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posted Jun 4, 2019 12:28:35 PM

Can we report uncompensated vandalism damage to personal car? Where place the amount? Tried "Cost Basis"in the "Personal Property - Information" section. Odd result.

I entered, $310, TT seemed to change that to $210 in the "Other Deductions & Credits" section of the "2017 Deductions & Credits" review in TT.

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1 Best answer
Expert Alumni
Jun 4, 2019 12:28:43 PM

The information below is accurate for your 2017 taxes, the one that you file this year by the April 2018 deadline, including a few retroactive changes due to the passing of tax reform. Some tax information below will change next year for your 2018 taxes, but won’t impact you this year. Learn more about tax reform here.

 

For the Casualty Loss and Theft Deduction, the IRS tax calculation subtracts $100 from each casualty loss of personal property. Also:

  • The total of your casualty and theft losses on personal property must be more than 10% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). Otherwise, you can’t claim a deduction for that portion of the loss above the limit. 
  • Deductible casualty losses can result from a variety of causes such as car accidents, earthquakes, floods, fire, hurricanes, or vandalism. 

 

In TurboTax, jump to the entry area for casualty loss:

  1. Open your return if it's not already open.
  2. Search for "casualty loss" and then click the "Jump to" link in the search results.
  3. On the Casualties and Thefts (or Stolen or Damaged Items) screen, select Yes.
  4. Answer the interview questions describing your event.
  5. When you complete the event and reach the Property Summary screen, you can enter any additional property losses by selecting the Add a Property button.

 

Additional information: 

[Edited 3-10-2020|12:16 pm PST]

1 Replies
Expert Alumni
Jun 4, 2019 12:28:43 PM

The information below is accurate for your 2017 taxes, the one that you file this year by the April 2018 deadline, including a few retroactive changes due to the passing of tax reform. Some tax information below will change next year for your 2018 taxes, but won’t impact you this year. Learn more about tax reform here.

 

For the Casualty Loss and Theft Deduction, the IRS tax calculation subtracts $100 from each casualty loss of personal property. Also:

  • The total of your casualty and theft losses on personal property must be more than 10% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). Otherwise, you can’t claim a deduction for that portion of the loss above the limit. 
  • Deductible casualty losses can result from a variety of causes such as car accidents, earthquakes, floods, fire, hurricanes, or vandalism. 

 

In TurboTax, jump to the entry area for casualty loss:

  1. Open your return if it's not already open.
  2. Search for "casualty loss" and then click the "Jump to" link in the search results.
  3. On the Casualties and Thefts (or Stolen or Damaged Items) screen, select Yes.
  4. Answer the interview questions describing your event.
  5. When you complete the event and reach the Property Summary screen, you can enter any additional property losses by selecting the Add a Property button.

 

Additional information: 

[Edited 3-10-2020|12:16 pm PST]