Taxation on gift

taliaclaire1 · ‎November 12, 2020

My partner is gifting me $100k for a down payment on a house that we will co-own. We are not married and I’m the only one on the mortgage, so the mortgage company required the down payment to be “gifted” to me. Will this money need to be reported to the IRS and if so, will it be taxed? I’ve been reading different things online and can’t find a clear answer.

rjs · ‎November 12, 2020

Your partner will have to file a gift tax return to report the gift. No gift tax will have to be paid unless your partner has made total lifetime gifts of more than $11.5 million, but the gift tax return has to be filed. The gift will reduce your partner's lifetime gift and estate tax exclusion.

You cannot file a gift tax return with TurboTax. It would be best to go to a tax professional.

You, as the recipient of the gift, do not have to report it or pay tax on it. You do not enter it on your income tax return.

You will be a half owner of the house, but you alone will be legally responsible for the entire mortgage. There might not be any problem with that, but I suggest that you consult a lawyer to make sure. You should initially meet with the lawyer alone, without your partner.

Anonymous_ · ‎November 12, 2020

@taliaclaire1 wrote:

My partner is gifting me $100k for a down payment on a house that we will co-own. We are not married and I’m the only one on the mortgage, so the mortgage company required the down payment to be “gifted” to me. Will this money need to be reported to the IRS and if so, will it be taxed?

Gifts from a donor to a donee that exceed the annual exclusion amount of $15,000 are required to be reported on Form 709 (by the donor (giver of the gift)).

See https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i709#idm140554801429376

No gift tax will be due, however, unless and until the donor exceeds the lifetime exclusion amount.

See https://www.irs.gov/instructions/i709#idm140554799622736

The lifetime exclusion amount for 2020 is $11.58 million.