It is showing I'm not eligible for a tax exclusion on the sale of my home. However, I lived in the home for over 2 years. Can you please explain?

[1319nash]

We moved in 5/2018, sold in 11/2020. Do I have to pay taxes on the gains or am I excluded because I lived in the home for over 2 years?

[HelenC12]

Generally, no, you won't pay taxes on the sale of your personal residence if you meet the requirements. If your gain is above the exclusion, yes, a part of it may be taxable. Review your entries. Perhaps you entered a wrong date or amount. Below are the instructions to enter the sale of your personal residence.

You won't pay taxes on the first $250,000 (also known as a gain) you make from the sale of your home. If you're Married Filing Jointly, you won't pay taxes on the first $500,000.

That income is free and clear as long as:

• You owned the home.
• It was your main home for two years or more within the five years leading up to the sale.
• You waited at least two years between selling your primary home and excluding your first $250,000 or $500,000 from taxes. In other words, you may buy and sell as many primary homes as you'd like, but you'll only get this tax benefit every two years.

TurboTax will show you if your home sale is taxable.

1. Open or continue your return in TurboTax.
2. Search for home sale.
3. Select the Jump to link in the search results.
4. Answer Yes to Did you sell or have your home foreclosed in 2019? on the Sale of Your Main Home screen.
5. Follow the instructions to enter your info.

[Carl]

Counting back from the closing date of the sale, if the home was "not" your primary residence for at least 24 of the last 60 months you owned it, then you do not qualify for the exclusion.

In days, that would be 731 days of the last 1826 days you owned the property, with the day count starting from the date you closed on the sale.