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  <title>Rental Property Tax Deductions: What Landlords Can Write Off</title>
  <meta name="description" content="The main rental property tax deductions landlords claim on Schedule E — mortgage interest, taxes, insurance, repairs, management, and depreciation (27.5 years) — plus the repairs-vs-improvements rule. Educational, not tax advice." />
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    <header><a class="logo" href="./">Rental Property Calculator</a></header>
    <h1>Rental property tax deductions: what landlords can write off</h1>
    <p class="muted">Rental income is taxable, but landlords deduct the costs of earning it on <strong>Schedule E</strong> — and one of the biggest deductions, depreciation, isn't even cash out of your pocket. Here's what's deductible and the one distinction that trips people up.</p>
    <div class="note">Educational overview only — not tax advice. Tax rules change and depend on your situation. Confirm with a CPA or the current IRS instructions before filing.</div>

    <h2>The everyday deductions (Schedule E)</h2>
    <div class="cols">
      <div class="box in"><h3>✓ Commonly deductible</h3><ul>
        <li>Mortgage <em>interest</em> (not principal)</li><li>Property taxes</li><li>Insurance</li><li>Repairs &amp; maintenance</li><li>Property management fees</li><li>Utilities you pay</li><li>Advertising &amp; tenant screening</li><li>Legal &amp; professional fees</li><li>Travel to the property</li><li>Supplies &amp; HOA dues</li>
      </ul></div>
      <div class="box out"><h3>✗ Not deductible (as expenses)</h3><ul>
        <li>Mortgage <em>principal</em> (it builds equity)</li><li>The cost of improvements (you depreciate these)</li><li>Your own labor</li><li>Lost rent from vacancy</li>
      </ul></div>
    </div>

    <h2>Depreciation: the big non-cash deduction</h2>
    <p>The IRS lets you deduct the wear-and-tear of the <strong>building</strong> (not the land) over <strong>27.5 years</strong> for residential rental property. It's a paper expense — you didn't spend the money that year — yet it lowers taxable income.</p>
    <div class="formula">A $250,000 property with $200,000 allocated to the building:<br><strong>$200,000 ÷ 27.5 = ~$7,273/year</strong> in depreciation</div>
    <p class="muted">Land isn't depreciable, so you split the purchase price between building and land (often using the tax assessor's ratio). Note: depreciation is "recaptured" (taxed) when you sell — a reason to plan with a CPA.</p>

    <h2>Repairs vs. improvements — the distinction that matters</h2>
    <p>A <strong>repair</strong> keeps the property in working order (fixing a leak, repainting) and is usually deductible <em>this year</em>. An <strong>improvement</strong> betters, restores, or adapts the property (a new roof, an addition) and must be <em>capitalized and depreciated</em> over years. Misclassifying improvements as repairs is a common audit flag.</p>

    <h2>A couple of bigger items to ask your CPA about</h2>
    <ul>
      <li><strong>QBI deduction:</strong> some rental activity that rises to a "trade or business" can qualify for the 20% qualified business income deduction.</li>
      <li><strong>Passive loss rules:</strong> rental losses are generally passive, but actively-participating owners under certain income limits may offset some ordinary income.</li>
    </ul>

    <h2>The point: track everything by category</h2>
    <p>You can only deduct what you've recorded. Keeping income and every expense organized by Schedule E category all year turns tax time from a scramble into a hand-off. The same categories that drive your deductions also tell you whether the property actually cash-flows.</p>

    <div class="formula" style="border-left:3px solid var(--accent)">Use the free <a href="./">rental calculator</a> to see a property's NOI and cash flow, and track your actual income and expenses by category through the year so the deductions above are ready at tax time.</div>
    <a class="cta" href="./">Open the rental calculator →</a>

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