Hub

Money & Taxes

Real estate is treated differently by the tax code than most other income — not as a loophole, but as a deliberate set of policy choices about housing. This hub is an overview of the concepts worth understanding: depreciation, what's deductible, how the primary-residence rules interact with a property you're partly renting out, and what changes at the moment you sell or move out.

A house hack sits in a genuinely interesting position for tax purposes, because part of the property is your home and part is a rental — which means some of this gets allocated between the two rather than falling cleanly on one side. That allocation is exactly why record-keeping matters more here than in a straightforward rental.

Every article in this hub carries the same honest disclaimer, and it's worth saying plainly up front: I'm a real estate agent, not a CPA. This is general education about how these concepts work, meant to make your actual conversation with a tax professional far more useful — not a substitute for having that conversation. The specifics depend on your income, your entity structure, and rules that change. Treat this as the map, not the advice.

Start here

The Tax Benefits of Real Estate, in Plain English

An overview of why rental property is treated differently for tax purposes — depreciation, deductible expenses, and the concepts worth understanding before you call a CPA.

Depreciation, Explained Without the Jargon

What depreciation is, why it's a deduction you didn't spend cash on, and the recapture catch on the back end that most explanations leave out.

How Depreciation Works on a House Hack

You live in part of the property and rent the rest — how the split generally works, what gets allocated, and why records matter more in a house hack.

What Expenses Can You Deduct on a House Hack?

How expenses generally split between personal and rental use when you rent out part of your home — plus the repair vs improvement distinction people get wrong.

What to Track for Your CPA — All Year, Not in April

The records that make tax time easy for a house hack — what to keep, how to split shared expenses, and the notes that are impossible to reconstruct later.

What Changes Tax-Wise When You Move Out of Your House Hack

Converting a house hack to a full rental is the biggest tax moment in the property's life. What shifts, and why to plan it before you move rather than after.

The Primary Residence Rules and Why House Hackers Should Care Early

There are provisions for gain on the sale of a primary residence. How they interact with a property you've also been renting, and why timing matters.

Capital Gains, Explained Plainly

What capital gains tax actually applies to, the difference between short and long term, and the common misconceptions that cause bad decisions.

The 1031 Exchange, in General Terms

What a 1031 exchange is, the strict timelines involved, why you can't touch the money, and where it fits for a house hacker eventually selling a rental.

Real Estate Professional Status, Explained

What REP status is, why investors talk about it, the general shape of the qualification tests, and why it's far harder to claim than the internet suggests.

How all of this applies changes depending on who you are and where you are in life.

See the meetup schedule Join the Facebook group