No, you will not write off your home purchase on your income tax return.
However, you are able to include certain items
related to your home on your tax return. If you itemize, you get to take such
things as:
- the interest that you pay on
your mortgage
- real estate taxes
- mortgage Insurance
- points
For mortgage related information, your mortgage
lender usually will sent you a Form 1098 which will include your mortgage
information. (You may want to contact your lender to see when they will be
sending out this information.)
For the real estate taxes, if these amounts are
not reported on your Form 1098 or property tax bill, you will need to contact
your local county government because they are usually the ones who do the
property assessment and collect the property taxes. (Remember you are only
allowed to deduction property taxes paid in the current year.)
Additionally, you may need your closing statement.
This may contain information about points paid. (Contact your real estate agent
if you need help with this statement.) Transfer tax at closing is not a
deductible tax item when you buy a home. A transfer tax is essentially a
transaction fee imposed on the transfer of title to property.
The only closing
costs that may be deductible as a buyer of a house (if you are itemizing
your deductions) would be amounts you paid at closing for any county or city
taxes (additional property taxes), loan origination fees or loan discounts and
prorated mortgage interest (if not included on your Form 1098 from your
mortgage lender).
To enter your Property Taxes in
TurboTax Online or Desktop (for TurboTax Online sign-in, click Here), please follow these steps:
- Once you are in your tax
return, click on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in
TurboTax Home & Business)
- Next click on “Deductions and
Credits”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Your Home”
- Choose "show more",
then Property Taxes and follow the onscreen instructions
To enter your Mortgage Interest in
TurboTax Online or Desktop, please follow these steps:
- Once you are in your tax
return, click on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in
TurboTax Home & Business)
- Next click on “Deductions and
Credits”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Your Home”
- Choose "show more",
then Mortgage Interest, Refinancing and Insurance and follow the onscreen
instructions. You will need to enter the Mortgage lender's name and
interest income.
To enter your Mortgage Insurance in
TurboTax Online or Desktop, please follow these steps:
- Once you are in your tax
return, click on the “Federal Taxes” tab ("Personal" tab in
TurboTax Home & Business)
- Next click on “Deductions and
Credits”
- Next click on "jump to
full list" or “I’ll choose what I work on”
- Scroll down the screen until
to come to the section “Your Home”
- Choose "show more",
then Mortgage Interest, Refinancing and Insurance and follow the onscreen
instructions
