THunting business

[jeepjoe79]

Hi, im new to this forum and had a question. Ive been interested in treasure hunting pretty much my whole life, but just became proactive within the past few years. My question is about turning treasure hunting into a business. I was wondering if anyone has done this before. Im looking at it more for tax purposes than anything, as i know it is not always profitable. I dont really know anything about running a business, im a tradesman myself so any feedback would be appreciated!

 

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[Tom_in_CA]

Most of us are just lucky to pay for our gas and equipment. I think you're going to be unsatisfied if you think you can make a living off of this. And even if you could, it may no longer be fun, as it is now. For example: When gold value went way up in about 1980, a nugget hunter I knew from that era, suddenly realized he was making more money per hour on his weekend hunts in the Sierra Nevada foothills here in CA, than he was at his job. So he quit his job, and decided he'd be a full-time nugget hunting with detectors. Within the first few weeks, he found that what used to be "fun", was now a "job", complete with quotas, etc.... Whereas before it was just sport, now there was the daily expectation that he had to produce. The "fun" wore off real quick. Just something to consider.

 

[Iron Patch]

If you don't like your finds enough to keep, chances are the money you would make would not even come close to giving you the motivation to get out there. Just to get set up with all you need could set you back in the hundreds or even a grand.... and it takes a lot of common date silver coins to cover that bill.

 

[mts]

I've read stories on here before about people doing it. There's supposedly one guy in Hawaii that hits the beaches outside of the ritzy hotels and finds enough to survive. But I'm not sure that any of these people are making it rich. I guess it all depends on what you call "treasure hunting". That can range from swinging a detector on a local beach to searching for sunken gallions to raiding garage sales.

The main factor that you should consider is that treasure hunting is a physical activity. If you get hurt and can't hunt then you make nothing. So it's always good to have a non-physical trade to fall back on if possible. It makes a lot of sense to augment your current salary with the proceeds of your treasure hunting. But making it your life's work is probably not going to end the way you'd like it to.

It's a great dream and at least once a month this topic comes up. But the reality is that unless you are really determined and really lucky you are probably better off working harder at something else and leaving your treasure hunting as a hobby that you really enjoy.

 

[jeepjoe79]

let me kind of rephrase that......i dont mean im going to quit my job. I was just curious if by establishing a not for profit business (or something along those lines) if you could write off expenses such as travel and gear and such. I dont really ever want to sell any items. I just figured if you spend a substantial amount of time and money on something, you should be able to reap some benefits from the government. I have a 2 week trip lined up in July for gold prospecting and topaz hunting in Colorado and Utah thats gonna cost a pretty penny.....just curious if any ones ever acted on this idea.

 

[mts]

I don't see how you would qualify as a not for profit business. The IRS has very stringent rules on who qualifies and who doesn't as a NFP. If you could qualify to write off your expenses then every business in the world would probably also qualify.

 

[jeepjoe79]

Not necessarily a not for profit...just something along those lines. Like a historical society, or research group or something. Theres a million loopholes im sure. I guess a lawyer would be the person to talk to. Just rackin my brain out here waiting for the weather to get better....

 

[mts]

You should talk to an accountant. You can write off some business expenses if you are an actual business. But I'd be surprised if you could write off most of that stuff for metal detecting. Keep in mind that a write off is just a deduction so you only save the taxes on the deduction itself. Not the full amount of the deduction. Still, every little bit helps.

Good luck.

 

[lastleg]

I'm thinking you could make a killing selling yeller boots.

 

[jeepjoe79]

LOL! r u interested....they are only 299.99, if your last name begins with a-s you can call now....if it begins with t-z you can call tomorrow....limit 10 per customer

 

[lastleg]

Do they come in size 13 WW?