Rent and Royalty Summary

[arulli1948]

I sold a rental property in June 2019 that was vacant the entire period prior to the sale. The property was advertised For Rent and For Sale though we found a buyer first. While preparing my 2019 return, I did not report any rent activity under the Rent and royalty Summary section and reported the sale under Business Items, Sale of Business, and deleted the property from the Rent and Royalty. Did I do this correctly? Since I deleted the property and did not report any rental activity activity in 2019, there was no depreciation calculated for 2019.  

After completing my return, I received feedback that I should have treated the property as a rental property prior to the sale, then report the sale under Business Items, Sale of Business Property. Is this correct? If so, can I re-add the property to the Rent and Royalty Summary and can I import all prior years data (i.e. cost basis, and depreciation)? For the six months the property was vacant I still had expenses to pay; utilities, insurance, etc which I understand are not a deductible expense when selling the property.   

[DaveF1006]

To make sure this is clean, please delete all of your information from before and follow these steps in entering all of your rental information, including the expenses and sale.

1. In TurboTax, go to federal>wages and income>see all income>Rentals, Royalties, and Farm>Rental Properties and Royalties (Sch E)>start or revisit
2. Answer Yes to the question Did you have any rental or royalty income and expenses in 2019 for property you own?
3.  
4. Follow the on-screen instructions as you proceed through the rental and royalties section.
   • We'll ask you to enter general information about your rental (like description, address, and ownership percentage)
   • You will eventually reach a screen that says Do Any of These Situations Apply to This Property? here is where you indicate you sold the property. Then you will enter information about how long it was rented .
   • Eventually, you'll come to the Rental Summary screen, which is where you enter your rental income and expenses, assets and depreciation, and vehicle expenses.

[arulli1948]

Dave, 

I deleted the sale info though I do not understand step 1 of your instructions. I and am at the Step by Step screen, Your 2019 Income Summary>Rental Properties and Royalties>Update. There is another rental property listed. I do not see Start or Revisit option, only Add Another Rental or Royalty.

[LindaB1993 · Accepted solution]

Based on your situation, you are "adding" the property in the rental section.  You should then recreate the information before you deleted it as rental property.

Then you proceed to the disposition worksheet  within the Asset/depreciation section and record the sale.