It is not unusual to not receive a 1099-S form. You can ask the closing attorney if one is being sent, but do not request one if its not needed. If you receive the form, you must enter the sale on your tax return. If you don't receive the form and you qualify for gain exclusion (see below), then the sale does not need to be entered on your return.
Gain exclusion:
You may qualify to exclude from income all or part of any gain from the sale of your primary residence if you meet ownership and use tests. This means for the 5-year period ending with the sale of the home, you lived in it as your main home and you owned it for 2 years.
If you meet both tests, you may exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 on joint returns) of gain from your income, and you would not report it on your return.
Do not report the sale of your main home on your tax return unless:
My wife and I sold our main home in 2019 which we lived in since the late 90's, and never rented. No 1099-S was completed or sent in to IRS. Gains from the sale were less than the
$250,000 of that gain from your income. You may qualify to exclude up to $500,000 of that gain if you file a joint return with your spouse. Question is, with several conflicting answers is, do we need to report this on our tax reporting? Or, can it go unreported based on the above. Many thanks BTW - we purchased our current main home in the same county and state. What sayeth the IRS on this? Thanks
Thank You - No heartburn from the IRS?
One of those questions where in doing research we see No, and we also see "Why Not Do It Anyway". If I read the IRS guidance, it appears to say, Do Not File and Do Not enter.
If you are POSITIVE there is no 1099-S, you do NOT need to enter it.
However, in some cases a 1099-S is buried in the closing paperwork, so it is often suggested to report it in case a 1099-S does exist (if a 1099-S exists and you don't report the sale, you will get an IRS notice).
From a tax standpoint, it is perfectly acceptable and common to report the home sale, even if it not required.
Thank You.... This is where for us it gets confusing. A should we or should we not. It seems some IRS publications say Do Not, if no 1099-S is issued, and we fulfill the other conditions. But so many trying to offer suggestions and help, seem split on the issue. Some feel just do it anyway. We looked over our closing documents. What we have is a "Certification For No Information Reporting On The Sale Or Exchange Of A Principle Residence". It is a 2-page 3-part document with "Yes" and "No" answers.
It appears you do not need to report the sale of your home. Here is the IRS Publication that lists the requirements.
"You need to report the gain if ANY of the following is true.
You have taxable gain on your home sale (or on the residential portion of your property if you made separate calculations for home and business) and don’t qualify to exclude all of the gain.
You received a Form 1099-S. If so, you must report the sale even if you have no taxable gain to report.
You wish to report your gain as a taxable gain even though some or all of it is eligible for exclusion. You may wish to do this if, for example, you plan to sell another main home within the next 2 years and are likely to receive a larger gain from the sale of that property. If you choose to report, rather than exclude, your taxable gain, you can undo that choice by filing an amended return within 3 years of the due date of your return for the year of the sale, excluding extensions."
Of course as bullet three and others have mentioned you may report the sale if you wish for any reason.
The general rules are this:
- If you receive a 1099-S then you are required to report the sale *no* *matter* *what*
- If you do not receive a 1099-S and your gain on the sale qualifies to be 100% excluded from taxes, then you do not need to report it on your federal tax return. But you can if you want.
Now if at any time during your ownership of the property you claimed any type of business use such as a home office or renting it, or renting out a room, then while all of your gain may or may not be excluded from taxation, you are required to report the sale. That's because any depreciation you took on the property is recaptured and taxed. Recaptured depreciation is "NOT" included in the "2 of last 5" capital gains exclusion rules.
Thank You - To All and Everyone
To confirm, we do not appear to have a 1099-S. What we do have in it's place is a "Certification For No Information Reporting On The Sale Or Exchange Of A Principle Residence". It is a 2-page 3-part document with "Yes" and "No" answers. We lived in it since the late 90's as our main home. Never renter or used as business.
It sounds like even the IRS does not want us to report same - unless necessary. We are just trying to be sure.
thanks
Your last comments strike me as emphatic and specific..... While I truly appreciate all of the returns on this question, that many have and question when the time comes.... your last lines strike a cord
"Do not report the sale of your main home on your tax return unless:"
Thank You - To All and Everyone
To confirm, we do not appear to have a 1099-S. What we do have in it's place is a "Certification For No Information Reporting On The Sale Or Exchange Of A Principle Residence". It is a 2-page 3-part document with "Yes" and "No" answers. We lived in it since the late 90's as our main home. Never renter or used as business. It sounds like even the IRS does not want us to report same - unless necessary. We are just trying to be sure. thanks
If you did not receive a 1099-S, qualify for the exclusion and have no business or rental use you do not need to report the sale unless you want to. It is your choice at that point.
