Be very careful claiming something like a basement renovation. When you sell your house in theory the basement will count as a capital gain and cost you taxes since it has improved the value of your home - ie the home sells for more with the basement finished than without. You can claim some of the finishing things and add ons like paint for the walls or things that will wear out over a short period of time - think things like the towel bar if you are putting a lower one in for the kids then totally 100% write of. But other items are too risky to claim. You can claim them and it will seem like you are getting away with it but when you sell and change the address on your following tax form you don't want RC coming back and asking basically to be reimbursed for the extra value.