Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

marigolds6 t1_it8niae wrote

Reply to comment by cuicocha in Many countries have a "hidden welfare state" for incumbent homeowners, as governments subsidize homeowners through the tax system. The homeownership welfare state is strongest in the US and other Anglophone countries, but weakest in the Scandinavian countries. by smurfyjenkins

>And the really big one is that renters don't get to deduct their housing costs when doing income taxes!

Yes, you can. We did this for years while renting and it is pretty explicitly called out on form 8829 and schedule c that you can do this. <- This is for business use only. Whether a homeowner or a renter, you cannot deduct typical housing costs unless part of your home is used exclusively for business use.

Don't be surprised if you are unable to deduct your mortgage interest or property tax. You must itemize to deduct either of these, and with the standard deduction now at $27.7k there is a good chance that your itemized deductions, even with mortgage interest, are less than your standard deduction unless you are early in your loan (which you are) and you are close to or above the principal cap. On top of that, the real estate tax deduction is combined with your state income tax deduction and both combined are capped at $10k (again, compare this to your standard deduction, which you would forgo by itemizing

−4

cuicocha t1_it8p4cg wrote

Please correct me if I'm missing something, but 8829/schedule C is for business use only, if you use part of your home exclusively for work. Deducting your kitchen or bedroom's expense would be tax fraud. I've never heard of anyone legally deducting their rent on US federal taxes except for a home office used for nothing but work.

From the source:

>Use Form 8829 to figure the allowable expenses for business use of your home on Schedule C

6

marigolds6 t1_it8t04u wrote

Correct. Homeowners have to use part of their house exclusively for a business use in order to deduct their housing costs, outside of the itemized deductions specifically for mortgage interest and other taxes paid. You cannot deduct your mortgage principal, insurance, utilities, etc. otherwise.

2

cuicocha t1_it8vm4t wrote

Thanks. Could you please add clarifying text to your original comment, saying that this is for business use only? The vast majority of renters are not able to deduct any of their rent, and no renters can deduct all of their home's rent.

2

marigolds6 t1_it8ybep wrote

Yep, I added that. Thing is, the vast majority of homeowners are in the same exact boat as renters: they cannot deduct any of their housing costs either.

The mortgage interest and property tax deductions can only be taken by a small number of home owners and the business use deduction can only be taken for part of your home if you have an exclusive business use.

0