Tax Deductions for Denver Homeowners

The goal of most conscientious

taxpayers is to pay the government
the taxes they owe - but not a penny more. 
However, there are many legitimate deductions that filers regularly
overlook.

Non-cash
contributions.  You may deduct the fair market value
of items donated, but you must have a receipt if you are audited, or it will be
disallowed.

New
points on refinancing.  Any points you pay to refinance your
home can be

deducted on a monthly basis over the
life of the new loan.

Old
points on refinancing.  All

unamortized points on an old
refinancing are deducted in the year of a new refinancing.   

Health
insurance premiums.  These are potentially deductible if
when added to your other medical expenses, they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted
gross income.

Educator
expenses.  If you are a qualified educator, you
can get an above the line

deduction of as much as $250 for
materials you bought.

Student
higher education expenses.

For 2006, if your adjusted gross
income isn’t more than $65,000 ($130,000 on a joint

return), you can get an above the
line

deduction of as much as $4,000 for
any higher education expenses you paid. 
(This is

unchanged from 2005, but will expire
after 2007.)  You may also qualify
for the Hope and Lifetime Learning Credits; check with your tax
professional.

Clean
fuel credit.  If you bought a new hybrid
gas-electric auto or truck in 2006, you can get a conservation tax credit
between $250 and $1,000 and an additional fuel economy credit of between $400
and $2,400, depending on the make and the fuel economy.

Investment
& tax expenses.  These are deductible as part of
miscellaneous itemized expenses if they exceed 2% of your adjusted gross income.

Casualty
deductions.  You may be able to claim your
unreimbursed property/auto losses. 
Check with a tax professional for further guidelines.

Retirement
tax credit.  This credit is

designed to give moderate– and
low-income taxpayers an incentive to save for retirement.  Your contribution into your retirement

account is a reduction to your
income, plus you get a credit of as much as 50% of the first $2,000
invested.  Moreover, if you qualify,
you can deduct as much as $4,000 in contributions to an IRA.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.