Aziz A. Tokh and Susan K. Tokh - Page 14




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                    In the case of an employee, the preceding sentence                
                    shall apply only if the exclusive use referred to                 
                    in the preceding sentence is for the convenience                  
                    of his employer.                                                  
               In deciding whether a residence is the principal place of              
          business, it must be compared to all of the other places where              
          business is transacted.  See Commissioner v. Soliman, 506 U.S.              
          168, 174 (1993) (superseded in part by statute on another issue             
          for tax years beginning after 1998).  A deduction is allowed only           
          when the residence is the most important or significant place for           
          the business.  The two primary considerations are the relative              
          importance of the activities performed at each business location            
          and the time spent at each place.  See id. at 175.  The relative            
          importance of business activities engaged in at the office in the           
          home may be substantially outweighed by business activities                 
          engaged in at another location.  See Strohmaier v. Commissioner,            
          113 T.C. 106, 112 (1999).                                                   
               For an architect, drafting is an important function of the             
          taxpayer’s trade or business.  Petitioner uses the office in his            
          residence to perform most of the drafting required by his                   
          employment.  However, petitioner testified that he spends                   
          60 percent of his working hours in the office at NIRC, and the              
          remainder of his time is split between working in the field or in           
          the office in the home.  The record does not show what functions            
          were performed by petitioner at the other locations.  Because a             






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