Is a Home Office Right for You?

• Posted on June 23, 2011
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In the current economic environment, many smaller firms are looking for ways to cut costs.  One such possible move would be to relocate from a rented office space to a home office.  With today’s modern means of communications and virtual marketplace, this may be a good option for your business.

The advantages include the ability for you to deduct from your business income some home expenses, such as utilities and certain maintenance costs that are not otherwise deductible.  Those expenses will include a depreciation allowance for the part of your home that is the office.  A portion of your mortgage interest and real property taxes will be deducted on your business schedule rather than as itemized deductions.  You will be eliminating the costs of your non-deductible commuting travel, while business travel will now generally be measured from your front door.

There are two significant downsides to a home office.  First, to the extent of the depreciation taken on the home, gain when you sell it cannot be excluded under the home sale rules.  Secondly, if the home office is in a separate structure, then the separate business portion does not qualify for the home gain exclusion.  You should also note that the home office deduction is limited in any year that your business operates at a loss.

Generally, a self-employed individual will qualify for a home office deduction if the office is a place where the taxpayer meets with customers, patients or clients, or is used on an exclusive and regular basis for administrative or management activities of his or her trade or business, and there is no other fixed location of the business where the taxpayer conducts substantial administrative or management activities of the business.  Even if a taxpayer conducts administrative activities at a fixed location outside the home, he or she is still eligible to claim a deduction as long as the administrative activities conducted at the outside location aren’t substantial.  Space in the home used to store inventory for a wholesale or retail business also qualifies as business use of the home.