Does claiming a quot;home officequot; require rezoning? -

I do independent contractor work for law firms (legal research, etc.). Per my accountant s instruction, I am trying to claim part of my residence as a home office, which, because I am renting, requires the homeowner s approval. However, the homeowner refuses to sign the city papers which would allow me to claim a home office where I live. He claims it would have negative tax implications for him (he did not explain), and it would require rezoning. Do either of these claims even make remote sense? I have never heard of rezoning merely for the purpose of establishing a home office (seems like that would defeat the purpose of calling it a home office ). I am not trying to run a business from home, per se. That is, I would not be accepting clients at my house, putting up signage, or anything of the sort. In truth, because I often telecommute, the purpose would be simply to claim my office furniture, mileage for my drives to my clients, etc., all which my accountant says is completely valid for tax purposes.Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Check out this IRS publication about taking a deduction for a home office. There is no mention of zoning requirements. Page 4 of the PDF gives you a simple break down of how to determine eligibility for the deduction.

You have to set up a separate room not your living room or bedroom, as your Home Office . You can claim expenses like furniture and computer etc. You can claim partial Electricity but not rental unless you have a registered business name, sole proprietorship, for your Contract work. Contract Workers are actually required to have a registered business name to make any sort of claims unless you only work for one company then that company is liable for insurance and union fees and salary. Of course, this differs from country to country.

He s a total moron. You don t need rezoning if you re not going to do the things you listed. In fact, your accountant sounds kind of iffy too. Where a home office is concerned, I thought that the only need you had to fulfill is the qualifications that the IRS sets forth. Check with them. There s a huge difference between setting up a home office and setting up a business in a residence. As long as you never have clients there then I don t get the problem.

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Whatever percentage you claim as a tax credit he will have to pay the tax on later when he sells the property. You are turning a portion of his property into commercial property by making the claim and altering his taxes as now the property is not strictly residential.You are trying to cause him financial hardship, you can t blame him for not signing.You might want to try a different accountant, most of that mileage is not a legal claim either, only the portion over 35 miles one way, or 70 miles per day can be claimed. Your clients have to be very far away in order to have any claims.As long as no clients visit your home and there are no signs regarding your business that can be seen by the public you do not require commerical zoning.