Clergy has a large housing allowance. When calculating his actual housing expenses, can he count the down payment on the home that he purchased in 2008? (I know he can count mortgage interest, prop taxes, utilities, furnishings, etc.)
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No
He can count fmv of rental of house and furnshings. -
Yes - maybe.
The down payment is lumped in with all other costs of owning & maintaining the home in calculating the allowable H&U allowance. The minister can then exclude the lesser of 1) The actual expenses, 2) The amount properly designated as a H&U allowance, or 3) The Fair Rental Value of the home. Fair Rental Value would be the amount you'd expect to pay to rent the home in its location furnished and with utilities, insurance, etc included, which would be much higher than a simple monthly rental.
So depending upon how all that calculates out, you may be able to use the down payment as a part of the total or you may not. You have to run the numbers. But to answer your question directly, the down payment can be used in arriving at the actual expenses (which would be your starting point in calculating the excludable amount).Last edited by JohnH; 02-27-2009, 06:20 PM."The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectful" - John Kenneth GalbraithComment
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