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Question for the tax pros on a rental house

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Deacon92

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Since my house in fl is hugely underwater and we can't afford to sell it, we've been renting it. It's been occupied all but a few months the last two yrs. We use tax cut for taxes and it prompts us for the interest deduction and the rent doesn't cover the mortage.

My lawyer father in law says that we should be able to depreciate the house as a rental and in the next breath says but I,m not a tax attny.

So does this sound legit? Or is the depreciation only if I was filing as a business and not an individual? Anyone forced to rent have the same thing pop up?
 
depreciate all day, no need to have the property in an LLC etc
 
Straight off IRS website...

What Rental Property Can Be Depreciated?
You can depreciate your property if it meets all the following requirements.

You own the property.

You use the property in your business or income-producing activity (such as rental property).

The property has a determinable useful life.

The property is expected to last more than one year.

When Does Depreciation Begin and End?
You begin to depreciate your rental property when you place it in service for the production of income. You stop depreciating it either when you have fully recovered your cost or other basis, or when you retire it from service, whichever happens first.
 
Technically I think you have to depreciate it anyway, if you are renting it and claiming the income/deducting the expenses, etc. Remember, when you sell it someday, your cost basis will have been reduced by the amount of the depreciation so you will have more gain than you otherwise would have...
 
scooter84 said:
Technically I think you have to depreciate it anyway, if you are renting it and claiming the income/deducting the expenses, etc. Remember, when you sell it someday, your cost basis will have been reduced by the amount of the depreciation so you will have more gain than you otherwise would have...
Click to expand...

Unless you move back into the house and live in it for two years as your primary residence again before selling it. Actually, I think the rule is you have to have lived in it two out of the most recent five year span in order to claim it as a primary residence. (But I'm no tax attorney...)
 
Ok. Well then screw tax cut. And the fil is a double tar heel.

So I'll need to file an amended return for Ly. So now the question is: any CPA/tax people that are good in Marietta?
 
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