Can anyone tell me if the cost of having a house demolished be taken as a tax deduction? I own a piece of land in OH (I am from NC) --the county and city where the house was located demanded I have the house torn down due to its condition. The house was uninhabitable but I was being charged land taxes for a structure. Nonetheless, I had to have the house destroyed and the land cleared. Can I deduct any of that expense on my taxes. If so can you point me in the direction of the proper publications or forms also. Thanks so much in advance...I always find Yahoo readers/'answerers' very knowledgeable and helpful.
2007-02-10 19:53:29 · 3 answers · asked by catnap82 3 in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ Other - Taxes
Unfortunately the cost of demolition becomes part of your cost of the land and would offset the sale price later. There is no current deduction.
If you let the local fire department use it as a practice burn you can take the value of the property before and after as a charitable deduction. You would need a appraisal for the before and after.
2007-02-10 22:11:06 · answer #1 · answered by waggy_33 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Income taxes aside, get the house value off of your property tax roll. Watch for the next assessment notice and if there are any improvements still listed, appeal that value. And do not let the assessor just add that number to the land value. The assessed value of the land is independent of the now demolished house.
2007-02-12 16:23:05 · answer #2 · answered by zudmelrose 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, there's no deduction for that. You probably can add the cost of the demolition to the cost basis to reduce your gain when you sell the land, though. That will reduce your taxable gain on the sale.
2007-02-11 07:04:01 · answer #3 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