Closed business on December 31, 2015. Had land that was used for business and sold the land later in 2016 for 75K less than when purchased. How do I claim this loss?

[tjsconst]

Not filing any business taxes for the 2016 year as it was closed Dec. 31, 2015. But seems like I should get to claim the loss of 75K

[MichaelMc · Accepted solution]

You did not provide much detail about the business or the land, which is good in this public forum, but it limits my ability to answer the question. Who legally owned the land during the period when the business was operating? If it was you, that's fine. If it was a separate business entity, how was the land disposed of when the business ceased operations? Was it transferred to you for value? What type of entity was the business? 

Where I am trying to lead you is to the understanding that:

(1) if you were the owner of the land all along, the loss can be taken on your individual tax return, as a capital loss; 

(2) if the land was owned by a pass-through entity (partnership, S Corp, or multi-member LLC) the business may not have wrapped-up in 2015 and a final 2016 tax return may be appropriate to show the disposition of the land and to pass-through the tax characteristics of the transaction; or 

(3) if the land was owned by a corporation and transferred to you for value, the transaction become much more complex, depending on the FMV at the date of transfer and whether you or the corporation have a loss. In this last case, you may wish to consult your legal counsel.