1098 Mortgage Interest but gave up the house in Ch. 7

[rrover]

I did a search and didn't see this scenario addressed. I just received a 1098 showing over $20k in mortgage interest for 2011, but I hadn't paid anything on the house since December 2009.

I gave up the house in Ch. 7 bankruptcy, which was discharged in October 2010. From the county title records, I see that the property changed owners around that time (October 2010).

I'm confused that the 1098 would be in my name when I didn't pay the mortgage interest personally. However, since it's in my name, it seems to be a valid deduction on my income taxes. Any thoughts?

[yomann]

I would wait till early April to file your tax return.
Unless you receive a corrected 1098 by then, I would take the deduction.
What's the worse case scenario ? Your deduction may be denied if the bank figures out their mistake .....

[Flamingo]

If you knowingly take that deduction on your tax return you are commiting tax fraud as you can bet the error will eventually be caught and you will be right in the middle since you did not make any mortgage payments on the house in 2011 and the house was not in your name. I would consult with a tax professional about all this before thinking about taking any deduction for any of that interest. Best of luck to you.

[rrover]

Thank you for the responses.

[df04527]

Call the issuer and boy do I agree - I wouldn't put that on my income taxes for anything! Don't need that kind of trouble but I would call the issuer as it is obviously an error on their part.