Form 8859 District of Columbia First-Time Homebuyer Credit

Form

8859

District of Columbia First-Time
Homebuyer Credit

Department of the Treasury
Internal Revenue Service

▶ Attach

OMB No. 1545-0074

2011

Attachment
Sequence No. 106

to Form 1040 or Form 1040NR.

Your social security number

Name(s) shown on return

Before You Begin:

• Figure the amounts of any of the following credits you are claiming: Mortgage interest credit, qualified plug-in electric
vehicle credit, alternative motor vehicle credit, qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit, and credit for the
elderly or disabled.
• If you purchased your home after December 31, 2010, you may be able to take the refundable first-time homebuyer
credit figured on Form 5405. If you qualify for that credit, you cannot take the District of Columbia first-time homebuyer
credit.
• Do not complete Parts I and II if you only have a credit carryforward from 2010.
Part I
A

General Information

Address of home qualifying for the credit (if different from the address shown on return)

Part II
1

2
3

4
5
6

B Lot number

C Square number

D Settlement or closing date

Tentative Credit

Enter $5,000 ($2,500 if married filing separately). If the purchase price of the home was
less than $5,000, enter the purchase price (see instructions if married filing separately).
If someone other than a spouse also held an interest in the home, enter only your
share of the $5,000 (or, if smaller, your share of the purchase price) (see instructions)
Enter your modified adjusted gross income (see instructions)
2
Is line 2 more than $70,000 ($110,000 if married filing jointly)?
No. Skip lines 3 through 5 and enter the amount from line 1 on
line 6.
Yes. Subtract $70,000 ($110,000 if married filing jointly) from the
amount on line 2 and enter the result . . . . . . .
3
Divide line 3 by $20,000 and enter the result as a decimal (rounded to at least three
places). Do not enter more than 1.000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Multiply line 1 by line 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Subtract line 5 from line 1. This is your tentative credit . . . . . . . . . . .

Part III
7

▲

Information from
settlement
statement or deed

4
5
6

. . . . . . . . . . . .

.

7

Tax Liability Limit

8

Limitation based on tax liability. Enter the amount from the Tax Liability Limit
Worksheet in the instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

8

9

Current year credit. If you completed Part II, enter the smaller of line 6 or line 8. If
you completed Part III, enter the smaller of line 7 or line 8. Also include this amount on
Form 1040, line 53, or Form 1040NR, line 50. Check box c on that line and enter
“8859” in the space next to that box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

9

Credit carryforward to 2012. Subtract line 9 from line 6 or line 7, whichever applies .

10

10

×

Credit Carryforward From 2010

Enter the amount from line 4 of your 2010 Form 8859

Part IV

1

For Paperwork Reduction Act Notice, see your tax return instructions.

Cat. No. 24779G

Form 8859 (2011)

Page 2

Form 8859 (2011)

General Instructions
Section references are to the Internal Revenue Code.

What's New
The IRS has created a page on IRS.gov for more information
about Form 8859, at www.irs.gov/form8859. Information
about any future developments affecting Form 8859 (such as
legislation enacted after we release it) will be posted on that
page.

Purpose of Form
Use Form 8859 to claim the District of Columbia first-time
homebuyer credit.

Who Can Claim the Credit
In general, you can claim the credit if:
• You purchased a main home during 2011 in the District of
Columbia, and
• You (and your spouse if married) did not own any other
main home in the District of Columbia during the 1-year
period ending on the date of purchase.
If you constructed your main home, you are treated as
having purchased it on the date you first occupied it.
Your main home is the one you live in most of the time. It
can be a house, houseboat, housetrailer, cooperative
apartment, condominium, or other type of residence.
However, you cannot claim the credit if any of the following
apply.
• You purchased your main home in the District of Columbia
after December 31, 2010, and you are eligible to claim the
refundable first-time homebuyer credit figured on Form
5405.
• You acquired your home from certain related persons or by
gift or inheritance. Related persons include, but are not
limited to, your grandparents, parents, spouse, children, and
grandchildren. For details, see section 1400C(e)(2).
• Your modified adjusted gross income (see the instructions
for line 2) is $90,000 or more ($130,000 or more if married
filing jointly).
• You previously claimed this credit for a different home.

Amount of the Credit
Generally, the credit is the smaller of:
• $5,000 ($2,500 if married filing separately), or
• The purchase price of the home.
The credit is phased out over a range that:
• Begins when your modified adjusted gross income
exceeds $70,000 ($110,000 if married filing jointly), and
• Ends at $90,000 ($130,000 if married filing jointly).

Basis Reduction

The total amount allocated to each spouse cannot be more
than the smaller of (a) $2,500, or (b) the excess of the
purchase price over the amount allocated to the other
spouse on the other spouse's Form 8859, line 1.
If two or more unmarried individuals buy a main home,
they can allocate the credit among the individual owners
using any reasonable method. The total amount allocated
cannot exceed $5,000 (or the purchase price if it was less
than $5,000).
Note. A reasonable method is any method that does not
allocate all or a part of the credit to a co-owner who is not
eligible to claim that part of the credit.

Line 2
If you file Form 1040, your modified adjusted gross income is
the amount from Form 1040, line 38, increased by the total
of any:
• Exclusion of income from Puerto Rico, and
• Amount from Form 2555, lines 45 and 50; Form 2555-EZ,
line 18; and Form 4563, line 15.
If you file Form 1040NR, your modified adjusted gross
income is the amount from Form 1040NR, line 37.

Line 8
Complete the following worksheet to determine the amount
to enter on line 8 of Form 8859.

Tax Liability Limit Worksheet—Line 8
1. Enter the amount from Form 1040,
line 46; or Form 1040NR, line 44 . 1.
2. Form 1040 filers: Enter the total of
any amounts from Form 1040, lines
47 through 50; line 12 of the Line 11
Worksheet in Pub. 972*, Form 5695,
line 14; Form 8396, line 9; Form
8834, line 23; Form 8910, line 22;
Form 8936, line 15; and Schedule R
(Form 1040A or 1040), line 22.
Form 1040NR filers: Enter the total
of the amounts from Form 1040NR,
lines 45 through 47; line 12 of the
Line 11 Worksheet in Pub. 972*;
Form 5695, line 14; Form 8396, line
9; Form 8834, line 23; Form 8910,
line 22; and Form 8936, line 15 . 2.
3. Subtract line 2 from line 1. Enter this
amount on Form 8859, line 8. If zero
or less, enter -0- here and on Form
8859, lines 8 and 9 . . . . . 3.

You must reduce your basis in the home purchased by the
amount of the tentative credit shown on line 6.

*If you are not claiming the child tax credit, you do not need
Pub. 972.

Specific Instructions

Line 10

Line 1

Any unused credit shown on line 10 can be carried forward
until it has been used. You cannot carry the unused credit
back to prior years.

If you are married filing separately and the purchase price of
the home is less than $5,000, you can allocate the credit
between you and your spouse using any reasonable method.