section 163(j) interest limitation. - How ADS utilizes the straight-line method over longer recovery periods compared to the General Depreciation System (GDS). - The rule that property depreciated under ADS is ineligible for bonus depreciation, a common exam trap. - The binding and irrevocable nature of an election to use ADS for a specific class of property for a given tax year. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
- 1 weeks ago2 min
Enrolled Agent Exam [Part 2] 44, Listed Property — Vehicles and Computers
This podcast is made by Ran Chen, who holds an EA license, Insurance and Securities licenses (Series 6, 63, 65), and the CFP® designation. He is passionate about opening access to high-quality exam preparation resources and helping learners prepare more effectively for professional certification exams. In this episode you will learn: - Listed property like vehicles and computers requires strict, contemporaneous written records to substantiate business use. - To claim accelerated depreciation (MACRS, Section 179), business use must exceed 50% in the year the asset is placed in service. - If business use is 50% or less, you are restricted to the slower straight-line method under the Alternative Depreciation System (ADS). - Depreciation recapture is required if business use drops to 50% or less in a subsequent year, treating the excess depreciation taken as ordinary income. - Annual depreciation on passenger automobiles is capped by the luxury auto limits under IRC §280F, regardless of the vehicle's cost or business-use percentage. For more free exam prep tools, practice questions, and AI-powered explanations, visit https://open-exam-prep.com/ or YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@Open-exam-prep
About Finance Exam Prep
Finance Exam Prep is a daily podcast designed to help future tax and finance professionals pass their certification and licensing exams with clarity and confidence. Built and operated by OpenExamPrep, this podcast breaks down major tax exams into focused, easy-to-digest episodes covering the CPA & Enrolled Agent (EA) Exam, including Part 1 (Individuals), Part 2 (Businesses), and Part 3 (Representation, Practices, and Procedures). Each episode targets one key tax concept, common exam trap, or high-frequency test topic—making it ideal for studying during commutes, workouts, or short study sessions. Created by Ran Chen, EA, CFP®, a financial professional and exam specialist who has personally passed multiple professional licensing exams, Tax Exam Prep was developed from firsthand experience with how complex—and often poorly explained—tax exam material can be. The goal is simple: make tax exam preparation clearer, more accessible, and more effective through structured explanations and modern learning tools. Whether you’re preparing for the EA Exam, transitioning into a tax career, or reviewing before test day, this podcast is designed to guide you step by step—one concept at a time. Free practice tools, AI-powered explanations, and additional exam prep resources are available at: https://open-exam-prep.com/
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