Community Forums

wnytaxman · 01-06-2014, 09:04 AM

Just a heads up for anyone who bought an RV in 2013. Remember you can take the sales tax as an itemized deduction if it is more than the state income tax you paid. That would count the sales tax on the RV and the sales tax from the IRS tables for your income and locality.

If you didn't buy in 2013 and were looking to buy in 2014 you may be out of luck on the sales tax deduction. As of now Congress did not renew the deduction for 2014 so it would not be deductible on your 2014 return unless they change the law for 2014. If they do change the law it would probably be changed retroactively to January 1.

Ed

DannyA · 01-06-2014, 09:43 AM

Thanks, I did buy back in November.
I was told by the dealer I could take off the sales tax and also an interest paid. What about depreciation? Can you do that?
Always need all the tax help I can get.

wnytaxman · 01-06-2014, 09:49 AM

To take depreciation you would have to have some business purpose for the unit. For example I have one guy who works the gas fracking fields in PA. We are depreciating his unit because there are no hotels in the areas he is working for his temporary job assignment. The business use can be established but it can be a hard sell to an IRS agent.

Ed

jmoffat · 01-06-2014, 01:05 PM

not sure if I understand. I bought in 2013 in CA paid sales tax close to $12,000. I think you are saying that it might be a qualified deduction on my Fed Tax but what does what I paid in State Tax have to do with whether it is deductible or not?

Jim

Fl_Richard · 01-06-2014, 02:13 PM

We dont have state income tax. Can I claim my sales tax on my 2013 purchase?

Gandalara · 01-06-2014, 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmoffat

not sure if I understand. I bought in 2013 in CA paid sales tax close to $12,000. I think you are saying that it might be a qualified deduction on my Fed Tax but what does what I paid in State Tax have to do with whether it is deductible or not?

Jim

IRS Sales Tax Deduction Calculator
If you file a Form 1040, and itemize deductions on Schedule A, you have the option of claiming either state and local income taxes or state and local sales taxes. (You can’t claim both.)

wnytaxman · 01-06-2014, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fl_Richard

We dont have state income tax. Can I claim my sales tax on my 2013 purchase?

If you itemize your deductions on Schedule A of your 1040 you can take the deduction for the sales tax paid on your RV purchase in 2013 as well as the sales tax allowed by the chart. It can be a nice tax saving. I just hope Congress brings it back in 2014.

wnytaxman · 01-06-2014, 05:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmoffat

not sure if I understand. I bought in 2013 in CA paid sales tax close to $12,000. I think you are saying that it might be a qualified deduction on my Fed Tax but what does what I paid in State Tax have to do with whether it is deductible or not?

Jim

Jim, you can take the deduction for whichever tax is higher. For example, if you paid $12,000 in sales tax and the chart gives you another $2,000 of sales tax for a total of $14,000 your state income tax paid would have to be less than $14,000 for you to take the sales tax deduction. You get one or the other, but not both. Obviously you would want the higher deduction to save the most in taxes.

Fl_Richard · 01-06-2014, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wnytaxman

If you itemize your deductions on Schedule A of your 1040 you can take the deduction for the sales tax paid on your RV purchase in 2013 as well as the sales tax allowed by the chart. It can be a nice tax saving. I just hope Congress brings it back in 2014.

Awesome! Thanks sooo much!

wnytaxman · 01-06-2014, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fl_Richard

Awesome! Thanks sooo much!

Cool. You are welcome. I can't help those with mechanical problems but this is one area I can help.

Ed

Bears Den · 01-06-2014, 06:27 PM

That's great info! Thanks!

Dutch Star Don · 01-06-2014, 08:06 PM

"wnytaxman"...good info again.

"jmoffat"........as stated, if the tax for the MH is more than the standard deduction, you will use the MH tax. Remember though, the standard deduction is designed to cover what most people would pay in sales tax for the year. If you bought the MH, you probably bought a bunch of other stuff that you should add to the sales tax you're claiming on the MH. Remember, the standard deduction for other stuff you bought won't be used since the MH is higher, but the sales tax for the other stuff should now be added to the MH tax.

When I bought my MH in 2005, I claimed the MH tax and then I went back and added up all of the sales tax I paid for everything I bought in 2005 ( the stuff that would have typically fallen under the standard deduction). You could easily have another $3k in sales tax to go with the $12K you paid for the MH. Hope this makes sense.

wnytaxman · 01-08-2014, 07:57 AM

Don,

Thanks for the compliment.

Just to clarify the deduction, you get the table amount AND the sales tax paid on vehicle purchases. We have also taken the sales tax on home construction also when someone has constructed a new home or had a major remodel.

Ed

VAParrothead · 01-08-2014, 09:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wnytaxman

Cool. You are welcome. I can't help those with mechanical problems but this is one area I can help.

Ed

Only slightly related ... Don't want to write off the RV on our federal taxes, but can I still write off the mileage attributable to business as I do for my personal auto used for business (I own my own business and travel is to and from industry conferences in other cities)? And if so, can I claim 56.5 cents a mile for my car and actual expenses for my RV? Or would I have to use the same accounting for both vehicles?

Not that I'm asking for free tax advice ;-) ... but you *did* seem to kinda offer.

Thanks in advance if you able (and willing).

And, yes ... what an excellent post!