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This is a really complex situation that I think requires careful documentation. I went through something similar when I converted my primary residence to a rental mid-year, and the key is keeping detailed records of exactly when the conversion happened. For your 22-day period in January when Property A was still your primary residence, you'll need to calculate the exact mortgage interest for those days and include it with Property B's interest to see if you exceed the $750k limit. The IRS looks at the actual interest paid during qualified residence periods, not just the loan balances. One thing that helped me was creating a detailed timeline showing: (1) dates Property A was my primary residence, (2) move-out date, (3) date Property A became available for rent, and (4) Property B purchase/move-in date. This documentation was crucial for properly allocating the mortgage interest between Schedule A (personal residence) and Schedule E (rental property). Also make sure you're calculating based on the actual interest paid during each period, not just prorating the annual amount. If you made extra principal payments or had different payment timing, it can affect the daily interest calculation. Keep all your mortgage statements and closing documents - you'll need them to support your calculations if the IRS ever asks questions.
This is excellent advice about documentation! I'm actually in a similar situation and hadn't thought about the importance of tracking the exact conversion date vs. when the property became available for rent. Quick question - did you use the move-out date or the date it became available for rent as your conversion point? I moved out of my property on January 15th but didn't get my first tenant until March 1st. I'm wondering if there's a gap period where the mortgage interest doesn't qualify for either the personal residence deduction or the rental property expense treatment. Also, when you mention calculating based on actual interest paid rather than just prorating, are you referring to how mortgage payments are front-loaded with interest? So the daily interest amount would actually be higher at the beginning of the year?
Great question about the timing! For tax purposes, I used the date the property became available for rent (not just when I moved out) as the conversion point. The IRS generally looks at when the property's use actually changed, not just when you stopped living there. So in your case, the period from January 15th (move-out) to March 1st (available for rent) would be a bit of a gray area. During that gap, the property wasn't being used as either a personal residence or a rental, so the mortgage interest might not qualify for either deduction. Some tax professionals argue you could still treat it as personal residence interest until it's actually converted to business use. And yes, exactly right about the front-loaded interest! Mortgage payments early in the loan term have much more interest than principal, so the daily interest amount would be higher at the beginning of the year compared to later months. That's why I mentioned using actual interest paid rather than just dividing the annual total by 365 - the timing of when that interest accrued matters for accurate allocation. I'd definitely recommend getting guidance from a tax professional on how to handle that gap period, as it can affect both your personal residence deduction limits and your rental property expense calculations.
This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm dealing with a very similar situation and appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and resources. One additional consideration I discovered while researching this topic: if you're planning to claim any home office deductions for your rental property business (like if you manage the property from a home office), you need to be careful about how that interacts with the mortgage interest allocation. The home office deduction for rental property management would be claimed on Schedule E alongside your other rental expenses, but it's calculated separately from the rental property itself. Just wanted to mention this since managing rental properties often involves significant administrative work that might qualify for the home office deduction. Also, for anyone still working through the calculations, I found IRS Publication 527 (Residential Rental Property) really helpful for understanding the day-by-day allocation rules. It has some examples that are similar to what many of us are dealing with here. Thanks again to everyone who shared their experiences with the various tools and services - it's given me some good options to explore for getting definitive answers on my specific situation!
Thanks for mentioning the home office deduction aspect - that's something I hadn't considered! I'm just getting started with converting my property to a rental and the complexity of all these interconnected tax rules is a bit overwhelming. Question about Publication 527: did you find the examples clear enough to follow for the day-by-day calculations? I've been trying to work through the IRS publications myself but sometimes find their examples don't quite match my specific situation. Also wondering if there are any online calculators that might help with the proration math, or if it's really just a matter of doing the calculations manually based on your mortgage statements. Really appreciate how helpful everyone has been in this thread - it's reassuring to know others have successfully navigated these same challenges!
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One thing to consider that hasn't been mentioned - FreeTaxUSA saves your returns indefinitely for free. TurboTax only gives you access to previous years' returns if you keep paying them every year or if you pay extra to download a PDF. This became a huge issue for me when I needed my tax returns from 3 years ago for a mortgage application. I had switched from TurboTax to FreeTaxUSA 2 years prior and couldn't access my old TurboTax returns without paying again. With FreeTaxUSA I can log in anytime and access all my previous returns.
You can actually request tax transcripts directly from the IRS for free! Go to irs.gov and search for "Get Transcript" - they'll send you official records of previously filed returns. Saved me when I needed proof of income for an apartment application.
Great comparison! I've been using FreeTaxUSA for the past 3 years after getting burned by TurboTax's unexpected upgrade fees. One thing I'd add is that FreeTaxUSA's customer support is actually pretty solid when you need help - I had a question about reporting my employer's HSA contributions vs. my own contributions and they responded via email within 24 hours with a detailed explanation. The manual entry aspect you mentioned is spot on. While it takes a few extra minutes, I actually prefer it because I catch things I might have missed with auto-import. Last year I noticed a discrepancy in one of my 1099s that the automatic import probably would have just pulled through without me noticing. For anyone still on the fence, FreeTaxUSA also has a really good error-checking system that runs before you file. It's caught a few mistakes for me over the years, including once when I accidentally entered the same 1099-INT twice.
