Is your 2015 Minnesota tax return merely a distant memory now?
If you own or rent a home, you may want to spend a few more minutes with Minnesota Department of Revenue paperwork before mid-August. The state might have a property tax refund waiting for the asking!
Aug. 15 is the official due date for 2015 applications for the Homestead Credit Refund for Homeowners and the Renter’s Property Tax Refund. We say “official,” because Minnesota Revenue actually accepts 2015 applications for another year — until Aug. 15, 2017.
That makes Aug. 15 the final deadline for 2014 applications, and that probably is a distant memory!
Nonetheless, the refunds can mount up to serious cash. For 2015, a renter can receive as much as $2,050 and a homeowner as much as $2,640.at the highest level.
At the same time, not every Minnesota taxpayer will be able to snap up the refund. Those who own homes must have incomes less than $107,930, and renters must have made less than $58,490. The house also must be the owner’s “homestead,” or primary residence. Vacation and second houses aren’t eligible.
To apply, use Form M1PR, which is available online and can be filed electronically. Renters, this is where you use the CRP, or Certificate for Rent Paid, which your landlord gave you months ago in January. Homeowners, you can find necessary figures on the Statement of Property Taxes Payable in 2016, which came from your county government in March.
In the instructions for the M1PR, you’ll find a detailed discussion of typical issues for both homeowners and renters. For example, the application uses “Household income,” which includes some types of income that typically are not shown on state tax returns.
Not only is there the regular homestead property tax refund, but Minnesota Revenue also offers a second, “special” refund for homeowners who got clobbered with a sudden property tax increase in 2015. If property taxes jumped at least 12% (and at least $100) from 2015 to 2016, homeowners can apply for that payout.
Feel free to call on us at EricJohn Ltd. for the expertise you need in filing for Minnesota’s property tax refunds.