Does it need to be reported to the state if it doesn't need to be reported to the federal gov't?
Back in 2012, my mother deeded her house to my sister and I. My mother continued to live there until 2019. Then my sister and I sold the house on May 2020. I haven't received a 1099-S. Is there a reason for this?
Not all title companies report the sale of property on Form 1099-S. If you receive one, you have to report it on your return. If you don't receive one, do not be concerned.
From @PaulaM :
It is not unusual to not receive a 1099-S form. You can ask the closing attorney if one is being sent, but do not request one if its not needed. If you receive the form, you must enter the sale on your tax return. If you don't receive the form and you qualify for gain exclusion (see below), then the sale does not need to be entered on your return.
Gain exclusion:
You may qualify to exclude from income all or part of any gain from the sale of your primary residence if you meet ownership and use tests. This means for the 5-year period ending with the sale of the home, you lived in it as your main home and you owned it for 2 years.
If you meet both tests, you may exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 on joint returns) of gain from your income, and you would not report it on your return.
Do not report the sale of your main home on your tax return unless:
Thank you for the quick response! Yes, I am just concerned because the house was never a primary residence. And it was titled under my sister's name and myself, not a married couple.... The house did sell for $315,000... I just do not want the IRS knocking on my back door! LOL!
Hello!
This might not be the place to ask this but I am having a lot of trouble getting an answer to this.
My mother passed away in August 2019. We sold her home in March of 2021.
Is the revenue from the sale taxable? If so, how to I file that tax? I am the executor and the beneficiary of the estate.
Yes, if there is revenue from the house, It must be reported as a sale and you may need to pay capital gains on the sale. To report the sale, you will need to know the Fair Market Value of the house at death and then the proceeds received from the sale. Most of the time, these two amounts are identical resulting in very little capital gains to you, the beneficiary.
That is VERY helpful, thank you. Is this done through my own taxes? I just report it as additional income? I didn't receive any tax forms form anyone...
You mentioned that you sold the inherited home in March 2021, so you will report the sale on next year's return.
You will enter the info in the investment section of TurboTax. Please check the link below for information on how to report the sale of inherited home.
Where do I enter the sale of a second home, an inherited home, or land on my 2020 taxes?
Hello,
We have a slightly different situation and would appreciate any advice you could offer.
- My sister and I bought a house together in 2013, sold it in 2020 (with less than $250k gain).
- We both lived there; she longer than I and I did not live there a full 2 years of the last 5.
- During closing, we signed "1099-S Reporting" Forms (her form ticked the box for principal residence; my form has 'other real estate'. The attorney also had us sign a form "NJ Seller's Residency Certification/Exemption" on which they ticked "the property sold is used exclusively as a principal residence as defined in 26 US Code section 121."
- Neither of us received 1099-Ss from the title company.
Question:
- Do we both need to file this sale on our 2020 taxes?
- OK to call title company just to see if they filed a 1099-S?
Many thanks!
@TMOBV Yes to both your questions. Call the title company to see whether they filed a Form 1099-S with the IRS and get a copy (or at least the numbers) so the gross proceeds on the 1099-S match what is reported to the IRS.
TurboTax receives numerous calls from taxpayers who receive IRS notices based on 1099s that they received a copy of.
That brings me to your other question. If your gain is below $250,000 you do not have to report the sale of a principal residence, but doing so heads off a potential IRS notice. If you fail to report the sale and get an IRS notice, you'll have to file an amended tax return to report $0 gain. It's better to do it now to avoid any surprises later since the notice will say you owe tens of thousands of dollars (since the IRS assumes you paid nothing for your house).
If you choose to report the sale, tick the box that said you received a 1099-S (even if you did not). That prompts TurboTax to report the sale on your tax return.
Thanks!
We called the title company and they will forward us a copy of the 1099-S.
Yes, to avoid any confusion, I figured that if I am reporting my half of the sale, then my sister probably should as well even if she is exempt from CGT on any profit.
@TMOBV Wonderful! Yes. You should both report you halves of the sale. It may feel unnecessary because nothing is taxable, but the IRS computers pick up 1099-Ss and spit out notices.
With the IRS still short staffed because of COVID-19 it's very difficult to get anyone over there to answer the phone and there's months of taxpayer mail sitting in trailers, It's worth being proactive.