Real Estate Taxes on 1098

[sevric]

On my 2019 1098 form that I received from my mortgage lender, it has the "Real Estate Taxes" listed in "Box 10". These are the taxes that were withheld from my escrow payments. My original intention was to double up my real estate tax payments in 2020 to put me over the itemization hump. (I payed my 2019 real estate tax in January 2020 and will be paying my 2020 real estate taxes in December 2020) Is it okay to delete out "Box 10" in the 1098 I entered so I'm not reporting the same taxes in 2 different years?

Thanks,

-John

[AnnetteB6]

If you are certain that the property taxes reported with your Form 1098 from your mortgage company were not actually paid during 2019, then it is fine to not report that on your return.  

Only taxes paid during 2019 should be reported on the 2019 tax return.  

@sevric

[sevric]

Thanks for the quick response! They were definitely paid in January 2020. I can't find any other way to edit taxes paid in other than deleting them out of the 1098 that  I enter into TurboTax, is it acceptable to delete them out of the online form since I didn't pay them in 2019?

[sevric]

I'm am just worried that it would be considered altering a document.

[BillM223 · Accepted solution]

@sevric

It is OK, because the lender is not even required to put the property taxes on the 1098 anyway.

Furthermore, this happens all the time, because if this is a rental property, you don't want it reported on Schedule A but on Schedule E.

So, no worry, enter what is correct and make a note in your tax file on why you did what you did.