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At Your Fingertips

You are bound to have some questions while figuring your taxes, and the Internal Revenue Service's website &emdash; www.irs.gov &emdash; has some great information. But how do you easily find it? Knowing which key words will get you to the information you need saves you time. The following list comprises topics you may find useful, as well as the key words you need to enter in the search function located in the upper righthand corner of the website.

Topic // KEYWORD

• Small business, self-employed // SMALLBIZ
• Starting, operating, closing a business // STARTING, OPERATING OR CLOSING
• Common Errors // TAX GAP
State resources for small businesses // STATE LINKS
• Small-business tax workshops // WORKSHOPS
• Online small-business tax workshop // ONLINE CLASSROOM
• Tax forms, publications // FORMS
• Local IRS office locations // LOCAL OFFICE
• IRS hotlines, free numbers // HOTLINES

Measure Up

To start figuring your home office deduction, calculate the square footage of the areas you use for business. If you have more than one place in your home you use for business purposes, a spare bedroom and the garage, for example, measure both areas and add them together to give you the total square footage.

Then, determine the total livable space of the entire home. You can look for records at your county assessor’s office, or ask your landlord if you rent. In cases where both of these options aren’t possible, then using a measuring tape and getting as accurate a measurement as possible should suffice. Be sure to take photos of the entire space, as well as the speciic areas you are claiming.

Next, divide the square footage used for business purposes by the square footage of your entire living space. For example, if your office is 10 feet by 10 feet, you’d have 100 square feet of office space. Assuming your entire living space is 1,000 square feet, you’d have a 10 percent business use that would apply to all of your home costs.

Once you’ve calculated the business percentage, gather information on your home’s expenses. If you own, mortgage interest and property taxes would be a factor. If you lease, include the amount you pay in monthly rent. Other costs that can be included in either scenario are utilities, insurance, repairs and association fees, to name a few. (For more information on calculating home office deductions, see Home Office Deductions)

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