Comments on: Can You Take the Home Office Deduction? Probably Not

By: N76

N76 — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 18:03:44 +0000

If a building is zoned work/live does that make it easier to deduct rent?

By: WebWorkerDaily » Archive Dealing with Taxes on Your Own «

WebWorkerDaily » Archive Dealing with Taxes on Your Own « — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 20:01:42 +0000

[...] that anything related to web working counts as an expense, including your home office space (but verify this with your accountant) and family printer, along with its toner or cartridge [...]

By: Barbara Saunders

Barbara Saunders — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 19:55:00 +0000

I don’t particularly care about not being able to claim a home office deduction for working on a table in my bedroom. This is not money “lost”! If I were to rent an apartment (or buy a house) with an extra room set aside as an office, I’d be paying costs that the deduction would defray and that I don’t pay now, i.e., taking a net loss.

As part of simplifying my life, I also don’t deduct proportions of my internet and phone bills. (I do write off things like hosting my Web site.) I prefer to set up an operation with few associated expenses, run out of the infrastructure of my personal life. Of course – that works better for freelance writing than it might for kinds of businesses that require more formality.

By: her every cent counts

her every cent counts — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 00:50:28 +0000

The home office tax deduction situation is, indeed, broken. I’ll likely not take any home deduction because I imagine the savings would be too small to merit risk of an audit. Besides, I live in a studio, and there is no room to separate my office and my living space. I considered designating one side of the room to be “office space only” but that seemed rather ridiculous, esp given that I live in a fairly small space. But I do work from home, and things like phone, internet, energy bills and the like honestly go to my “work time” in fair proportion. It’s just, as another commenter noted, not possible to deduct a percentage of these items and spaces. I wish it was.

By: Web Worker Daily » Archive Open Thread: How Do You Handle Your Taxes? «

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 22:00:56 +0000

[...] we have many factors to consider when it comes to our taxes such as: do we really qualify for a home office deduction, which tax tips are good to follow, and how to track and manage all our business [...]

By: Do You Claim Your Home Office As A Tax Deduction?

Do You Claim Your Home Office As A Tax Deduction? — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 13:55:00 +0000

[...] Web Worker Daily highlights the fact that many people may be able to claim a home office as a tax deduction, but don’t take advantage of it. What might be the ultimate barrier for many home-based web workers, however, is the law’s requirement that, in order to deduct expenses for your home office, you use that part of the home exclusively as your principal place of business. Very few people use their home office only for work, even if it is their main place of business. [...]

By: Becoming A Writer Seriously » Best of the Web: Microsoft Live, Writing Novels & Taxes

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 19:41:15 +0000

[...] If you maintain a home office for writing, you may wish to look at this discouraging post at Web Worker Daily. [...]

By: Home Office Warrior » Taking the Home Office Deduction?

Home Office Warrior » Taking the Home Office Deduction? — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 14:00:50 +0000

[...] is from Web Worker Daily. The Wall Street Journal reports that most people eligible for this potentially lucrative deduction [...]

By: Cossa

Cossa — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 22:31:16 +0000

If we had a national retail sale tax instead of the broken system we have now you would not have to worry about deductions at all!
http://www.fairtax.org

By: jeff

jeff — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 19:30:16 +0000

the exclusivity issue is bizarre. is a “real” office not being an office when it’s used for a party, or when you take five minutes to call the doctor and set up an appointment, or talk to a bf/gf?

conversely, can i deduct from my rent if i take my laptop out of the office and sit in front of the tube when i need to mindlessly cut and paste code or edit copy?

in the end, i think this goes to anne’s point — the home/office split in the home office is blurry, because office creeps into home, but also because home *always* creeps into office, even when the office isn’t my, er, home.