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Publié par | seorumer |
Publié le | 25 janvier 2015 |
Nombre de lectures | 0 |
Langue | English |
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The Juice is Worth the Squeeze: Taxes and Homeownership
Editor's note: These tips are for informational purposes only. I am a loan officer with knowledge of available
home‐ownership‐related tax benefits. I am not a tax professional.
Paying taxes is one of the least fun activities around, but like many of life’s
unpleasantries, it’s absolutely necessary. The thing is, that there are a number
of ways to lessen the pain, one of the best being the very simple act of buying
and owning your own home.
The process may be daunting, but once you’ve cleared the complication hurdles,
the juice is certainly worth the squeeze. Deductions are everywhere and with a
reasonable amount of effort you can lessen your tax burden substantially.
The Biggest Deduction
As homeowners we dutifully pay our mortgage interest every month – thank
goodness its tax deductible. In fact, your tax‐deductible mortgage interest is the
single biggest deduction available of all homeowner deductions.
Your second mortgage is tax deductible as well.
The idea is transferable for interest accrued while refinancing, acquiring home
equity loans, and home equity credit. Just be careful of restrictions that apply to
mortgage debt that ends up being higher than your property’s current value.
More Efficient, More Tax Credits
Energy efficiency is getting to be a big deal these days with more concern about
per capita energy use and environmental impacts. Part of the government’s
response has been EnergyStar.gov – a resource for understanding the efficiency
and benefits of your appliances. Look for the Energy Star seal on your appliances
replaced within the past year. They likely earn you a tax credit. Investigate local
and state policies as well – it’s possible you can earn some efficiencies there as
well.
You’ll also get deductions for home efficiency renovations and improvements
like sealed windows and doors, new heating and air conditioners, a more
efficient water heater, fans, basically anything that uses less energy to perform the same function as its less efficient predecessor. Think of the “green energy”
realm of products. Save the receipts for obvious tax reasons.
Another Major Deducation
Property taxes are another major deduction available for homeowners.
A substantial piece of loan payments comprise of taxes headed to an escrow
account annually. The taxes will in on your annual statement and include
interest data as well. The taxes will be annual deductions for homeowners.
If you’re new to owning your own home, as in the first year, find your
settlement statement to be able to apply deductions forthcoming.
A Question of When
When you sell and when you buy are of great importance.
Again, if you’re new to owning your own home, the tax payments were likely
split between you and the seller, so that you both only pay taxes for that
percentage of the year in which you actually legally owned the home.
The homeowner’s share of taxes is fully deductible.
Sellers are in a different, more complicated position. Anything up to $250,000 in
sales gain, which would be $500,000 for married people who jointly file, do not
need to cough up capital gains taxes as long as the owner used the home as
their main residence for two years.
Most average homeowners can really benefit from investigating the tax benefits
of owning one’s own home. It’s oftentimes their most significant investment,
largest asset, and juiciest tax break. These benefits are excellent arguments for
buying and owning your own home. Figure out what makes sense for you, but
don’t forget to think through Uncle Sam’s various incentives, especially tax
breaks related to homeownership.
Brought to you by the team at DelawareMortgageLoans.net and 203kloan.net