Even Prisoners Get Homebuyer Tax Break

06/24/2010 9:04 am 0 comments

Source: AP / CBS News

Living in prison didn’t stop nearly 1,300 inmates from cashing in on a popular tax break for first-time homebuyers, a government investigator reported Wednesday. Their take: more than $9 million.

A common scam had multiple taxpayers using the sale of a single home, with each claiming the credit. One home was used by 67 tax filers, the report said. In other cases, taxpayers got the credit for sales that happened before the tax break started.

The Internal Revenue Service says it is taking steps to get the money back. The agency noted that more than 2.6 million taxpayers claimed the tax credit through April – claiming $18.7 billion in credits – with only a tiny fraction going to prison inmates or other scofflaws.

1,295 prison inmates were able to get $9.1 million in credits, including 241 who were serving life sentences, according to the inspector general’s report. None of the inmates filed joint returns, so the claims could not have been for purchases by spouses.

To read this article in its entirety visit CBS News.

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