Tax breaks on a rental

[lbrackett]

I am in the process of filling out the details for my rental (first year,) and I do not understand the final aspect, which asks about the home's depreciation. I have googled and reviewed "the formula," but I am still puzzled as to what information is required for each box (there are about 6 on Turbo Tax.) I am also unsure if I should even claim the depreciation, as a few sites state that it is not mandatory. The jargon is honestly a bit much. Any help is appreciated.

[KarenL]

You will definitely want to claim the depreciation.  The reason is that the IRS has a rule about it referred to as "allowed or allowable" depreciation. What this means for you, is that when you later sell the property (for a profit) there is something called Depreciation Recapture.  Any deprecation "allowed or allowable" is recaptured at the time of the sale, whether or not you actually claimed it.

As far as TurboTax software goes, you will enter the rental property as an Asset in the rental section.  The software will do the calculations for you.  Essentially, if it is a residential single family home, it is  Straight Line Depreciation over 27.5 years.  As you enter the Asset, there will be blue text links on many of the screens that will give you more help and explanations as well. 

If you still have a specific question you need help with how to answer, please post it and we can help you out.