New in Shrewsbury!

March 21, 2016

This is not your ordinary Shrewsbury home! Located at 176 Walnut Street, this stunning contemporary-styled home in idyllic setting that is both private and peaceful but close to all major commuting routes. Exceptional layout on the main level provides an open flow from the sunken fire placed living room with hardwoods to the oversized kitchen and dining room. The sunroom off the kitchen allows for quick access to the private 24 ft deck for summer evening cook outs. The great room (24 by 23) overlooks the front with cathedral ceilings and fireplace giving plenty space for everyone. The oversized palladian windows provide maximum natural light. The dramatic upper level includes a full Master En Suite with walk in closet, jacuzzi tub and private balcony. 4 bedrooms and 3 full baths in over 3400 sq ft. Walk out basement to fenced yard. Central a/c. PRICED BELOW assessed value and including stainless steel appliances, new carpeting and upgraded lighting, all for only $635,000! Call us today!

New listing in Holden!

March 21, 2016

New to the market! Check out this single-family home located at 3 Briarcliff Lane in Holden, MA! This ranch is equipped with 7 rooms, 3 beds, 2 baths and 2 fireplaces covering 1374 square feet of living space. Hardwood floors throughout, back deck and private backyard. Master bedroom with master bath. The sellers are super motivated! Call today!

Price reduced in Millville!

March 21, 2016

Where to begin with this staggeringly beautiful property! Located at 83 Central Street in Millville, MA, this house comes with 15 rooms, 4 beds and 3 bathrooms, sits on 1.28 acres of land, 3308 square feet of living space and is situated only minutes from routes 495, 146 and 122 in one of the safest suburbs. 3 car garage attached. All granite and stainless steel appliances in a gorgeous kitchen made for entertaining! An additional 4 acres of land is available for sale. The price of this property has been reduced to $725,000! Call us today!

5 Good Reasons to Amend Your Tax Return — and How!

March 19, 2016

By: Reyna Gobel

Missed tax deduction? Overlooked tax credit? Get what’s coming to you by amending your return.

Your home is a great source of tax savings if you know what qualifies and don’t forget to claim deductions and credits. If you missed any of these five, you can go back in time — roughly two to three years — by amending your tax return. (Read more nitpicky details in How to Amend Your Tax Return.)

1. Home Office Deduction!

If your home is your principal place of business, you can take a standard deduction or deduct a percentage of eligible home expenses like:

— Utilities

— Mortgage interest for the proportion of the house used as your office

— Home repairs and maintenance

Forms you’ll need to file an amendment:

— 1040X

— Form 8829 and Schedule A (if you’re employed by someone else) for the year you’re amending

— Schedule C (if you’re self-employed) for the year you’re amending

2. Residential Energy Tax Credit!

If you installed energy-efficiency improvements (like HVAC systems, insulation, a roof, windows) in in past years and didn’t take a tax credit for those upgrades, you may have missed out on up to $500.

My husband and I didn’t claim the energy tax credit for insulation we installed one year because we thought we’d get a better deal if we claimed the credit the next year when we planned to replace windows. But we never got around to replacing the windows. So we amended our return to claim the tax credit for the insulation and got a $500 tax credit.

Forms you need:

— 1040X

— Form 5695 for the year you’re amending

3. Home Improvement Sales Tax Deduction!

If your state and local town doesn’t tax income, you can amend Schedule A to deduct state and local sales tax you paid. Say you added new siding for $10,000 and your state charged 6% in sales tax. That’s potentially a $600 deduction.

Use the IRS’s online sales tax calculator to figure out the total sales tax you can deduct. Have the receipts to prove you paid the sales taxes.

Forms you need:

— 1040x

— Schedule A for the year you’re amending

4. Property Tax Deduction!

Get a copy of your tax bill payment from the local tax office that collects the bill. Make sure you deduct the property tax expense on your amended return for the year you paid it, which could be different than the year it was due.

Forms you need:

— 1040x

— Schedule A for the year you’re amending

5. Home Repair Deduction!

Red alert: You can’t claim deductions for any old home repair. There are only two narrow, possible ways to claim home repairs, and it’s always best to check with a tax pro for your particular situation:

If part of your home is used for business and you aren’t taking the standard deduction for your home office. You can only claim repairs made to your home office or claim a percentage of the repairs you make to the house as a whole, like repainting or patching a roof leak. If 10% of your home is office, you can deduct 10% of the repainting or patching. If the repair is to the office itself only, then the percentage generally does not apply.

Forms you need:

— 1040X

— Form 8829 and Schedule A (if you’re employed by someone else) for the year you’re amending

— Schedule C (if you’re self-employed) for the year you’re amending

For casualty losses: Calculating and deducting casualty losses (disaster, damages, robbery) is complex. Everything from your income level to how you value your property can affect overlooked deductions. Besides placing a value on your personal property, you have to subtract a number of things from that, including insurance reimbursement and a percentage of your adjusted gross income. Read IRS Publication 547 and consult a tax adviser. Note that you can claim losses from federally declared disasters either in the year they occur or, if it’s more favorable, on the preceding year’s taxes.

Forms you need:

— 1040X

— Form 4684 for casualty and theft for the year you’re amending

— Schedule A for the year you’re amending