Property Tax paid in advance

[NotEasy]

Taxpayer made a property tax payment due on 4-10-2014 in December 2013. Should he claim the deduction in his 2013 or 2014 tax return?

[appelman]

2013

Taxpayer made a property tax payment due on 4-10-2014 in December 2013. Should he claim the deduction in his 2013 or 2014 tax return?

Claim in year paid. Many people do this deliberately, or deliberately refrain from doing so, depending on circumstances..

[DonB]

In Colorado property tax is paid in arrears so the 2013 payment was for 2012. So, if someone pays their 2013 tax(not due till 2014) early in 2013 it is deductible and you get to double up.

[taxxcpa]

I sometimes advise people to pay their 2012 property tax in Jan 2013, then pay the 2013 tax in December 2013 to get a double deduction. Sometimes this enables them to come out ahead by taking the standard deduction one year, then itemizing the year of the double deduction.
I've never known of anyone pre-paying taxes.

[FEDUKE404]

Moving deductions around

I sometimes advise people to pay their 2012 property tax in Jan 2013, then pay the 2013 tax in December 2013 to get a double deduction. Sometimes this enables them to come out ahead by taking the standard deduction one year, then itemizing the year of the double deduction.
I've never known of anyone pre-paying taxes.

I've had several crafty clients (myself included) who prepaid property taxes. There is some fine print about how far ahead you can go, etc. but if you have admitted you can pay "two years" in one year, why not "three years"?? I actually talked with someone at the county tax office and they said it is a relatively common practice. They just draw down on the advance funds when the bill arrives.

You can make a similar end run with estimated taxes and contributions/pledges, or if you're aggressive delay paying (and in some cases prepay) medical bills. Within reason, the med folks will let you send them a "late" payment the first week in January. I strongly advise you let them know your plans.

Granted, this process requires some discipline and planning .... and you will bounce between filing Sch A and standard deduction .... but it can generate some serious tax savings for those who are regularly right on the edge of being able to itemize.

FE