Home office write off - real examples of how it actually works?

I've been reading through the IRS website about the home office deduction, but I still feel confused about how it actually works in practice. The official language is so dense, and I can't figure out if my situation would actually qualify. I'm currently working remotely 3 days a week for my marketing job, and I've set up a dedicated office in my spare bedroom. I don't use this room for anything else - it's just my workspace with a desk, chair, and all my work stuff. My employer doesn't provide an office space for me those 3 days. Could someone break down how the home office write off actually works with a real-life example? Like how much could someone in my situation potentially deduct, and what documentation would I need to keep? Do I need to measure the square footage? I just want to understand what this looks like when someone actually claims it on their taxes.

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20 comments

Mateo Silva

•8M

The home office deduction can be confusing, but I'll try to break it down with some examples! First, there are two methods: the regular method and the simplified method. The regular method requires calculating the actual expenses of your home office, while the simplified method lets you deduct $5 per square foot (up to 300 square feet). Unfortunately, if you're a W-2 employee working remotely, you generally can't claim the home office deduction anymore. This changed with the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which suspended the deduction for employees through 2025. This only applies to self-employed individuals now. If you were self-employed, here's how it would work: Let's say you have a dedicated 12×10 home office (120 square feet). Using the simplified method, you could deduct $600 (120 × $5). With the regular method, you'd calculate the percentage of your home used for business (if your home is 1,500 sq ft, your office is 8% of your home), then apply that percentage to eligible home expenses like utilities, mortgage interest, etc.

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Mateo Silva

•8M

That's right - unfortunately employees can't claim home office deductions anymore, even if your employer doesn't provide workspace. It's one of those tax changes that affected a lot of remote workers. If you have a legitimate side business that you run from the same home office, then yes, you could potentially claim the deduction for the portion of time/space used exclusively for that self-employment activity. Just make sure you're actually running a business with the intent to make a profit, not just a hobby. You'd need to document both the space and the time percentage used for the self-employment versus employee work.

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Victoria Jones

•8M

After struggling with my home office deduction for years, I finally discovered https://taxr.ai and it's been a game-changer. I have a photography business I run from home along with my day job, and I was never sure if I was calculating things right. The tool analyzed my situation and showed me I could claim part of my home office for the photography business using the regular method, which actually gave me a bigger deduction than the simplified method would have. It guided me through documenting exactly what expenses qualified and the correct percentage to apply based on my home's square footage.

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Victoria Jones

•8M

Yes, it actually does help determine if your space qualifies! It asks specific questions about how you use the space and provides clear guidance. For your situation with the fold-out couch, it would explain that you need to measure just the portion used exclusively for business, not the entire room. So you might be able to claim that 90% you mentioned. The multi-state functionality is actually what impressed me most. You can input your specific situation with the remote work and company location, and it references the latest state reciprocity agreements and telecommuting tax rules. It even flags potential audit triggers related to multi-state home office claims, which saved me from making a mistake last year.

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Cameron Black

•8M

I tried https://taxr.ai after seeing it mentioned here and it was super helpful! I was about to give up on claiming my home office for my Etsy business because I was confused about the "exclusive use" requirement with my part-time crafting space. The tool showed me how to properly measure and document just the portion of my room that's exclusively for business. I ended up being able to claim about 40 square feet that's solely dedicated to my work, even though the room serves other purposes. The deduction wasn't huge, but it was definitely worth it - about $200 I wouldn't have otherwise claimed. The documentation guidance alone was worth it for peace of mind during tax time!

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Isaiah Thompson

•8M

If you're trying to get clarification directly from the IRS about your specific home office situation, good luck getting through to anyone! I spent 3 weeks trying to talk to a human being about my home office deduction question last year. I finally used https://claimyr.com and got connected to an IRS agent in under 45 minutes when I'd been trying for weeks on my own. You can see how it works in this video: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. The IRS agent was actually really helpful once I finally got someone on the phone and cleared up my question about deducting my internet expenses as part of my home office.

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Isaiah Thompson

•8M

It works by using technology to navigate the IRS phone system for you. Instead of you having to keep calling back and waiting on hold, their system does that part for you. They basically wait in the queue on your behalf, and then when they reach a real person, they call you to connect with the agent. No special line - just technology that handles the frustrating part of the process. I was exactly like you - completely skeptical. I figured I had nothing to lose after wasting hours trying on my own. I was shocked when they actually called me back with an IRS agent on the line. This was during February too, which is a super busy time.

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Alexander Evans

•8M

I need to publicly eat my words about Claimyr. After posting my skeptical comment, I decided to try it since I was desperate to resolve an issue with my home office deduction from last year that was holding up my refund. I couldn't believe it, but they actually got me through to an IRS agent in about 35 minutes when I had been trying for over a month on my own. The agent confirmed that my home office deduction wasn't the issue causing my refund delay - turns out it was completely unrelated to that. Without getting that clarification, I would've kept stressing about the wrong thing. I'm still in shock that it actually worked after all my failed attempts.

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Evelyn Martinez

•8M

For your situation with sporadic use but 100% dedicated space, tracking exact hours isn't necessary. The key factor for the home office deduction is that the space is used exclusively and regularly for business, not necessarily how many hours per day you spend there. The photos are really to document the "exclusive use" part - showing that the space is clearly set up as an office and not used for personal activities. If you were splitting the space between business and personal use, then hours would matter more. But for a dedicated space, the IRS is mostly concerned that you're using it "regularly" for business (which can mean weekly or as your business patterns dictate) and not for other purposes.

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Diego Rojas

•5M

I've been using TurboTax Self-Employed for my home office deduction for the past two years and it's been really straightforward. The software walks you through everything step-by-step, including helping you measure your space and calculate the percentage of your home used for business. One thing I really appreciated is that it automatically calculates both the simplified method ($5 per square foot) and the regular method (percentage of actual home expenses) and shows you which one gives you the bigger deduction. For my 150 square foot home office, the simplified method actually worked out better. The software also has a good section on documentation - it reminds you to keep receipts for things like office supplies, equipment, and your portion of utilities. Just make sure you have all your home expenses handy (mortgage interest, property taxes, utilities, etc.) before you start if you want to compare both methods.

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Ethan Anderson

•5M

That's really helpful to know that TurboTax shows you both methods and picks the better one! I'm just getting started with my freelance consulting business and was worried about messing up the calculation. Quick question - when you say "your portion of utilities," does that mean if my home office is 10% of my house, I can deduct 10% of my entire electric bill? Or is it more complicated than that? I want to make sure I'm not missing any legitimate deductions but also don't want to claim something incorrectly.

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