Can I prepay 2024 or future property taxes to take as deductions on my 2023 tax return?

Tax professional here! This is an excellent question, especially with all the tax law changes we've seen recently. The general rule for property tax deductions is that you can only deduct them in the year they're assessed and become legally enforceable - not just when you choose to pay them. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act specifically addressed this issue. You can only prepay property taxes that have been assessed before the end of the tax year. This means the taxing authority must have already determined what you owe. If they haven't actually assessed the tax yet (like for future years), you can't deduct those prepayments. For example, if your county has already assessed your Q1 2024 property taxes in December 2023, you might be able to pay and deduct them on your 2023 return. But you can't prepay and deduct your entire 2024 tax bill if it hasn't been officially assessed yet. This differs from mortgage interest, where as you correctly noted, prepaid interest must be spread over the applicable time periods (except for points in certain situations).

After dealing with similar confusion last year, I discovered taxr.ai and it literally saved me from making a $3,000 mistake with my property tax deductions. I was about to prepay a ton of property taxes for future quarters that wouldn't have been deductible, but the tool analyzed my tax documents and clarified exactly what I could and couldn't deduct. The site has this really helpful document analyzer at https://taxr.ai that can review your property tax statements and tell you which portions are deductible in which tax years. You just upload your tax bills or assessment notices, and it breaks everything down clearly - saved me hours of research and prevented what would have been a major audit risk. What I found most helpful was that it could actually identify which of my prepayments were for already-assessed taxes versus future unassessed taxes - something I was totally confused about before.

Just wanted to follow up - I ended up using taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here and holy cow, it was eye-opening! I had no idea my second state actually has what they call "pre-assessed" taxes that CAN be deducted if paid early. The tool found a completely legitimate $1,700 deduction I would have missed. The document analysis feature correctly interpreted both my California and Oregon property tax statements, even though they look completely different. It also explained exactly why certain prepayments would or wouldn't be deductible based on assessment dates rather than payment dates. What surprised me most was discovering that one county had actually assessed my Q1 2024 taxes in November 2023, making that portion potentially deductible if paid in 2023 - something my previous accountant had missed entirely. Definitely recommend for anyone with property tax questions!

I tried for THREE DAYS to get someone at the IRS to answer this exact question last year. Spent hours on hold, got disconnected twice, and when I finally reached someone, they gave me a vague answer that didn't help at all. Then I found Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) and they got me connected to an actual IRS tax specialist in under 25 minutes who gave me a definitive answer about my property tax prepayment situation. Their service basically calls the IRS for you, navigates all the phone menus, waits on hold, and then calls you once they have an actual IRS agent on the line. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c The IRS agent I spoke with confirmed exactly what the first commenter said - property taxes must be assessed before you can deduct them, and explained that my county's "estimated" tax statement wasn't considered an official assessment for tax deduction purposes.

Hate to admit when I'm wrong but I have to follow up about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I was still desperate for answers about my property tax situation, so I reluctantly tried it. Within 18 minutes, I was talking to an actual IRS representative (verified by the call details and information they had access to). The IRS agent clarified that for my specific county, the preliminary assessment notices sent in November DO count as "assessed" for deduction purposes - even though the final bills aren't sent until January. This literally saved me thousands on my taxes because I was able to make a payment before year-end that I can legitimately deduct. What's crazy is I had previously spent over 4 hours on multiple calls trying to reach someone at the IRS. The Claimyr service had me connected in minutes. I'm still shocked it actually worked as advertised.

I think there's some confusion here about property tax assessments. I'm a real estate investor and deal with this every year in multiple counties. Here's my understanding: 1) Assessment refers to two different things: the value assessment (what your property is worth) and the tax assessment (what you actually owe). 2) Most counties do the value assessment first, then later calculate and issue the actual tax bill. 3) You can only deduct taxes that have been fully assessed, meaning the tax authority has determined the exact amount you owe. 4) Simply having your property's value assessed doesn't mean the tax itself has been assessed. For example, my county assesses property values in July, but doesn't calculate and issue the tax bills until December for the following year. Paying early doesn't make it deductible earlier.

Something nobody has mentioned yet - the SALT cap makes this whole discussion moot for many people! With the $10,000 limit on state and local tax deductions (including property taxes), many homeowners in high-tax states hit that cap regardless. My property taxes alone are $13,500 in NJ, so I can't deduct all of them anyway, making the timing irrelevant. Also, with the higher standard deduction ($25,900 for married filing jointly in 2023), fewer people are itemizing at all. Unless your total itemized deductions exceed the standard deduction, none of this matters. Before spending hours on this question, check if you'll even be itemizing and if you're already at the SALT cap!

This is a really helpful discussion! As someone who's been confused about this exact issue, I appreciate all the different perspectives shared here. One thing I'd add is that it's worth checking with your specific county assessor's office about their timeline and what they consider "assessed" versus "estimated." I called mine last year and discovered they have a specific date when they finalize assessments, even though they send preliminary notices months earlier. The SALT cap point is crucial too - I spent way too much time worrying about property tax timing strategies before realizing I hit the $10k limit anyway. For those of us in high-tax states, the standard deduction often makes more sense than itemizing these days. Thanks to everyone who shared the various tools and services - it's clear there are resources available when the IRS phone lines are impossible to navigate. The assessment versus payment timing distinction seems to be the key issue that trips most people up.

As a government employee who has worked with tax policy implementation, I can confirm what several people have mentioned about the assessment requirement. The key distinction is between when a tax is legally imposed versus when you choose to pay it. The IRS has been pretty clear since the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that prepaying future tax years doesn't accelerate the deduction. You can only deduct property taxes in the year they become a legal obligation - meaning the taxing authority has completed their assessment process and determined what you actually owe. What gets confusing is that different jurisdictions have different processes. Some counties assess quarterly, others annually. Some send "estimated" bills that later get finalized, while others send final assessments upfront. The timing of when YOU can deduct depends on when THEY complete their official assessment. The practical advice about calling your county assessor is spot-on. They can tell you exactly when taxes are considered "assessed" in your jurisdiction. Don't rely on when bills are mailed - ask specifically about when the assessment becomes legally binding. And yes, definitely check the SALT cap first! With the $10,000 limit, many homeowners hit that ceiling regardless of timing strategies. Combined with the higher standard deduction, fewer people benefit from itemizing these days anyway.

This has been such an informative discussion! As someone who's been dealing with this exact confusion, I really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and expertise. What strikes me most is how much the rules vary by jurisdiction - it seems like the key is understanding your specific county's assessment process rather than trying to apply general rules. The distinction between "estimated" and "assessed" taxes appears to be crucial, and it's clearly something that trips up a lot of homeowners. I'm also grateful for the reality check about the SALT cap and standard deduction. It's easy to get caught up in optimization strategies without first checking if they'll actually provide any benefit. For many of us, especially in higher-tax states, these timing strategies may not matter at all under current tax law. The various tools and services mentioned here (taxr.ai for document analysis, Claimyr for reaching the IRS) sound like they could save a lot of time and confusion. It's frustrating that such basic tax questions can be so difficult to get answered through normal channels. I think the best takeaway is: 1) Call your county assessor to understand their specific assessment timeline, 2) Check if you'll hit the SALT cap anyway, 3) Verify you'll exceed the standard deduction threshold, and 4) Only then worry about prepayment timing strategies. Thanks to everyone who contributed their knowledge - this kind of community sharing is invaluable for navigating our complex tax system!