[Magdalen] Quick return.

[Roger Stokes]

On 13/02/2015 18:52, Jim Guthrie wrote:
>
> Self-Employed (clergy, notably) usually get to pay Self-employment tax 
> (Social Security that would normally be paid for by the employer) and 
> then whine about it at tax time (or quarterly, as the case may be 
> <g>).  And then there was the Rector who demanded the parish pay the 
> mortgage on his new home "because the parish is obligated to pay for 
> housing." I said there was no way we would double his housing 
> expenses, and worked out a deal based on his property taxes and 
> mortgage interest that in essence deducted them from the cost to the 
> parish. But he still balked and complained to everyone in sight 
> (including the bishop) that we were stiffing him.

That seems fair to me as the capital repayment part of the mortgage 
would have been giving him a part of the equity in the property. 
Interest only and property taxes is equivalent to paying rent with no 
extra benefit to the tenant,

> It turns out that he had always lived in Rectories, so was unclear on 
> housing deductions, and even better (or worse), we fond out later he 
> hadnt even bothered to file tax returns for the previous five years or 
> more.

When I lived in the Vicarage and was renting out the apartment I now 
live in I could claim the interest I paid on the small mortgage against 
my tax but not the larger part of my monthly payment which was repayment 
of capital.  How had he got away with not filing tax returns while, 
presumably, resident in the USA?  I understand that US citizens resident 
anywhere in the world should file tax returns even if they have no 
income liable to US taxes.  If they wish to move to and work in the USA 
then they have to get their tax affairs up to date first.

Roger