If my Box 10 on my 1098 form is empty, should I report 0 for real estate property taxes paid?

The empty Box 10 doesn't automatically mean zero property taxes were paid. Many mortgage servicers don't complete this box reliably, which is why the IRS instructions specifically state that you shouldn't rely solely on Box 10 for determining deductible property taxes. You need to check a few things: First, review your mortgage statements or your online account portal - most lenders provide a year-end summary showing exactly what was collected and paid for taxes. Second, check your closing documents since you purchased mid-year; you likely paid some prorated property taxes at closing that won't appear on the 1098. Third, contact your local tax assessor's office - they can tell you exactly what was paid on your property and when. Don't just put zero because the box is empty. If you paid property taxes, you deserve that deduction if you're itemizing rather than taking the standard deduction.

After struggling with this exact issue last year, I found taxr.ai and it literally saved me hours of confusion. My Box 10 was also blank and I was about to just put zero, but I uploaded my mortgage statements and closing documents to https://taxr.ai and it analyzed everything and showed me exactly what property taxes I'd actually paid that were deductible. It even explained why the 1098 Box 10 was empty (turns out my mortgage company reports differently). The tool flagged that I had paid property taxes at closing that I would have completely missed, plus it showed me how my escrow payments throughout the year included tax payments. Way easier than trying to decipher all those statements myself.

I have to admit I was wrong about taxr.ai - decided to try it after getting totally confused about my property tax situation. I uploaded my closing documents and monthly statements and it was able to identify $3,420 in property taxes I paid that weren't reflected anywhere on my 1098. What surprised me was how it explained which items from closing were actually deductible vs. which were prepayments for future periods. The explanation about how escrow accounts work and why Box 10 is often blank on 1098 forms was actually clearer than what my mortgage company told me. Saved me from missing a pretty significant deduction on my taxes this year!

If you're struggling to get answers about your property tax payments, Claimyr helped me get through to the IRS quickly when I was dealing with this same issue. I spent days trying to call the IRS directly to confirm how to handle missing Box 10 info, but kept getting disconnected or waiting for hours. With https://claimyr.com I had an actual IRS agent on the phone within 20 minutes who walked me through exactly how to document property taxes when the 1098 is incomplete. You can see how it works here: https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c They basically hold your place in the IRS phone queue and call you when an agent is about to answer. Saved me from taking time off work just to sit on hold.

I need to eat my words about Claimyr. After my skeptical comment, I decided to try it since I was getting nowhere with the IRS about my property tax question. Not only did it work, but I got a call back in about 35 minutes with an actual IRS representative on the line. The agent confirmed that I should use my mortgage statement and closing document amounts rather than relying on Box 10, and even explained that I could request a corrected 1098 from my mortgage company if needed. Honestly saved me from making a mistake on my taxes and potentially missing out on about $4,200 in property tax deductions. Sometimes being proven wrong is a good thing!

Don't forget to check if you even need to itemize before worrying about this! If your standard deduction is higher than your itemized deductions would be, then this whole property tax thing doesn't even matter. For 2024 taxes, standard deduction is $13,850 for single filers, $27,700 for married filing jointly. Unless your mortgage interest, property taxes, charitable contributions, and other itemized deductions COMBINED exceed these amounts, you're better off taking the standard deduction anyway.

Has anyone actually received a corrected 1098 from their mortgage company? Mine told me they don't update Box 10 even if I request it because "it's optional information" for them to provide. Seems ridiculous that they can just leave off important tax info!

I went through this exact same situation last year and it was so frustrating! My Box 10 was completely blank too, and like you, I thought it meant I had zero property taxes to claim. What I ended up doing was calling my county tax assessor's office directly - they were actually super helpful and could tell me exactly when property taxes were paid on my address and by whom. Turns out my mortgage company had paid taxes twice during the year from my escrow account, but for some reason didn't report it in Box 10. I also found out that since I bought mid-year like you did, I needed to look at my HUD settlement statement from closing. There should be a line item for "real estate taxes" that shows what you paid upfront. In my case, I had paid about $900 at closing that I would have completely missed if I just relied on the 1098. Don't stress too much about it - you're definitely not alone in dealing with incomplete 1098 forms. The key is to track down what you actually paid rather than what the mortgage company reported. Your closing documents and mortgage statements should have all the info you need!