Hmmmm... well, it's possible to deduct the interest on the loan
of a boat if you claim it's a second home (or primary for that
matter). Then, you could upon the sale of the boat, deduct
the upgrades and improvements you made to it similar to
what you would do with a regular house.

You need to check with an accountant, as this is just a guess.

"Jenny MacLeod" wrote in message
.. .


Hello,
This is my first posting, and I'm not too savvy, so please excuse
me if I ask a stupid question. One of the guys I dock near said he
read that there are some new laws this year that make it possible
for sailors to deduct a lot of equipment from their taxes. Is this
true? Where can I find out more about this? That would be great,
since I purchased my first boat this year. I'm getting all of my
paperwork together in preparation for filing on the first day
possible, which, according to the TaxBrain site, is Jan. 16, just a
week away.
Yours truly,
Jenny Mac

Do you use the boat for business?

There are some new tax laws that permit
certain equipment acquisition costs to be written off as "expenses" rather than
depreciated over the life of the asset.

The "second home" deduction applies, whether you use the boat for business or
not.

"Gould 0738" wrote in message
...
Do you use the boat for business?

There are some new tax laws that permit
certain equipment acquisition costs to be written off as "expenses" rather
than
depreciated over the life of the asset.

Not a new law per se, but a liberalization of section 179, which has been
around for quite some time. Section 179 allows you to accelerate the
depreciation of business assets into the acquisition year, rather than over
the life of the asset. The most obvious manifestation of the new higher
section 179 limits for tax year 2003 could be found in any new car/truck
dealership in the waning days of 2003. Businessmen were buying H2's,
Escalades, Navigators, etc. hand over fist on the advice of their
accountants. 100% of the purchase price of qualifying vehicles (min 6k GVW
as I recall) was deductible in the year of acquisition, up to $100k.
Unfortunately, I don't have any information handy that relates to the
qualification of marine hardware as it relates to section 179. But for
sure, the hardware must have a legitimate business use. There would be no
application of section 179 for a 100% pleasure vessel or any of its gear.
Maybe a sat phone to keep in touch with the office?

Might note also that the tax refund on boaters gas in Washington State has
increased this year to $.28/gal.
Gordon

"Gould 0738" wrote in message
...
Do you use the boat for business?

There are some new tax laws that permit
certain equipment acquisition costs to be written off as "expenses" rather
than
depreciated over the life of the asset.

The "second home" deduction applies, whether you use the boat for business
or
not.