Carrie loaned her friend $4,500 to buy a used car. She had her friend sign a note with repayment terms and set a reasonable interest rate on the note because the $4,500 was most of her savings. Her friend left town without a forwarding address, and nobody Carrie knows has heard from her in the last year.

How should Carrie treat the bad loan for tax purposes?

This is a bad debt. Assuming this is Carrie's only capital gain or loss, she may claim a $ ( ) short-term capital loss in the current year and any remaining amount.