I own and operate a vacation rental business. Turbo tax directs me to schedule e for the income and expenses on the business. However, how and where do I include earned income for myself for the business? Should the 'business' give me a 1099-misc?

[AnnetteB]

Can you describe what you mean by a vacation rental business?  Do you own the properties that are rented, or just facilitate the rental of properties for other owners?  If you own the properties, do you provide services to the guests such as daily maid service or meals?

[brenda1959lee]

Hi, the house is rented from 1 to 7 days. Then we clean it, do laundry, etc., preparing it for the next guests. We offer services, such as daily cleaning, cooking, and pet care, upon request. (So far, no one has requested those extra services, or when I did check on their pet, I didn't charge extra for it.) I appreciate the help!

[AnnetteB · Accepted solution]

No, the business would not issue you a Form 1099-MISC for your income.

Based on the fact that you do offer significant personal services in addition to the accommodations of your property complicates the situation somewhat.  If you provided these services for every guest instead of giving them the option to choose the services, then you could report the income and expenses on Schedule C instead of Schedule E.  The overall income for the Schedule C business would serve as your “income” and be subject to self-employment tax.  If the business had an overall loss, then the loss would reduce other income items on your return. 

The situation is similar with Schedule E in that any overall income from the rental property will be included on your return as income (not subject to self-employment tax).  However, if there is an overall loss for the rental property, then it would likely be a passive loss (unless you qualified as a real estate professional or met certain income requirements to claim the loss) that would only reduce other passive income or be carried forward to future tax years.