JanZtaxNOSPAM wrote:

- quote -

My experience has been that, most often, the transportation
deduction (that is, jettisoning the commuting expense) is
*the* big benefit of having a home office. And, as you
note, with the final regulations on Section 121 providing
for a "not so bad" result on sale, there really is little
reason to not attempt to qualify for it.

That said, I do tell clients that the case law on 280A has
been strict about nonbusiness use--so when we talk about
exclusive use, I do *mean* exclusive <grin> and that needs
to be real, since evidence of nonbusiness use can turn up in
the strangest ways (the old "how would they know" question)
and showing one incident during the year is technically
enough to blow the deduction. So if it truly isn't used
virtually exclusively for business, I would note that I
wouldn't assume an agent who started looking wouldn't find
some proof of personal use.

But, that said, I do not recall the issue being raised on an
exam we've been involved in over the past decade. Of
course, for a long stretch there I wasn't certain the IRS
was examining anything, but...<grin
--
Ed Zollars, CPA
Phoenix, Arizona

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janztaxnospam[at]aol.com (JanZtaxNOSPAM) wrote:

- quote -

Absolutely. I take it, and recommend it. (I wouldn't if I
were doing funny business elsewhere on my return, which may
be the problem here. <grin> )

- quote -

The depreciation is relatively minor to me. What really
helps, and is not recoverable, are all the other deductions
(maintenance, utilities, house hold expenses, etc.)

-HW "Skip" Weldon
Columbia, SC

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- quote -

Depends on what you mean by "worth it". I've found that most
tax preparers don't consider it worth it or else scare their
clients into believing they'll be audited if they take it. I
personally take it almost all the time for clients. Even if
the deduction isn't much, the transportation deduction is
often substantial. And with the revised rules of 12/24/02,
there's little disincentive at the time of sale of the house
(payback/recapture of depreciation will probably be less
than the amount saved by taking it, particularly if you're
self-employed.)

Jan Zobel EA

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It also may result in a more complicated capital gains
calculation when you finally sell your home. A portion of
home is now on a "business track" rather than "personal
track". You also have to keep your records for that long.

http://216.239.57.104/search?
/www.turbotax.com/articles/HomeOfficeDeductionforTelecommuters.html

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"D" <bbcrock[at]hotmail.com> wrote:

- quote -


Don,

Go to http://www.irs.gov and get a Form 8829. That is the
form on which a taxpayer calculates the value of a home
office situation.

Wayne Brasch, CPA, M. S. Taxation

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I have a room in my house as my home office and have
itemized the number of hours I worked in this space- ended
up being about 600 hours, all of which are documented for
accounting purposes.

I am debating itemizing that as a deduction.

Any advice or can anyone point me to something online that
would describe the process of determining the value for that
as a business expense? I am debating whether or not it
would be worth it to go through the hassle.

thanks,

Don

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