Rental property in Disaster Area

[pgdriver]

We have rental house in Waynesville Nc. This was declared a disaster area after being hit by hurricane Helene. The houe is fine but the driveway to the house had a mud slide, making it unusable to vehicles. The house is accessable by walking but it's almost 2 football fields long walk. Becuse of this we chose not to rent it out until we can have the driveway repaired. My questions is can we still claim the mortgage interest along with everything else that we write off on our taxes for 2025?

[PaulaM]

No, unfortunately.  If the rental was not 'in service' then rental expenses may not be deducted. In service, means that the property was ready and available for rent, even if you were unsuccessful in securing rental agreements at the time. The property does not need to be occupied or generating income-just 'available'. If the property was not offered for rent, then its use is converted to personal use. 

You may resume taking rental deductions when you make the property available to rent again, generally through listing or advertising. 

Your property may qualify for some second home deductions on Schedule A if you used the property for personal use. See more information on second homes here.