do I get taxed on gains that I lost ? for example if I make 10k and then lose it do I owe nothing on the 10k profits I originally made?
I think it would depend on when the loss occurred. If in the same year, then your net profit would be 0, and you would owe nothing. If the loss occurred in a following year, you would owe taxes on the $ 10k for the year in which the profit occurred, but you could deduct the $ 10k loss forward every year ($ 3k per year, I believe), until the balance becomes 0. So you would have 3 years where you could deduct $ 3k, and the fourth year where you could deduct $ 1k