Hello, and thank you for the forum.

Two years ago I was working as an independent contractor insurance agent.

The company that I was working for rented a residential house for an office.

After I was there part time for about a year, I approached the owner of the company to see if I could move into one of the rooms in the house and live there full time and work more hours. He had previously mentioned that someone else had done this for him in the past.

At the time, this arrangement seemed like a win-win for everyone; the residentially-zoned house had a full time resident, I was not paying rent any more, and I was also doing work at the office in the morning for which I was not paid cash for.

This arrangement lasted about a year. Eventually, I moved out of state and our professional association was dissolved. What I am now concerned about are as follows:

1. Was this arrangement a "barter" arrangement and do I need to file taxes for the room / use of the house as a residence? Keep in mind this was also my office.

2. If I do have to amend my tax returns and disclose any of this as income, do I need to have my former "employer" also agree that the income was paid or that a barter relationship existed? If he feels that I am wrong, can he challenge me in court?

I don't want to start trouble for anyone here, but I just want to know what my options are. I never realized this could possibly be construed as something I might have to pay tax on. Please help.