Tax Tips for Home Owners:

It’s that time of year once again where we are all hurrying to get our income tax returns files before April 30th. Not too many of us enjoy paying taxes and so we have compiled a list of things that may help you recoup some of your money. At Mortgages for Women we are fortunate to have a chartered accountant on staff and we asked for the details on some of the savings you can apply for. Here is list of what we found out:

1. Tax Relief for 1st time buyers: If you and your co-purchaser, if you had one, bought your home after Jan 27th, 2010 you may qualify to recoup some of your expenses. A 15% tax credit is applied to your expenses up to $5,000. That’s a potential savings of up to $750. Check out the details and see if you qualify. http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/nwsrm/fctshts/2010/m01/fs100121-eng.html
2. The Home reno subsidy: HRST for short. This tax credit applies to work done or goods bought for your home between Jan 27th, 2010 and Feb 1, 2011. The home renovation tax credit can get you up to $1,350 in refunds depending on the amount of work you had done. Here are the details: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/hrtc/
3. Home office deductions: This is the tax credit we get the most inquires about. If you either work from home or run a small business from home you can deduct mortgage interest, property taxes and capital cost allowance. You can also deduct utilities, home insurance, and cleaning costs. But only the business portion of these expenses is deductible for tax purposes. To calculate this portion, use a “reasonable basis such as the area of the work space divided by the total area of your home.” Here are the details: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/sgmnts/hmwnr/wrk-eng.html
There are other ways to save tax money but they do not apply to your return and so we will address them in a later news letter. If you have any questions regarding the above programs we gecoment you contact Canada Revenue Agency Direct.

Happy Filing...