anybody know the tax break?

DH and I have lived in a house my parents own for 3 years (in a basement apartment). When we got engaged they said we could take over the whole house. Now that we're married theyr'e going to transfer the house into our names and we are going to pay the taxes, insurance and water. Does anyone know what kind of tax break we get? Are we technically considered 'first time owners' now? We're not really sure about the logistics since we didn't actually 'buy' the house. Any help would be appreciated, thanks!

Re: anybody know the tax break?

You might want to get a professional CPA's opinion on this.

I don't see how you can be a first time buyer if you have no mortgage.

Re: anybody know the tax break?

You can write off your real estate taxes.

Re: anybody know the tax break?

I know littlecat is right about that, you get to claim the taxes, but that's pretty much it. You're not paying interest on a mortgage so there's nothing else to claim.

Re: anybody know the tax break?

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Posted by DjPiLL

You might want to get a professional CPA's opinion on this.

I don't see how you can be a first time buyer if you have no mortgage.

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you dont have to have a mortgage to be a first time homebuyer - many people pay for a home 100% cash with no mortgage and are 1st time homebuyers.

anyway, the above poster is correct, the only real tax deductions you receive for being a home owner are real estate taxes and mortgage interest.

if you plan on doing home improvements and need $$ to do it, dont just charge it on a credit card - get an equity line on your home. at least this way the interest you are charged will be deductible. interest from credit cards is not deductible.

in addition, the transfer of the home from your parents trigger certain basis considerations. make sure you know what your basis is in the home via an appraisal. your inlaws will need to know the value at the transfer date anyway for estate and gift tax consideration purposes.