How owning an S corp rental property affects Social Security earnings limit after retirement?

This is a good question that trips up a lot of people. With an S corporation, how the income affects your Social Security earnings limit depends on how the money flows to you. The key points: 1. Passive income (like rental income) generally doesn't count toward the earnings test 2. S corporation distributions/profits passing through to your personal return don't count as "earnings" for the SSA earnings test 3. However, if you're paying yourself a salary from the S corp, that DOES count 4. The "substantial services" test applies to whether you're actually WORKING in the business If you're truly passive and the property manager handles everything, and you're only receiving distributions (not salary), you should be fine. But document everything in case SSA questions it.

I went through this EXACT situation last year! The salary portion definitely counts against your earnings limit, but the distributions don't. Keep really detailed records showing your limited involvement. My experience: SSA initially counted ALL my S corp income and reduced my benefits, but after I appealed with documentation showing the property manager handles daily operations, they reversed it and only counted my $12K salary. The key is proving you're not providing "substantial services" to the business. Document EVERYTHING!

My cousin says all rental property income affects benefits!!!! I thought ANY income counted. This is so confusing!!! Why does social security make everything SO HARD TO UNDERSTAND.

I spend HOURS trying to get through to SSA to ask this exact question last year when I retired! Kept getting disconnected or waiting forever. Finally found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me connected to an actual SSA agent in about 20 minutes instead of waiting for hours. They have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU Anyway, the agent confirmed what others are saying - only the salary portion counts against earnings test, not the S corp distributions. But get this IN WRITING because different SSA reps sometimes give different answers! I requested a formal written determination just to be safe.

When I retired SSA counted my s-corp money and reduced my benefit! Make sure you tell them theres a property manager. I didnt and they assumed I was working.

I'm going through a similar situation with my Social Security benefits and S-corporation. The most important distinction is understanding what constitutes "substantial services" according to SSA. Based on my research and conversations with SSA, they consider factors like: - Hours you personally spend on business activities - The nature of your involvement - Whether your services are essential to operation In your case, having a documented relationship with a property management company is extremely helpful in proving your passive role. Make sure your property management agreement clearly outlines all their responsibilities. Also important: Report your salary from the S-corp on your Annual Earnings Report to SSA (you can do this through your my Social Security account online). Being proactive about reporting prevents unexpected benefit reductions later. The $800/month salary ($9,600 annually) is well below the 2025 limit of $21,240, so you should be fine.

my accountant told me that the ssi people only look at the w2 from your corporation not the k1 part so its just the salary that matters for thr earnings test so your probably fine with just 800 a month

This whole system is RIDICULOUS!!! Why should you be penalized for being SMART enough to have investment income??? The government just wants to TAKE YOUR MONEY and make it IMPOSSIBLE to understand the rules. My brother lost THOUSANDS because of this earnings limit garbage.

Thanks everyone for the great information! To summarize what I've learned: 1. Only my $800/month salary counts toward the earnings limit, not the S corp distributions 2. I should proactively report this on my Annual Earnings Report to SSA 3. I need to keep documentation proving I'm not actively managing the properties 4. Getting something in writing from SSA about my specific situation is a good idea I'm going to try that Claimyr service to actually reach a human at SSA and request a written determination. Will also make sure my property management agreement clearly shows they handle everything. Feel much better about this now!

I'm a newcomer to this community but have been dealing with similar retirement income questions. This thread has been incredibly helpful! I'm particularly interested in the documentation aspect everyone mentioned. For those who have gone through this process, what specific documents did you keep to prove passive ownership? I'm thinking of setting up an S corp for some rental properties I inherited, but want to make sure I structure everything properly from the start to avoid issues with SSA later. Also, does anyone know if there are differences in how SSA treats inherited rental properties versus ones you purchased yourself? Thanks for all the great information shared here!

Welcome to the community @Chloe Harris! Your timing is perfect - this thread has been a goldmine of information. For documentation, I'd add a few items to what @NeonNova mentioned: keep detailed records of your property management company's licensing/credentials, any insurance policies that list you as passive owner, and annual statements showing rental income vs. your actual time involvement (like a simple log showing "0 hours property management" each month). One thing I learned from my own situation is that SSA sometimes asks for a "business activities statement" where you detail exactly what you do vs. what others do for the business. Having this documentation ready beforehand made my conversation with them much smoother. The inherited vs. purchased distinction isn't really relevant to SSA - they only care about your current involvement level, not how you acquired the assets. Setting up the S corp structure properly from day one is definitely the way to go. You might also want to consider having your attorney or accountant draft a memo outlining your passive investor status for your files. Good luck with your setup!

Welcome to the community! As someone who's been through the SSA earnings test maze with rental properties, I can share some insights on your S corp structure questions. Regarding ownership percentages - SSA doesn't really focus on your ownership percentage in the S corp, but rather on the SERVICES you provide. You could own 100% and still be considered passive if you're not providing substantial services. The key is in your operating agreement language and documented procedures showing you're an investor, not an active manager. Some specific language to consider in your operating agreement: - Clearly state you're a passive investor - Prohibit yourself from day-to-day management activities - Require all operational decisions go through the property management company - Document that you receive distributions as a return on investment, not compensation for services One thing I learned the hard way: even if you structure everything perfectly, SSA may still initially count all S corp income if they don't understand your setup. Having that documentation ready from day one makes the appeal/clarification process much smoother. Since you're inheriting the properties, you're actually in a great position to demonstrate passive ownership from the start. Just make sure your attorney emphasizes the investment nature of your role when drafting the S corp documents. Good luck with your setup!

As a newcomer to this community, I wanted to share my recent experience that might help others in similar situations. I just went through the SSA review process for my S corp rental income last month, and the documentation everyone mentioned here was absolutely crucial. What made the biggest difference in my case was having a detailed "passive investor affidavit" that my attorney prepared, which specifically outlined my limited role and referenced all the supporting documentation (property management agreements, payment records, time logs showing minimal involvement, etc.). SSA accepted this package without requiring an appeal. One thing I learned that wasn't mentioned yet: if you're taking ANY salary from the S corp, make sure it's truly "reasonable compensation" for whatever minimal services you do provide (like reviewing quarterly reports or signing annual documents). SSA can challenge unreasonably low salaries as a way to avoid payroll taxes, which could complicate your earnings test situation. Also, I found it helpful to maintain a simple monthly log documenting my actual involvement - even if it's just "reviewed monthly statement via email - 15 minutes" or "no property-related activities this month." This creates a paper trail showing your consistent passive role over time. The peace of mind from having everything properly documented from the start is worth the extra effort!

As a newcomer to this community, I've been following this thread closely as I'm considering early retirement next year and have been worried about how my small business income might affect Social Security benefits. Reading through everyone's experiences has been incredibly educational! One thing I'm curious about that hasn't been fully addressed: for those of you who have S corps with rental properties, how do you handle the timing of reporting to SSA? Do you report your expected salary at the beginning of the year, or wait until you know your actual earnings? I'm particularly concerned about accidentally under-reporting and then having issues later if circumstances change. Also, @Andre Dubois - have you been able to connect with SSA yet using the Claimyr service that @Liam O'Donnell mentioned? I'm very interested to hear how that goes since I've had similar frustrations trying to reach someone by phone. Thanks to everyone who has shared their experiences here. This thread has been more helpful than hours of trying to research this topic on my own!