Portango
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yes, it's income. but you can deduct business expenses now, so on paper you won't actually be making a profit, so therefore no taxes on rent deposits. keep receips and track of anything that can be considered as a business expenses, such as travel (mileage, keep a journal), meals (i.e. dinner/lunch business meetings) anything you buy to improve the home (paint, plants, hardware, etc.), marketing costs.
Check out landlord tips, articles, resources at mrlandlord.com. Make sure to at least browse the section on "Legal Assistance", and "landlord tenant laws"
Be very careful about renting to the right tenants. Run their credit, check for criminal convictions, verify their employment (by calling their employee to verify income, length of employement, employment likely to continue?), rental history (call previous landlords to find out if they paid on time). You can do all this separately by yourself for real cheap or have an online screening service do it for a fee. Google search "tenant screening services" and check out different websites and pick one. |
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M L
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Yes you would need to report as income, but if you don't want to find responsible renters (not easy) keeping up with maintainance of the home, dealing with tenants, you may want to consider a professional management company that would charge a commission for their services (starts at 10% of the monthly rent). |
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?
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yes if you dont and they audit you will will have to bend over for the goverment to stick it to you |
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roy40372
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yes you have to claim the rent as income but you can deduct all maintenance and expenses on the rental. In some states you have to pay a sales tax on rent. |
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sickboy844
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You have to include it as part of your income for taxes. But you get to deduct all expenses that you incur. i.e. management fees, repair/maintenence, you can also depreciate the home and any fixtures that you add to the home. All of this will offset the income that you receive from the renter. Usually you make it end up being a very small gain if any. |
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MattMan
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most definitely. and if you want to prove it to yourself, go to www.irs.gov |
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pixi_doll
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yes |
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troythom
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Yes but you can deduct the costs associated with the house. Things such as insurance, mortgage interest, property taxes, costs to advertise the property for rent, homeowners dues, etc... can be deducted or used to offset the income.
Best bet to get the actual numbers and understand the latest laws is to consult a tax professional. |
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Say It Again M'am
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any income has to be reported to uncle sam, period |
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Bedazzled101
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Ofcorse...any income has to be reported to the IRS unless you have the home in an off-shore corporations name. then you don't have to pay taxes on it and can take out what you need for your rent(if you put the lease of the apt in the corporations name) out of that account. If you are planning on going this route, talk to your lawyer so you get all the paperwork done correctly otherwise the IRS could come knocking. |
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things that make you go hmmmm
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yes you will need to report it as part of your income......as your renters will need to report who they are renting from |
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Michael K
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You can still write off payments and insurance and any other costs associated with the house |
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smarty pants
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no |
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