<prompt> Human: Ive been advised that I should take a loss on the year, but Im starting from scratch here. I worked as real estate agent. Help!My goal with this post is to ultimately pay zero dollars in taxes by maximizing my deductions as a self employed person. What expenses can I deduct? What online tax service do you recommend?What are the ramifications of claiming a lesson the year? Ive always been a W2 employee who claimed zero and took the standard deduction. Im in need of a crash course and would appreciate any resources you can recommend.Edited to add more detail.  <response>: As a 1099 earner, you will owe a 15.3 self employment tax, as well as regular federal and state income tax. I dont understand what you mean by taking a loss on the year, but if you had work related expenses, you can deduct those from your total income. 