2025 TurboTax Online Premier will not recognize or ask relevant questions for a sale of rental property.

[ehorne8512]

My wife and I have spoken with or had online chat with many product specialists or tax experts. TurboTax 2025 online premier is not working for me this year as it did in the last 4 years for reporting a sale of the rental property that we sold in 2025. It does not prompt me with any questions related to a sale of a rental property like prior years.

My wish is that TurboTax works as perfectly for me as it did for 2020 to 2024 returns with rental property ownership. But 2025 Online Premier doesn't give me the prompts like before.

My second wish is that TurboTax management and executives would step forward, recognize the problems, and deploy necessary resources to fix the problems of 2025 TurboTax products. From speaking with 13 experts and based on so many words or lack of words and their reluctance to offer clear answers about the mangers they report to, I have to conclude that the mangers they report to are stopping the problems from getting escalated, and dumping them onto them and customers to fix. It seems that Intuit/TurboTax has successfully created a culture where the management can remain hidden from the public and avoid taking responsibilities. I stand with the experts who are sincere, serious, and eager to help customers like myself and call upon the Intuit executive staff to respond in a responsible and professional manner.

Below is a brief description of what transpired during more than 11 hours logged into my online account and speaking or chatting with 13 experts in tune of 10 hours in the last 4 weeks after TurboTax claims that their last update fixed the problems of data transfer and automatically populating 2025 tax return.

One expert said if I am willing, I can delete the work I've done thus far and start over with a clean slate from the beginning for 2025, then all of the data from previous year about the rental property may transfer correctly. Is this worth trying?

Another suggestion was to delete the rental property that was automatically imported from 2024 and add it back in again from the income section. The reason is because the rental property was imported from 2024 automatically and that data transfer could have been corrupted in some ways. Is this worth trying?

Another suggestion was that the rental property information that should have been automatically transferred and populated into 2025 return didn't happen. So keep the rental property as is, but add just the property as depreciable assets in the Assets section below income and expenses, then it will ask if you sold the property at some point. This expert who took us to the farthest point said that TurboTax didn't save some of our worksheets in prior years, and told us that we need to dig out some paper records. So twice, we had to stop because I don't have all the necessary information from prior years for this process committed to my memory. I'm sure anyone can understand this.

Nearly all of 13 experts who tried to help us to date witnessed that prompts for a sale of rental property never pops up, and also, required forms had not been created when I tried to use the Tools to delete some forms although they saw that the property information for situation "Sold" and days rented was "105 days" according to the date the property was sold and closed. 

With a couple of experts, I was able to go as far as starting to manually re-enter or re-add after deletion, the rental income property to rental and royalty income, income and expenses, assets, purchase, and/or sale information but no one explained in advance, yet, what paper records I need to have from previous years.

We purchased a rental property in 2020 then sold it in December 2021 and bought the second property on 1031 exchange in February 2022 and it was reported in our 2021 tax return, what year tax returns do I need to find from my storage? In 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024, TurboTax online worked nearly flawlessly for me to report these transactions, depreciation, income and expenses. But not 2025.

After some digging online, it became clear that we are not the only ones having this terrible nightmare with TurboTax, and many are searching for answers and alternative options. I am waiting to hear from TurboTax with answers and solution. Is there anyone from TurboTax who can provide a solution? I hope to hear from someone at TurboTax soon with answers and a solution.

[DianeW777]

Yes, TurboTax Online and TurboTax Desktop can handle the Section 1031 (like-kind) exchange. The details and entry are provided for you below.

Depreciation Rules:

The basic concept of a 1031 exchange is that the basis of your Old Property rolls over to your New Property. In other words, if you sold your Old Property for $100,000, and bought your New Property for the same, your basis on the New Property would be the same. It makes sense then that your depreciation schedule would be exactly the same, and does not change! In other words, you continue your depreciation calculations as if you still own the Old Property (your acquisition date, cost, previous depreciation taken, and remaining un-depreciated basis remain the same).

Buy Up: 

If you 'buy up' in your exchange (your New Property cost more than you sold your Old Property), the answer is easy – you treat the buy up part as you would a new addition to an existing property. In other words, you treat the amount of the buy-up the same as you would the cost of construction, for example, of a garage added to an existing house – the cost is the amount of the buy-up; the date you start depreciating it is the date you purchased the new property; and the depreciation method you use is the method most appropriate for that type of property in the year you bought the New Property (regardless of the method you used for the original house). If you think of it this way, then it's easy, even if your property is a large office building or a more complex purchase.

• IRS Fact Sheet-Section 1031

When you have your TurboTax return open you can use the following steps to update the original assets for the exchange.

