My accountant told me my 'home office' write off was way too aggressive

Last year I claimed the full home office deduction for my spare bedroom on my Schedule C. My accountant looked at my return and said I needed to lower it because I use that room for storage half the time. He showed me the IRS rules about exclusive use for business. I had to cut the square footage from 200 to about 80 feet. It saved me from a possible audit but cost me about $400 in deductions. Has anyone else had to dial back their home office claim after getting professional advice?

3 comments

3 Comments

ruby_bell4710d ago

Isn't it funny how rules like this pop up everywhere once you start looking? I've noticed the same thing with tax stuff and honestly even with basic things like warranties or gym memberships. It's like the fine print is always way more strict than you'd expect.

fionamurphy10d ago

I gotta say, @ruby_bell47, I'm not totally sure it's that serious. Sure, fine print can be a pain, but most of the time it's just standard stuff businesses put in to cover their butts. Like with gym memberships, yeah they're annoying to cancel, but it's not like they're hiding a secret rule that says you have to sell your firstborn if you miss a payment. I think people get worked up over stuff that's really just common sense once you read it.

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drews5510d ago

Yeah @fionamurphy, I get what you're saying, but I think the issue is more about how they bury the stuff that actually costs you money. Last year I signed up for a "free trial" of some software and it turned out the fine print let them auto-charge me after two days instead of the usual month. Felt pretty dumb reading that one after the fact. So while I'm not saying it's evil, I've definitely learned the hard way that common sense doesn't always save you from a well-placed loophole.