Second home vs investment property: IRS tax rules. If a property was used as both over time, what are the tax implications when the property is sold? Q: I read your article on avoiding capital gains tax on second homes in our Sunday paper. I have a question that is along those same lines, except [...]
1031 exchange deadlines during COVID-19 pandemic. This reader wants to know about extensions available to those who completed a 1031 exchange in 2019. Q: We completed our 1031 exchange in September 2019. Our renter has fallen on hardship due to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic and cannot afford the rent. Similarly, we are in a rental that [...]
How much tax do you pay when you sell a rental property? How home valuation and depreciation factor into taxes when selling investment property. Q: My father in law is selling a duplex he rented out for about 10 years. The sale price is going to be around $300,000. His accountant says that he should [...]
How capital gains tax on the sale of a property held in a trust works. This reader wants to know if they can claim a capital loss on the sale. Q: I enjoyed your column in the Washington Post. I am trustee of my father's trust. Upon his death, his 50 percent interest in the [...]
Is a condo or townhouse a better investment? These readers want to buy property in San Francisco they plan to rent out when they move in a few years. Q: I just read the AMA Ilyce did on Reddit about a year ago on buying a home. Thank you for all the information that you [...]
How to buy out a family member’s share of investment property. A quit claim deed or warranty will do the trick, but each have their own benefits. Q: My wife and I, along with my brother and his wife, bought a vacation home in 2010. Each couple took half. The home is in California and [...]
What can you do when you discover an old oil tank leak on your recently purchased property? Your options may be limited, especially with the title company. Q: I bought an investment property located on the edge of a river. Apparently, years ago, a nearby oil tank leaked. The tank was not disclosed in the [...]
Is now the right time to sell your rental property? We may be in a seller’s market, but that doesn’t mean you’ll get the most bang for your rental property buck. Q: As always, you give us a lot of good real estate information in your columns. Here's a question regarding my rental home in [...]
Because lenders have the right to place a lien on any investment property you own, it’s important to act quickly or risk losing the property altogether. Q: A bank foreclosed on a property I owned with a business partner. The bank sold the property but the proceeds from the sale weren’t enough to cover the [...]
Should I outsource to a property management company? A lot of hard work goes into being a landlord, sometimes it's smarter to outsource property management. Q: I am planning to buy a four-plex and I was planning on using an on-call handyman instead of property management which is typically expensive. Since this is my first [...]