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This is such a timely question for me too! I'm about to start a similar journey documenting my home renovation process. Reading through all these responses has been super helpful. One thing I'm wondering about - has anyone dealt with the depreciation aspect of home improvements when they're partially business-related? I know that business assets can be depreciated over time, but I'm not sure how that works when it's also your personal residence. Also, for those who have been doing this for a while, how do you handle things like paint colors or fixtures that you chose specifically because they photograph well for content, versus what you might have picked just for personal use? Seems like that could be a legitimate business consideration, but I'm wondering how detailed you need to get with that documentation. Thanks to everyone who shared their experiences - definitely going to be more conservative with my deductions after reading about the audit situation!
Great questions about depreciation! From what I understand, you generally can't depreciate improvements to your personal residence, even if you use part of your home for business. The home office deduction covers business use of your home, but major renovations that benefit the entire property typically get added to your home's cost basis for when you eventually sell. However, if you purchase specific items *solely* for content creation (like special lighting fixtures, backdrop walls, or staging furniture), those might be depreciable as business assets. The key is proving they're exclusively for business use. As for documenting design choices made for content - I'd suggest keeping notes about why certain colors/materials were chosen for filming purposes, maybe even screenshots of how they look in your content versus alternatives. But honestly, that feels like it could be a gray area that might raise red flags. Probably safer to focus on the more obvious business expenses that everyone mentioned above!
This thread has been incredibly helpful! As someone who's been thinking about starting a home renovation blog, I really appreciate all the real-world experiences shared here. One thing I'm taking away is that the IRS seems to focus heavily on proving legitimate business intent rather than just having some content online. The advice about keeping detailed records, creating a formal business plan, and operating in a businesslike manner makes a lot of sense. I'm particularly interested in what @Jamal Brown and @Fatima Al-Rashid mentioned about getting professional analysis of what percentage can legitimately be claimed. It sounds like having that third-party documentation could be really valuable if you ever get questioned. For @Sofía Rodríguez - based on everything shared here, it seems like you should definitely start documenting your business intent from day one, even before you have followers. Keep receipts for everything, track your time spent on content creation, and maybe consider setting up a separate business entity. The equipment and software costs seem like the safest deductions to start with while you build up your documentation for any renovation-related claims. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - this has definitely helped me think through how to approach this correctly from the beginning!
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The community consensus is correct - transcripts don't contain viewable copies of your actual 1040 forms. I verified this with the IRS on April 3rd, 2024, after spending considerable time searching for this feature. According to the representative I spoke with, this limitation is by design, as the transcript system was created to verify specific tax data points, not to serve as a document repository. For those who need the actual forms, maintaining your own records is essential. I personally keep digital copies of all tax returns going back to 2015, organized by tax year in a secure cloud storage solution.
This is incredibly helpful information that I wish I had known earlier! I've been struggling with this exact issue for my small business loan application. The bank kept asking for my "actual tax returns" and I kept sending them transcripts thinking they were the same thing. Now I understand why they kept rejecting them. I ended up having to dig through my old TaxAct account from 2022 and fortunately found the PDFs still there. For anyone else in a similar situation, definitely check your tax software first before going through the lengthy Form 4506 process. It's frustrating that the IRS transcript system doesn't make this distinction clearer - would save a lot of people time and confusion!
@Savannah Weiner I had the exact same experience with my mortgage lender! They kept saying we "need your tax returns and" I kept thinking the transcripts WERE my tax returns. Spent weeks going back and forth before someone finally explained the difference. It s'so confusing because the IRS calls them Return "Transcripts which" makes it sound like they re'the actual returns. Really wish they d'rename it to Return "Data Summary or" something clearer. Glad you found your PDFs in TaxAct - that s'definitely the fastest route when you need them quickly!
Dylan Wright
One thing nobody's mentioned - check if Colorado and Nevada have a reciprocal tax agreement! Some states have these agreements where you only pay tax to your home state even if you work in the other. Would simplify things if they do.
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Sofia Torres
•Colorado doesn't have reciprocal agreements with any states as far as I know. I work remotely for a CO company but live in Arizona, and still had to deal with this last year.
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Diego Rojas
The property purchase itself won't automatically change your tax home status, but it's definitely something to be strategic about. I've been through a similar situation between Texas and California. Here's what I learned: owning property in Colorado creates another tie to that state, but it's not determinative by itself. The key is the "facts and circumstances" test - where are your strongest connections? Since you already have 75% work time in Colorado, that's already a significant factor. My advice: before buying, document everything that ties you to Nevada. Get a letter from your Nevada bank confirming your account history, keep records of family visits, maintain your Nevada voter registration and driver's license. Consider joining a Nevada-based organization or club if you haven't already. Also, when you do buy in Colorado, be clear about your intent. Don't change your mailing address to the Colorado property, don't register to vote there, and keep referring to it as your "work residence" rather than your "home" in any documentation. One more tip: consult with a tax professional who specializes in multi-state issues before making the purchase. The upfront cost of good advice is way cheaper than dealing with residency disputes later.
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Ellie Perry
•This is really comprehensive advice! I'm curious about something though - when you mention keeping it as a "work residence" in documentation, does that include things like insurance policies? Should someone avoid getting homeowner's insurance that lists it as a primary residence, or does that not matter as much for tax purposes? Also, what about utilities and other services - do you need to be careful about how those accounts are set up to avoid creating additional ties to Colorado? I'm just thinking about all the little details that might add up to create a residency argument.
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