CHAPTER 8 Inherited Home Sales & Taxes
Selling an inherited home may involve taxes on that home, as special tax rules apply if the house you are selling is inherited. Some people are under the impression that the money received on the sale of an inherited property is tax exempt, while others believe they will owe capital gains tax on any sale above the amount the will maker paid for the house. Others wonder, if you inherit a home, does the $250,000/$500,000 Home Sale Tax Exclusion apply to the sale of the property? We will examine those issues here.
CAPITAL GAINS AND INHERITED HOUSES
Tax laws give homeowners a tax exclusion upon the sale of their property of up to $250,000 of any gain from such a sale received by a single homeowner. Married homeowners filing jointly get an exclusion from income of up to $500,000 of gain. To qualify for the exclusion, the home must have been used as the primary residence for two years out of the prior five years before the sale. Therefore, unless the inheritor moves into the house as the primary residence for two years, the tax exclusion is not available. However, the stepped-up basis rules in inherited property may help your tax situation in selling an inherited home. Let’s start with what “basis” is. In real estate, basis is the amount your home or other property is worth for tax purposes. When the 55
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