Rental-property investors
face key tax issues at time of sale The million
of small rental property investors across theNation
face important tax issues when they eventually
decide to Sell.
Q: I Bought my first rental property
four years ago. It has gone. Up Nearly 50percent
in value, and now I want to sell. How do I?Calculate
my taxable profit?
Congratulations on your outstanding investment.now
get Ready to share a hefty part of your good
fortune with the Internal revenue service.To
establish your taxable profit on the rental,
you’re outstanding Investment. Now, get
ready to share a hefty part of your good Fortune
with the internal revenue service.To establish
your taxable profit on the rental, you'll first
have to Calculate its "tax basis"
that's basically the price you paid for theProperty,
plus the cost of any improvements (like a new
roof or Driveway) you might have made, minus
the cost if any Depreciation deductions you
have taken through the years.
To illustrate, say you originally
paid $100,000 for the property Four years ago,
made another $20,000 in improvements but Have
also claimed a total of $14,000 in the special
depreciation Write offs that only landlords
can take. Your tax basis would be$106,000($120,000
minus $14,000).If your net proceeds of the sale
total $150,000,you’re taxable Gain would
be $44,000($150,000 minus yours $106,000 Basis).
The profit attributable to
the property's actual rise in Value would be
taxed at 15 percent, but the part based on Depreciation
would be taxed at a much higher 25 percent.Clear
as mud huh? You obviously need to consult a
certified Public accountant or other tax expert
for more informationRather than paying taxes
on the profit from the sale of your Rental property,
the expert might suggest that you instead enter
An Disapproved "1031 exchange " to
defer your tax bill or Perhaps That you even
move into the property for two years so you
can Later keep up to $500,000(or $250,000 if
you're single) of your Resale profit tax-free.