@ThomasM125 Thanks to all! Interest and property taxes make sense because it really wasn’t a rental but rather a vacation home. Although the interest is on the HELOC for a primary home so I understand applying that to a vacation home is a no- go.
(Please stop me if I am taking advantage of your good nature) If I could go a little deeper: ultimately we will be there less than 15 days/year, for now… so once we begin renting, we can use all those lovely deductions and we begin depreciation. Is it a problem to claim the house as vacation one year and rental the next? What if we become snowbirders in 10 years, is it red flag to switch back to vacation?
How do tax benefits for depreciation and improvements work if the house is not rented for a few years after purchase? Are any depreciation or improvement deductions ‘lost’ by not renting in the same year in which you purchase or make the improvements?
