You're making things more complex than necessary. The "number of days rented" count starts on the first day a renter "COULD" have moved in. Period. End of story. Vacant periods between tenants counts also, *PROVIDED* that you did not live in the property for one single day for *PERSONAL* use. Consider the below scenario.
- You place the "for rent" sign in the front yard on Jan 1 of the tax year. You get a tenant who signs a 3 month contract on Feb 15th and moves in on March 1st. Tenant moves out at the end of the lease on Jun 30th.
Because you live 150 miles away you drive to the property and actually stay in the property for the entire week of July 1-7 it takes you to clean up and get the property ready for the next tenant. You're ready in a week and on July 8 you put the "for rent" sign in the front yard and go home.
On July 15th a new tenant signs a lease for 1 year and moves in on Aug 1st. They stay there for the full one year which covers the rest of the current tax year.
For tax purposes:
Your number of days rented is 365 days.
Your number of days of personal use is *ZERO*.
The week you stayed there was *NOT* for your personal use or pleasure. It was strictly business - to get the property ready for the next tenant.
Weather the tenants actually paid the rent or not is totally and completely irrelevant. That property was classified as business use for every single day of the tax year, and nothing else. Additionally, there was not one single day of that year where you used the property for your personal use or pleasure.
