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Interest paid on a loan to buy a timeshare week is often deductible. The tax law allows deductions for most interest expense that an individual pays on a primary home and one other home, such as a timeshare or other vacation home. In addition, you may deduct interest expense on only one of the other two properties.
You qualify for maximum tax benefits. Thus, with business lodging and personal use of your timeshare, you can qualify the timeshare for both business and personal tax benefits. If you rent your timeshare to others, you complicate your tax-deduction life.
To claim your mortgage interest on your time share, you have to count the time share as your second home. According to IRS Publication 936, a second home has to have bathroom, kitchen and sleeping facilities. If you don’t rent out your timeshare, you don’t have to use it to claim it as a second home.
Is a timeshare investment property for tax purposes?
The tax law generally treats a timeshare that you own as a personal asset, much like your personal automobile. However, if you have regularly rented out your week to others, you might be able to take the position that the timeshare was business or investment property, with the loss being deductible.
Is timeshare a good investment?
A timeshare is not an investment. A timeshare is not an investment, it’s a vacation. It’s also an illiquid asset that is likely to lose value over time. Ultimately, timeshares are like swimming pools, if you buy one, do so because you love the idea of owning it, not because you expect to make a profit.
Here are the pros and cons to consider:
- Pro: Save on travel expenses.
- Con: Timeshares can be difficult to unload.
- Pro/con: You can trade in your timeshare and travel.
- Con: It’s a long-term financial commitment.
- Pro/con: You’re guaranteed a vacation each year.
As our own Michael D. Finn puts it, “only under the rarest of circumstances would the IRS allow any form of deduction on a timeshare purchase or interest expense.” Most fees that timeshare owners are likely to incur – including closing costs, special assessments, and annual maintenance fees, are not tax-deductible.
This means that you may be able to write off your mortgage interest as well as the property taxes that you pay on your timeshare unit. To be eligible for these write-offs, you need to itemize your income tax deductions by attaching Schedule A to your tax return and by not claiming the standard deduction.
Do you have to pay property tax on a timeshare in Florida?
In other cases (such as in Florida), the weeks are assessed individually and the tax is normally identified separately on your timeshare maintenance fee billings. In either case, the tax should be deductible, because the property tax has likely been assessed against your individually owned week.
Can a timeshare be a good investment for You?
Depending on where your timeshare is located, there may be specific incentives you can take advantage of. Be sure to talk to your tax professional about these, as well. If you’re smart about it and take advantage of all of the available tax deductions, your timeshare can be a wonderful investment.