Building a second home: are the school fees paid on building a second home considered a school tax?

[erikdsar]

In 2023 I paid a school fee to the local school district for a second home that I built.  TurboTax indicates that a school tax paid on building a second home is tax deductible.  Is this fee considered a tax?  Can someone advise me or direct me where I can find more precise information?

[Vanessa A]

Was it the local property school taxes that you paid?  If so, then yes, this would be deductible as a property tax expense on your property and would be deductible as an itemized expense.

If this was for some type of permission to build, then no, it would not be a tax and would not be deductible.  

Itemized expenses include mortgage interest,  charitable contributions, state and local taxes up to $10,000, medical expenses in excess of 7.5% of your AGI and casualty and losses in excess of 10% of you AGI with the first $100 not counting towards the loss.  Your health insurance and all medical expenses are only deductible for the amount that is over 7.5% of your AGI.  This means if your AGI is $50,000, then the amount that is over $3,750 is deductible.  

Then your total itemized expenses would need to be greater than your standard deduction below in order to benefit from your tax payments. 

The 2023 Standard Deductions are as follows:

• Married Filing Joint (MFJ)              $27,700
• Married Filing Separate (MFS)      $13,850
• Head of Household (HOH)             $20,800 
• Single                                                     $13,850                                

Blind and MFJ or MFS add $1,500

Single or HOH if blind add $1,850

Standard versus Itemized Deduction