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Calculating Personal Property Depreciation In the world of taxes, depreciation is one of your best allies—it means more money in your pocket. This often-overlooked benefit can significantly impact your bottom line as a rental property owner, reducing your taxable income and boosting your overall profitability. However, depreciation can be a bit tricky to navigate, especially […]

A Guide To Depreciation for Rental Additions and Improvements Depreciation is the gradual decline in value of assets over time. It applies to everything from buildings to equipment to cars. As a rental property owner, think of it as your property’s wear-and-tear tax break—a way to turn aging assets into valuable deductions. One common area […]

A Landlord’s Guide To Reporting Rental Income and Expenses on Schedule E For most landlords, Schedule E is the single most important tax form they’ll file each April. Schedule E is used to report rental property income and expenses to the IRS (Internal Revenue Service), helping individual landlords and other real estate investors accurately determine […]

IRS Form 8825 Form 8825 is an important tax form for landlords managing rental properties through partnerships or S corporations. It’s used to report rental income and expenses to the IRS, helping you accurately determine your tax liability. Filing it correctly is essential to comply with IRS regulations and avoid an audit. In this article, […]

Maximizing Deductions For Property Repairs As a landlord and real estate investor, your primary goal is to build wealth through rental properties. While minimizing your tax burden is an added benefit, focusing solely on tax reduction misses the bigger picture. Think of tax savings as the icing on the wealth-building cake, not the cake itself. […]

Rental Expense Deduction Safe Harbors Contrary to their name, safe harbors have nothing to do with boats and everything to do with your rental property business. Or at least, they should! If complicated tax regulations have been an obstacle keeping you from maximizing your deductions, then safe harbors may be the solution. If you’re looking […]

What Is The Difference Between Repairs vs. Improvements? Maintenance is one of the largest expense categories for landlords. From regular upkeep to larger projects, keeping rental properties in top condition requires a significant investment of your revenue. Fortunately, most of these costs are tax deductible. However, correctly categorizing and deducting maintenance expenses—whether they’re repairs or […]

Rental Operating Expense If you’re a rental property manager, there’s no doubt that having your work and investments officially classified as a ‘business’ is the best scenario for tax season. The process of being considered a business by the IRS—which we cover in more detail in another article—grants you the opportunity to deduct a number […]

Your Guide To Landlord Tax Classifications Understanding your IRS classification for tax purposes is crucial when managing rental properties. This classification determines which deductions you can claim, influencing your overall financial strategy. The IRS categorizes rental activities into three distinct classifications—real estate investment, not-for-profit activity, or business ownership—each with specific implications for income tax filings. […]

5 Rental Property Accounting Software Features You Should Know If you’re a property owner, you may already benefit from the many services offered by rental property accounting software. Core features like income and expense tracking, financial reporting, and Schedule E generation help landlords year-round and especially during tax season. However, you may not be aware […]

Rental Property Accounting Software’s Core Features If you’re like many landlords, you dread when it’s time to hit the books—the accounting kind. Whether it’s tax season or everyday bookkeeping, managing your books and finances gives most of us a certain kind of apprehension. The good news? Many common landlord accounting tasks can now be automated […]

Should You Use Spreadsheets Or Rental Accounting Software? As a landlord, one of the most important tasks you’re in charge of is managing the finances of your business. Income, expenses, rent collection, and data reports are all indicators of your business’ financial health and are vital to stay updated on. The two most common methods […]