09/02/2026
Landlords and rental-property investors: messy records can hide your tax plan.
One landlord came to us with rental income, receipts, invoices, and improvement costs spread across multiple accounts. We helped organize the books by property and build a proactive plan: creating clearer numbers and better decisions without promising a specific tax result.
Here’s the federal tax framework to review:
• Repairs that keep property in ordinary operating condition are generally deductible in the year paid, when not required to be capitalized.
• Improvements that better, restore, or adapt property must generally be capitalized and recovered through depreciation.
• Residential rental buildings are generally depreciated using the straight-line method over 27.5 years under GDS. Land is not depreciable.
• Rental losses are generally subject to passive-activity limits. If you actively participate, the special allowance can be up to $25,000, generally phasing out as MAGI rises from $100,000 to $150,000.
Keep separate records for each property:
✓ Rent and deposits
✓ Repairs and maintenance
✓ Improvement invoices
✓ Placed-in-service dates
✓ Land and building allocation
Catherine Accounting & Tax Services LLC helps landlords and investors with organized bookkeeping, depreciation tracking, rental tax returns, and proactive real-estate tax strategy.
Ready for clearer rental books and a smarter tax plan? Contact us: https://www.cattaxpro.com/contact.php
Tax treatment depends on your facts, property use, entity structure, and current IRS rules.
