Tax Deductions for Green Living

The environment is something that has become a major front-runner in good, healthy living recently. More and more people are realizing that if we’re going to survive in this world, we have to look after our environment and become more earth-friendly. Luckily, the United States of America and the wonderful government running our country, has given us so many tax deductions for a green living. It is now worth it for us to actually invest into a greener future. No longer are green living options very expensive and out of our reach, with the help of the government, investing into a greener future also means more tax deductions for us at the end of our tax period.

Going Hybrid

Hybrid cars are the new generation environmentally friendly cars that are currently being mass-produced by Honda and Toyota. Depending on the specific type of car you are buying, you can get a tax break between $250 and $7,500. It is important to speak to your tax consultant or do research online to see what tax breaks you will get for your specific car. Not only will you essentially be saving money on petrol and fuels that have become so costly, you’ll be driving a car that does minimal damage to the environment.

Insulation

Insulating your home might seem like a silly idea, but the point of insulation is to keep the heat in during winter and keep the heat out during summer, this will lessen your need to heat or cool your home according to the season. This will not only make your life a lot easier, you won’t need to have an air-cooling solution in every room for example, but it will also cut costs on your energy usage during the cold winter months. The government offers a 30% tax credit or up to a $1500 for any insulation done in your home.

Solar and Wind Energy Solutions

The ultimate way to control your energy consumption and going green is by installing solar and wind energy solutions into your home. This way you have ultimate control over how much money you are spending on electricity but mostly, imagine how much you will save the earth by using its natural resources to fuel your home. The wonderful thing about this tax deduction, that it gives you a 30% tax deduction on ANY amount. So there is no upper amount that you are limited to. This tax break is also going to allowed until 2016, so if you don’t have the money to invest in an alternative energy solution right now, you will have the chance for years to come.

The most important thing to realize, when it comes to government deductions, is that you won’t get a deduction for everything you do. The government has an energy star rating that must be met in most cases for the deduction to apply. A good site to find all that information would be at the following site for Energy Star (http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index#c1). So enjoy finding out how you can help the environment and help your tax claims at the same time too!