Do I need to claim the 15,000 that was left after selling a home?

[kcityroger]

This is the 15,000 dollars that I cleared after the sale of a home do I need to claim this

[Hal_Al · Accepted solution]

No. The $15,000 you cleared is not relevant.

But, you may have to report the capital gain on the sale.  Your capital gain is what you sold it for less what you bought it. The price you bought it for is your cost basis. You can make adjustments, in the cost basis, for the improvements you made and the expenses of sale, but not for the mortgage pay off.

But, he capital gain on the sale of your primary home is not taxable (up to $250K, $500K married). To be eligible you must have lived in and owned the home for at least 2 out of the 5 year prior to sale. You do not even need to report it on your tax return, unless you got a tax document, usually a 1099-S. The 1099-S may have been included in your closing document

[DoninGA]

If you sold your primary personal residence and you lived in and owned the home for at least two years in the five year period on the date of sale, you do not have to report the sale if your gains are less then the exclusion amounts of $250,000 if filing Single or $500,000 if filing Married Filing Jointly (and both lived in the home for two years).  

If you had a gain greater then the exclusion amounts then you would have to report the sale.  Also, if you received a Form 1099-S for the sale either with a gain or a loss, the sale has to be reported.