photo credit: kozumel

In addition to interest, depreciation and repairs you can also claim deductions for travel, your home office and related business expenses, any employees or independent contractors you hire, casualty and theft losses as well as insurance.

Also, if you’re doing improvements you can deduct your expenses and if planned correctly you may be able to deduct them in a lump sum rather than spread out over several years. Segmented depreciation is another way to organize your property in order to take advantage of the greatest deductions. Small landlords get some extra breaks when it comes to losses so make sure you’re figuring this into the equation.

If you’re renting a vacation home look into your local laws, in some places you can do this totally tax free. But in other renting news, if you?re renting to family and friends it?s possible to lose virtually all of your tax deductions.

If you decide that these tax issues a too overwhelming, then hire an attorney or a tax professional and remember to deduct that expense as well.

credit: ericskiff

With tax season upon us, it’s important to make sure that all property owners are getting their fair share of tax deductions. It’s not a matter of inventing deductions, but rather a matter of keeping careful records and noting all the deductions you’re due. Some of the biggest deductions and oft missed ones are listed below.

Interest: Interest pops up in many different ways, from mortgage interest to interest in credit cards that were used to make property repairs. It takes a little work to find and list all the interest you’ve paid out during the year, but it’s well worth it.

Repairs: Since we’ve mentioned the interest we should mention the repairs too. Keep track of all of your repairs to your property, as long as they fit the government requirements of normal, ordinary and reasonable, you’ll be able to take some deductions.

Depreciation: The property you own was not fully deductible the year you bought it, but it is deductible over several years so make sure you’re getting your annual deduction from your property. Keep specific records of all your expenses associated with your property. If you’re not sure what categories they fall into when you do your taxes, then hire a professional. You’ll more than reap the rewards of having knowledgeable help in determining all of your tax deductions.