These Are the Coolest Tax Deductions You’re Missing Out On
Hepcats across the country are getting ready for one of the most square activities out there: filing taxes. But, don’t worry: You can still keep your sense of style even as you’re preparing your return by making some cool tax deductions that will help you save more of that hard-earned scratch for sunglasses and leather jackets. If you qualify for some of these deductions, you might want to consider itemizing on your next tax return.
· GOBankingRatesThis article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: These Are the Coolest Tax Deductions You’re Missing Out On
Hepcats across the country are getting ready for one of the most square activities out there: filing taxes. But, don’t worry: You can still keep your sense of style even as you’re preparing your return by making some cool tax deductions that will help you save more of that hard-earned scratch for sunglasses and leather jackets. If you qualify for some of these deductions, you might want to consider itemizing on your next tax return.
Lathering Yourself in Body Oil
Luxuriating in body oil might not seem like something you can write off, but if you’re a bodybuilder, there’s a precedent. That’s because one bodybuilder — Corey L. Wheir — successfully argued that the body oil he needed to rub all over himself prior to competitions was a business expense and could be deducted from his taxes. He also got the tax courts to approve a deduction for the 3 pounds of bison meat he was consuming each day, so it sounds like quite the party at the Wheir household.
Have a Laugh: 17 Ridiculous Tax Loopholes
Shopping Till You Drop
Check this out: Your wild shopping sprees are tax-deductible. Or, at least, some of them are. That’s because you can deduct the cost of sales tax. Sales taxes are collected at the state level, so they can be included in your deductions for state and local taxes. Just be aware that you can’t deduct both sales tax expenses and income or property tax expenses, so you should only make this deduction when you’ve paid more in sales tax to the state than you did in other taxes.
Sweet Vegas Vacations
There’s good news about the beating that you took at the tables the last time you were in Sin City: It’s tax-deductible. That’s right, you can write off your gambling losses on your taxes. There is a major caveat, though: It only applies to any taxes you’ve paid on gambling winnings. So, if you did have a successful trip followed by a bad one, you can at least recover some of those losses.
Related: 6 Tax Breaks for Pet Owners You Can Actually Get
That Pool You Need for Your Health
You can deduct the costs of your swimming pool — if you can make the case that it’s essential to your health. That was the case for Herbert Cherry, a Muttontown, N.Y., man suffering from emphysema who successfully argued that the backyard pool would be used for exercise that his doctor suggested would relieve his symptoms. He was able to secure deductions for the cost of operating and maintaining it.
Free Beer
There might not be a more glorious combination of two words in the English language, and the IRS is ready to acknowledge this. That’s right, you can get a tax deduction for giving away beer in specific contexts. The main case in question involved a gas station owned by Edward J. and Judy A. Sullivan that gave away beer as a way to attract customers. The owner argued that it was a business expense as he was using the beer for marketing, and won the right to deduct its cost.