Q: My son and his family live in my house with me and he pays the mortgage and all of the household expenses. Is there any way he can claim the deduction for the interest payments and real estate taxes on his federal income taxes. I am the only one on deed to the home.

A: In order for your son to deduct interest payments and real estate taxes on the home, generally, he must be the owner of the home. He can be a part owner, albeit small, but he must own some part of the home. If he does not own any part of the home and he does not have the legal obligation to pay the mortgage on the home, he probably would not be eligible to deduct the mortgage and real estate taxes on his income tax return.

He can give you the money to make those payments, and you might be entitled to take the deduction on your federal income tax forms. You should talk to an accountant in your area to see if there is anything that may be specific to your circumstances that may entitle him to deduct those payments or obtain any other tax benefits. The accountant may have other suggestions for you depending on your specific issues.

Depending on the amounts he is paying and your federal income tax situation, he may be able to claim you as a dependent as a result of the payments. There may be other benefits that he may be able to claim for your son after reviewing the details of the arrangement and perhaps can make some suggestions for future years.