Can I Deduct My Home Office?

[KarenL]

Working from home has its pros and cons! And if you do work from home, a juicy tax break would be a great bonus. Typically, being allowed to take a deduction for your home office is limited to self-employed individuals on the federal (IRS) side, but some states do allow a deduction for W-2 employees. Qualifying generally depends on whether your business space is your principal place of business and is regularly used to conduct that business - and if the specific area/room that’s used is exclusively for that business.   

Once you feel confident that your your space and work qualify you, you then need to decide if you want to use the Actual Expense Method (includes depreciating your home and tracking utilities, repairs, and other expenses) or the Simplified Method ($5/sq ft up to 300 sq ft.). And the last little tidbit is that you must have a net profit from your business for the tax year.

The following resources will help with all your home office questions!

• Can I take the home office deduction? - The basic rule.
• The Home Office Deduction - A deeper dive into qualifying and how it works.
• Can I claim the home office deduction for two or more businesses? - Two businesses.
• How do I allocate expenses for two home offices?  - Two offices.
• Where do I enter the home office deduction for my business? TurboTax navigation to get you to the right place.
• Home Office: Pros, Cons, & Taxes! - Like it says - some pros and cons!

If you need tax advice or have questions that aren't answered in the links above, please ask in our Taxes forum that best fits your needs!