Hello all,

New landlord here trying to sort out how to handle some expenses associated with getting my house ready for rent.

At the end of Dec (21st) I moved out of state and prepared my house for rental. During that month I had a bunch of expenses for preparing the property for rent: new washer and dryer installed, painting, cleaning, etc. I got a lease signed with tenants on Jan 10. So I have these expenses in 2020, but no rental income until 2021. 

Now I'm wondering when/how/if I can deduct any of this. I've seen some advice online saying that I can't deduct these expenses if they were incurred before the place was rented - in which case I should have waited until it was rented to buy the washer/dryer? Not sure. If any of this is deductible, does it make sense to deduct on my 2020 taxes without showing any rental income? Any help is appreciated!