Paying mortgage interest, property taxes, equity loan interest, and business expenses are all generally tax deductible. But does it make sense to incur excessive expenses just to produce a tax benefit?
For example, if you are looking to move to a bigger house, you will save a lot of money in taxes, right? Yes, you may actually save income taxes, but at the same time you will have spent much more money. Spending a dollar to save a quarter doesn’t make much sense at all.
Just because qualified business meals and entertainment may be deductible (generally only 50% deductible), it may not make sense to spend excessively. I have seen some business owners spend so much on meals that they could have used this money to hire an assistant so they can work less. Now, that’s real savings!