Two Questions; How Do You Take Advantage Of Tax Incentives?

[roromissd]

First of all, I want to ask the gurus, or others who have done this. How do you take advantage of tax incentives for buying your hot tub for health reasons?

And secondly, do you or did you buy/use your hot tub to help treat chronic pain or another health condition?

I have fibromyalgia, and a spinal cord condition with nerve damage and pain. Oh and also arthritis. I'm a mess. We bought this tub to help us with our daily pain. It's helping. I've read about the tax benefits with buying a tub if you have a doc's prescription. So, has anyone here done this, and how did you do it?

All replies appreciated!

Anne

[Roger]

First of all, I want to ask the gurus, or others who have done this. How do you take advantage of tax incentives for buying your hot tub for health reasons?

And secondly, do you or did you buy/use your hot tub to help treat chronic pain or another health condition?

I have fibromyalgia, and a spinal cord condition with nerve damage and pain. Oh and also arthritis. I'm a mess. We bought this tub to help us with our daily pain. It's helping. I've read about the tax benefits with buying a tub if you have a doc's prescription. So, has anyone here done this, and how did you do it?

All replies appreciated!

Anne

I would say come tax time you have a deduction for the cost in with the rest of your medical expenses.

[epco1]

I would be interested in this as well. My girlfriend has had Rhematoid Arthritis all her life and we are getting this to help her out with her joints.

[Dr. Spa]

Talk to your accountant for sure...but it's my understanding it's very difficult to get any federal tax relief for a hot tub. The key question is WHO uses thew spa? Is it JUST the afflicted person? Well, then maybe. BUT, is it a 1 or 2 person spa? If not, forget it. Some states though will waive the sales tax if you have a prescription. Again, TALK to your accountant.

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[Calv1n]

Talk to your accountant for sure...but it's my understanding it's very difficult to get any federal tax relief for a hot tub. The key question is WHO uses thew spa? Is it JUST the afflicted person? Well, then maybe. BUT, is it a 1 or 2 person spa? If not, forget it. Some states though will waive the sales tax if you have a prescription. Again, TALK to your accountant.

see here

Great advice from Dr. Spa,

I talked to my accountant when I got mine as I was in a bad car accident about 7 years ago and have a strong case (or did in my mind) however after looking into it the requirements in Canada at least are very difficult to meet. Even if I did do a work around I would have ended up with a tub I didn't want as as Dr said you usually only qualify for a 1-2 man and my wife and settled on the Tundra a 7 man tub before looking into the rebates.

Best of luck

Calvin

[fdegree]

As Dr. Spa said...talk to your accountant. I would also suggest you talk to your doctor. He is not likely to write a prescription, but he should write a letter describing the benefit, if it is justified.

My wife was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and the doctor wrote a note stating the medical benefit of using a hot tub. Then we talked to our accountant. Do not quote me on this as my numbers may not be accurate. But, you are entitled to a deduction only if your overall, annual, out-of-pocket medical expenses exceed a certain amount...I think 15% of you gross income....and the doctor writes that note. So, we went out and bought our hot tub. The cost of the hot tub brought our annual medical expense over the limit, so we deducted only the amount that went over the 15% limit.

For example...assuming I am correct with my above numbers:

Annual gross income = $100,000

15% of gross income = $15,000

Various out-of-pocket medical expenses = $2,000

Hot Tub = $17,000

You can deduct only the amount over 15% of your gross income...so:

$2,000 (various expenses) + $17,000 (hot tub) = $19,000 (annual medical expense)

$19,000 (annual medical expense) - $15,000 (15% of gross income) = $4,000

So the amount you can deduct as a medical expense is $4,000

Also, if you purchase a 5 person tub, but only 1 person has a medical excuse, you may only be able to deduct 1/5 of the total cost of the tub. So, in the above example you would then replace the $17,000 with 1/5 of that amount or $3,400.

If you have already purchased the hot tub, it may not qualify. Again, don't quote me on any of this, talk to your accountant.

[roromissd]

As Dr. Spa said...talk to your accountant. I would also suggest you talk to your doctor. He is not likely to write a prescription, but he should write a letter describing the benefit, if it is justified.

My wife was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and the doctor wrote a note stating the medical benefit of using a hot tub. Then we talked to our accountant. Do not quote me on this as my numbers may not be accurate. But, you are entitled to a deduction only if your overall, annual, out-of-pocket medical expenses exceed a certain amount...I think 15% of you gross income....and the doctor writes that note. So, we went out and bought our hot tub. The cost of the hot tub brought our annual medical expense over the limit, so we deducted only the amount that went over the 15% limit.

For example...assuming I am correct with my above numbers:

Annual gross income = $100,000

15% of gross income = $15,000

Various out-of-pocket medical expenses = $2,000

Hot Tub = $17,000

You can deduct only the amount over 15% of your gross income...so:

$2,000 (various expenses) + $17,000 (hot tub) = $19,000 (annual medical expense)

$19,000 (annual medical expense) - $15,000 (15% of gross income) = $4,000

So the amount you can deduct as a medical expense is $4,000

Also, if you purchase a 5 person tub, but only 1 person has a medical excuse, you may only be able to deduct 1/5 of the total cost of the tub. So, in the above example you would then replace the $17,000 with 1/5 of that amount or $3,400.

If you have already purchased the hot tub, it may not qualify. Again, don't quote me on any of this, talk to your accountant.

This is a great explanation not just for me, but others. I should explain that I have had enough medical expenses in past years to go the itemize route and take advantage of the tax write off. My prescriptions alone are about $150-$200 a month just for my copays. Add another 20% which is my cost for every doctor's appt, which there are very many. And I have a 500 deductible at the beginning of the year. Then my husband has his costs added onto that. Now, our income is in the $40,000 a year as my husband is the sole provider. It's possible it could work. We'll see. I know that I have two docs who will write letters on my behalf as they both have suggested hydrotherapy as my best bet for helping my pain.

Anyway, we'll see. Ultimately, I'm just thankful to have this tub as I can go out there anytime I'm hurting and get some relief! .

Anne

[Hillbilly Hot Tub]

Fdegree, you have it pretty close, don't have the paper right in front of me but it is very difficult to use this. We have had on 2 occasions, the insurance company pay most of the cost of a tub. It was a doctors prescribtion to use a tub daily for the rest of this persons life. Each use at the local spa place was $50.00 an hour, I don't remember the yearly membership fees, but it was less costly for the insurance company to purchase a tub for the person. They had to go in front of a board for the insurance company, but they did get $$ for a tub purchase.

[fdegree]

To take this a step further...you can even deduct the associated expenses year after year. Such as chemicals, filters, electricity, etc. Now, you may not be able to deduct an entire deck around the spa, but you should be able to deduct basic steps. Provided these expenses exceed the allowable limit as described in my previous post, and you continue to qualify for the doctors note.