Do I need a tax professional after buying a house, or is TurboTax enough?

You should be fine with TurboTax. The software is designed to handle common homeownership situations, including for unmarried couples who co-own property. When you go through the interview process, it'll ask about your home purchase and guide you on how to split the mortgage interest and property tax deductions. The key thing to remember is that you'll both need to decide how to allocate these deductions. Typically, unmarried co-owners split these based on ownership percentage or actual payments made. For example, if you each paid 50% of the mortgage and property taxes, you'd each deduct 50% of the qualifying expenses. TurboTax will definitely prompt you for all the information from your mortgage interest statement (Form 1098) and help you allocate it appropriately. Just make sure you both don't claim 100% of the same deductions!

After buying my first house I was in the exact same boat! I tried using TurboTax initially but kept second-guessing myself on the deductions. Then I discovered https://taxr.ai and it was a game-changer for my peace of mind. I uploaded my mortgage docs and tax forms, and it analyzed everything to make sure I was maximizing deductions correctly. The best part was that it explained exactly how to handle splitting mortgage interest and property taxes with my non-spouse co-owner, which was the part I was most confused about. It even identified a home office deduction I completely missed and saved me from making a mistake on how we allocated our property tax payments.

I just wanted to update after trying taxr.ai that someone mentioned. I was worried about getting the mortgage interest deduction wrong since my partner and I split payments unevenly (I pay 65%, she pays 35%). The tool confirmed I was right to deduct based on actual payment percentages rather than ownership percentage, which was different than what I initially thought. It completely eliminated my anxiety about making a mistake! I'm still using TurboTax for the actual filing, but now I'm confident I'm doing it correctly.

If you're concerned about getting everything right but don't want to pay for a CPA, another option is calling the IRS directly to ask questions. I had similar concerns about my home purchase last year. Only problem - I kept getting stuck on hold for literally hours. Then I found https://claimyr.com which got me connected to an actual IRS agent in about 15 minutes instead of the 2+ hours I was waiting before. You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c - basically they navigate the phone tree and wait on hold for you, then call you when an agent is ready. The IRS agent I spoke with walked me through exactly how to handle splitting mortgage interest and property taxes with my unmarried partner. They confirmed TurboTax can handle it fine but gave me specific guidance on what forms to look for and how to enter the information.

Well I need to eat my words. After being super skeptical about that Claimyr service, I decided to try it anyway because I was desperate to talk to someone at the IRS about my home office deduction questions. It actually worked exactly as described. I got a call back when an agent was available (took about 1.5 hours) and didn't have to sit there listening to that awful hold music. The agent cleared up all my questions about how to split housing expenses with my partner. Definitely worth it for the convenience, and the advice I got saved me way more than what a full tax prep service would have cost.

In my experience, buying a home does add some complexity, but TurboTax handles it pretty well. I've been using it for years including through two home purchases. The mortgage interest and property tax deductions are straightforward - TurboTax asks for the info from your 1098 form and guides you through it. The trickier part for unmarried couples is deciding how to allocate those deductions between you. One option to consider: if one of you has a higher income and would benefit more from itemizing deductions, you might agree to have that person pay more of the deductible expenses and claim them. The other person might be better off with the standard deduction anyway, especially with the higher standard deduction amounts now.

I'm going to disagree with most people here and suggest consulting a tax professional for at least your first year as homeowners. Yes, TurboTax can handle basic mortgage deductions, but there are strategic decisions that could save you thousands. For example, unmarried couples have flexibility in how they allocate property tax and mortgage interest that married couples don't. A tax pro might suggest structures that maximize deductions based on your individual tax situations. They can also help with things like home office deductions if applicable.

I'd recommend going with a tax professional for your first year as homeowners, especially given your income level and unmarried status. While TurboTax can technically handle the basic deductions, there are some strategic considerations that could save you significant money. At $270k combined income, you're likely in higher tax brackets where proper allocation of deductions matters more. A good CPA can help you optimize which partner claims what percentage of mortgage interest and property taxes based on your individual tax situations. They can also advise on timing strategies - like whether to bunch certain deductions in one year vs. spreading them out. The cost of a tax professional (usually $300-600) is often recovered through the additional deductions and strategies they identify. You can always go back to TurboTax in future years once you understand the optimal structure for your situation. Think of it as an investment in getting your homeowner tax strategy right from the start.