Casualty Losses

The new tax law eliminated the write-off for personal casualty losses… Except for those incurred in presidentially declared disaster areas. So if your house catches on fire or car is flooded, you’re generally out of luck taxwise, unless the damage is caused by a disaster that affects a wide swath of area, such as a forest fire, hurricane, blizzard, massive flood, earthquake or volcano. In general, only itemizers can write off personal losses from a disaster. Two offsets apply in figuring the deduction: The loss is first reduced by $100. The balance is deductible only to the extent it exceeds 10% of adjusted gross income.