How to Claim Homeowner's Insurance on Federal Income Tax

Homeowner's insurance generally cannot be deducted on your federal income taxes. However, if you claim the home office deduction, you may be able to deduct part of the cost of homeowner's insurance as a business expense. You may be able to claim this deduction if you use part of your home exclusively as your primary place of business or as a place to meet with customers. The form used to claim the deduction depends on whether you are an employee or self-employed.

Things You'll Need

• Schedule A or Form 8829

Instructions

1. Determine the square footage of your home that you use exclusively for your business.

2. Divide the amount of space used for your home office by the total size of your house to get the percentage of the space you use for business. For example, if your home office takes up 200 square feet out of the 2,000 total square feet your home, your office uses 0.1 or 10 percent of the space.

3. Multiply the result of Step 2 by the annual cost of your homeowner's insurance. For example, if you pay $3,000 in homeowner's insurance premiums, using the example in Step 2, the result would be $300.

4. Claim the value of the deduction on Form 8829 if you are self-employed or as a job expense in Schedule A if you are an employee.

References

• IRS: Publication 587
• IRS: Form 8829 Instructions
• IRS: Five Facts about the Home Office Deduction

Resources

• IRS: Form 8829
• IRS: Schedule A