"Writing off" stuff in taxes

[Jon S.]

I keep hearing how I as a very small landlord can just "write off" everything. You know, if my renter doesn't pay rent I can just "write off" the loss rent. And it doesn't matter how much any supplies or maintenance cost because I can just "write it off".

We have an accountant prepare our taxes so I don't know the ins and outs of it. I think I have a very basic understanding of the tax issues, but can someone double check me? 

Incoming rent is income. If I itemize I can deduct maintenance, mortgage interest, and depreciation (which has to be recaptured, albeit in inflated dollars). Unpaid rent is my income going down. Unpaid rent is not a deduction.

When I "write off" something, I don't magically get all of my cost back. It is just a deduction from my income. To keep it simple, if I have $1,000 in maintenance, I don't save a $1,000 in taxes. Say I'm in a 25% marginal tax bracket. My maintenance deduction means that I don't pay taxes on that $1,000.  I save a $250  ( 1,000 * 0.25 ) and that maintenance still cost me $750. 

I keep hearing how much money I'm making and I don't know where it's at.