If you use your home for business purposes you may qualify for the home office deduction. People who run a business from home, are self-employed, or work freelance from home may qualify for the home office deduction.
You must have some Schedule-C income to qualify. If you are a freelancer only for a few months out of the year you would take the deduction and prorate it for just the few months that it applies. Due to changes made in 2018, those who are employees working for others from a home office no longer qualify for this deduction.
To qualify for this deduction you must use part of your home "regularly and exclusively" for business or trade purposes. Regularly means that the home is your main place of business, and exclusively means that you are not using the space for any other purposes.
There are two options for calculating your deduction, The Standard Option, and The Simplified Option.
With the Standard Option, you deduct 100% of some actual expenses pertaining to the specific area that you use for business purposes and a portion of some of the expenses of your overall home. If your home office is 5% of your total square footage, you can deduct 5% of your overall home expenses like utilities, insurance, etc. This option requires you to show receipts and how every cost relates to the home office.
In the Simplified Option, you deduct $5 per square foot up to 300 square feet for a $1500 deduction. This deduction is a popular option because it requires no record keeping.
The tax experts at Peter Witts CPA PC can provide you with any information you need about the home office deduction. Speak to our team of tax professionals today.
I’m Kristin, the PWCPA PC Customer Success Specialist. For more information about this topic, or any other, you can always reach me through our customer ticketing system.
