What you do with the proceeds from the home sale is not relevant.
The tax code was changed in 1997 so that purchasing another home at the same or higher price of the previous home that was sold to defer capital gains cannot be used.
If you sold your primary personal residence and you lived in and owned the home for at least two years in the five year period on the date of sale, you do not have to report the sale if your gains are less then the exclusion amounts of $250,000 if filing Single or $500,000 if filing Married Filing Jointly (and both lived in the home for two years).
Gain or Loss = Sales Price minus Sales Expenses minus Adjusted Basis (Purchase Price plus the cost of improvements prior to the sale)
If you had a gain greater then the exclusion amounts then you would have to report the sale. Also, if you received a Form 1099-S for the sale either with a gain or a loss, the sale has to be reported.
This answer has been verified for accuracy by an Intuit expert employee
