Mortgage Bad Debt
Mortgages which may become noncollectable can be written off as a bad debt as well. However, they fall under a slightly different set of rules. As stated above, they can only be written off against tax capital, or income, but they are limited to a deduction of $3,000 per year. Any loss above that can be carried over to following years at the same amount. Thus a $60,000 mortgage bad debt will take 20 years to write off. Most owners of junior (2nd, 3rd, etc.) fall into this when the 1st mortgage forecloses with no equity remaining to pay on the junior liens.
There is one option available for mortgages not available for business debt - donation. The difference is that a valuation of $10,000 can be taken without an appraisal. An appraisal may be able to increase the value to more and must be based on other similar mortgages that actually sold, but generally is less than the face value. The real difference is that as a donation the amount of deduction is limited to up to 50% of Adjusted Gross Income per year with carryovers taken over the next 5 years
. This is because the deduction is now classified as a donation instead of a bad debt write off and uses Schedule A instead of Schedule D
. This can significantly increase current year's tax reductions compared to the simple write off. The caveat is that it must be completed PRIOR to the date of final foreclosure and loss. The process is simple, but finding a charity to cooperate is difficult since there will be no cash value as soon as the 1st mortgage forecloses.
Read more about this topic: Bad Debt
Famous quotes containing the words mortgage, bad and/or debt:
“We are playing with fire when we skip the years of three, four, and five to hurry children into being age six.... Every child has a right to his fifth year of life, his fourth year, his third year. He has a right to live each year with joy and self-fulfillment. No one should ever claim the power to make a child mortgage his today for the sake of tomorrow.”
—James L. Hymes, Jr. (20th century)
“As for the virtuous poor, one can pity them, of course, but one cannot possibly admire them. They have made private terms with the enemy, and sold their birthright for very bad pottage. They must also be extraordinarily stupid.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)
“Pain and fear and hunger are effects of causes which can be foreseen and known: but sorrow is a debt which someone else makes for us.”
—Freya Stark (1893–1993)