<prompt> Human: I made an offer on a house, which was accepted this morning. I am currently a renter, and have never owned a house before. The house is currently empty, so Im thinking I might be able to close either before or after the new year. Im just not sure which would be better in terms of tax breaks.Any suggestions? Does it matter?  <response>: CPA Here. If your are not utilizing your schedule a in excess of your standard deduction, you best bet would to be to wait until 2015 to close on your house. If your schedule a deductions are less than you itemized, close this year. If you have any questions shoot me a PM. 