Tax breaks for 2017 tax return revived

In early February, Congress passed a federal budget bill that revived several expired tax breaks for the 2017 tax year.

These late changes are retroactive to the beginning of 2017. That means they may apply to your 2017 tax return. Below you’ll find a handful of commonly used tax breaks that are back on the table. Take a look and see if they apply to your situation:

• Mortgage insurance deduction. You can now once again deduct mortgage insurance premiums as an itemized deduction. This deduction begins to phase out for taxpayers with adjusted gross income (AGI) of $100,000 or more.
• Tuition and fees deduction. If you paid qualified tuition or expenses related to higher education, you may be able to deduct as much as $4,000 of those costs. The deduction is capped at $4,000 for single filers with AGI of $65,000 or less ($130,000 for married joint filers) and at $2,000 for single filers with AGI of $80,000 or less ($160,000 for married joint filers).
• Energy-efficient home improvement credit. Upgrades to windows, heating and cooling systems and other energy-efficient home improvements may be eligible for a tax credit equal to 10 percent of the amount paid, up to $500.
• Mortgage debt forgiveness exclusion. You can exclude qualifying mortgage debt on your primary residence that was discharged or forgiven from your income.

Bring all documentation you believe applies to the above tax breaks to your tax-filing appointment. If you’ve already filed, you may need to file an amended tax return to take advantage of these law changes.

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