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Tornado Loss Question

My house was involved in a tornado in tax year 2008. It was declared an official disaster area by FEMA. This question pertains to only the items that were destroyed in the house. My insurance company and I performed a very detail listing of everything that was destroyed or missing after the tornado. I did not have replacement insurance so I was only entitled to the depreciated amount. So, my question is: Can I use as a deduction the different between the FMV and the depreciated amount? This is 15% per item. So, if I can, do I need to list out everything, or can I use a generic listing such as "house hold" items? There are over 500 items that were destroyed or missing.

Thanks,

JJ

Reply to
JJ
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If you were in the Greensburg tornado by chance, there are provisions for KS disaster area tax relief you'll want to look at--see Pub 4492-A.

Reply to
dpb

Yes, and as an option, it's an additional deduction on your 2007 return. (Since FEMA declared it a disaster area, you get to take the loss on the return of the year prior to the event.)

Considering that the house itself was also destroyed, "household items - Tornado damage" should be a sufficient explanation.

Reply to
D. Stussy

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