Say you lose $5,000 on Fanduel and gain $6,000 on DraftKings. If you take the standard deduction, your pay taxes on the $6,000 gain but can’t write off the $5,000 loss. If you instead itemize, you can put the $5,000 loss as a deduction, in effect paying taxes on a $1,000 gain. This makes a big difference even at moderate tax rates.
Say you lose $5,000 on Fanduel and gain $6,000 on DraftKings. If you take the standard deduction, your pay taxes on the $6,000 gain but can’t write off the $5,000 loss. If you instead itemize, you can put the $5,000 loss as a deduction, in effect paying taxes on a $1,000 gain. This makes a big difference even at moderate tax rates.