HOH and keeping up a home

[AccTaxMan]

To qualify as a HOH, you need to pay more than half of the 'total cost' to keep up a home.

Taxpayer shares a house with her brother. They don't eat together. Taxpayer pays for the foods of herself and her son. Her brother paid for his own foods. Do we add both the food cost of the taxpayer and the food cost of her brother to come up with the 'total cost'. And then the food cost of the taxpayer and her son has to be more than 1/2 of the 'total cost' in order for her to qualify as a HOH?

I understand other costs of the 'home' has to be considered too. But this question is strictly about the calculation of the food cost.

[Gretel]

In this case I vote for exclusion of food costs. They seem truly to be on their own and have a household within another household. I would even doubt that T/Pis required to have paid over half of total cost if they share the costs. If they live there for free it's a different story.

I see this different from boyfriend and girlfriend living together, both having child(ren) of their own and are claiming they don't share in living together and each one has their own household.

[AccTaxMan]

In this case I vote for exclusion of food costs. They seem truly to be on their own and have a household within another household. I would even doubt that T/Pis required to have paid over half of total cost if they share the costs. If they live there for free it's a different story.

I see this different from boyfriend and girlfriend living together, both having child(ren) of their own and are claiming they don't share in living together and each one has their own household.

Why the rule is not clear about situation like this is beyond me. Families sharing a house or an apartment is getting more common these days. We always have to deal with the dilemma as to whether different families sharing a house are considered different households. Or they have to be lumped together and considered one big household even if they don't share anything together other than the rent and maybe the utilities.

[Lion]

Master Bedroom

My first test concerns the master bedroom. If they share the master bedroom, it's one household. For a brother and sister, it might be two households. They passed the first test, so keep asking questions until you're satisfied you understand their situation.

[appelman]

Don't forget about depency requirements

To be a qualifying person for HofH, the brother has to meet the requirements for a qualifying relative and be claimable as a dependent.

[Davc]

The qualifying person would be the son.