1. First use the Search (upper right) > Type rentals > Press enter > Click on the Jump to... link
2. Or Wages & Income > Rental Properties and Royalties > Update > Continue to Rental and Royalty Summary > Edit the property
3. Scroll to Assets/Depreciation  > Click Update > Select 'Edit' next to each asset
4. Edit beside each asset > Continue to the Tell Us About This Rental Asset
5. Select the checkbox beside 'This item was sold, retired, .... traded in ....etc. > enter the date it was traded (sold/retired)
   • You can choose not to select this and just change the name of the assets given up in the trade to identify them with the new property. The depreciation for the year will not change on these assets.
6. Answer the question about whether it was 100% business > Leave the original date it was placed in service (may be purchase date or later depending on your circumstances)
7. Continue to the screen 'Confirm Your Prior Depreciation'  
   • The amount displayed is only for prior years and does not include the current year. 
   • Continue until you see the current year amount displayed and make a note to add the two amounts together for the Section 1031 like kind exchange.
   • This completes the asset portion of the trade.
8. Answer 'Yes' to Special Handling.

Next you will complete the like kind exchange, Form 8824 (Section 1031 exchange):

1. Use the Search (upper right) > Type like kind > Press enter > Click on the Jump to... link
2. Select the checkbox beside 'Any additional like-kind exchanges (section 1031)' > Continue
3. Complete the information for the 'Real estate given up'  and 'Like-Kind Property Given Up' > Continue
4. Name the event > Continue > Complete the information for the 'Like-kind property received'
5. If you did not give unlike property in the exchange click 'No' and  continue past these screens, if 'Yes' answer the questions.
6. Enter any exchange expenses (sales expenses) > Continue to see your deferred gain.

If you marked the original assets as sold, traded, etc (see 5. above) then go back to your rental activity and then enter new assets with the exact same information as the property given up with a new name, but with the same date placed in service as the old property, for all assets that are part of the exchange.

Enter a new asset for any buy up/added cash in the exchange including the purchase/selling expenses you paid in the trade. The new asset will begin depreciation on the completion date of the trade/like kind exchange.

These links may be helpful as well: 

• Where do you enter a like-kind  or Section 1031 exchange?
• IRS Instructions for Form 8824

[ehorne8512]

Following these steps does not solve the problem. Thank you for trying.

[DianeW777]

If you want to clarify the exact details that are not fitting into the entry, we can try to help further. Or if you want to send a file for us to review.

If you would like to send us a “diagnostic” file that has your “numbers” but not your personal information it would help.  If you would like to do this, here are the instructions:  (Don't forget to give us the state)

TurboTax Online:

Open your return -Go to the menu panel on the left side of your return and select Tax Tools. 

1. Then select Tools below Tax Tools.
2. A window will pop up which says Tools Center.  
3. On this screen, select Share my file with Agent.
4. You will see a message explaining what the diagnostic copy is.  Click okay through this screen and then you will get a Token number.
5. Reply to this thread with your Token number and your state. This will allow us to open a copy of your return without seeing any personal information.

TurboTax Desktop:

If you like, you can send a copy of your return that will be scrubbed to eliminate your personal data by using these steps:

1. Click on Online in the top left menu of TurboTax Desktop for Windows
2. Select 'Send Tax File to Agent'* > Follow the prompts to reach the token number.
   • Enter your email used for TurboTax > Enter your code > Send
3. Write down or send an image of your token number and state then place in this issue.
4. We can then review your exact scenario for a solution.
5. Please also tell us any states included in the return. This is necessary for us to view the return.
   • *If using a MAC, go to the menu at the top of the screen, select Help, then, 'Send Tax File to Agent')

We will be able to see exactly what you are seeing and we can determine what exactly is going on in your return to provide you with a resolution.

[ehorne8512]

Thank you. I followed the instructions and got on the phone with another expert who is looking into this and helping. Also, looking at our prior year returns together, we found an error in 2021 that carried over to 2025. We'll have a follow up phone conversation to discuss what information is necessary to correct this situation. I also decided to upgrade to Expert Full Service this year. I will file an extension so that no one is rushed. Thanks to the executive team for stepping in to ensure necessary assistance is available as well.

[user17750863983]

I am getting the runaround with TurboTax customer service and Concierge. I was working with a tax “expert” with the turboTax  expert full service plan. I uploaded all the requested documents and had a consult with the preparer. A couple of days after our conversation, the expert  dumped the preparation of my taxes. I received an email by this morning from TurboTax stating that that preparer was unable to work with a 1031. No other explanation and no chat or call from the so-called expert. I then reached out to TurboTax to get some information on how to move forward, and if a different expert could be provided who did have the expertise to prepare my taxes. I was told conflicting information including  that the expert full service plan does not handle any 1031 like kind entries and/or I needed to use the desktop premium app and complete the taxes by myself? This seems illogical. Also, given that TurboTax has had my information since early March and I’m only being notified of any of this on April 1 is very poor service.
The information on how to proceed remains unclear. Is it possible to use the Expert Full Service with a 1031 (very simple- done many years ago, one property, one time exchange) or must I use the desktop software/ platform? OR?

[user17750863983]

IGNORE the previous post. Turns out the preparer “assumed” it was a 1031 exchange - it was not! Had she known how to correctly read the prior year’s documents, I think she would have understood this and avoided this problem. Frustrating. 

[CatinaT1]

Here is a link to contact  Turbo Tax Customer Service. Will TurboTax Expert Full Service cover my tax situation?