Is it better to list my home as a primary resuidence or is it better to list it as an investment property?

[AmandaR1 · Accepted solution]

You should report the home based on how you used it. If it's where you live; it's your primary residence. If you also rent it, then it's part-personal/part-rental and you can set it up in the rental property section, as such. If you only rent the property, then it's a rental and not a primary residence. You must live there for it to be your primary residence.

When you sell a house that qualifies as primary residence, you can defer up to $250,000/$500,000 of gain on the sale. To qualify you must have lived in the house for 2 out of the past 5 years. The software will ask you the related questions. If the house has ever been a rental property, there's additional adjustments to the gain or loss calculation.