First time investing into real estate. I am in the stages of purchasing a property with a traditional loan, then transferring ownership to an LLC to protect my personal assets.
Once the home is under the LLC Ownership, am I able to deduct expenses/mortgage interest payments from my own personal W2? I am currently employed.
Rental Property Investor · SE Michigan · Member since 2014 · 4k+ posts · 6k+ votes
2y
If you have a good CPA, realistically, the only additional deductions you get for putting a property in an LLC are the costs associated with creating and maintaining the LLC. Therefore, there is no real tax benefit to having an LLC.
You may also want to have a discussion with your attorney on the real level of protection you would receive from this strategy in your state. It would seem that in a lawsuit, a good attorney could argue that if the loan is in your name, but the property is in the LLC, there is no legal separation between you or the LLC and therefore the LLC could be disregarded.
Rental Property Investor · SE Michigan · Member since 2014 · 4k+ posts · 6k+ votes
2y
If you have a good CPA, realistically, the only additional deductions you get for putting a property in an LLC are the costs associated with creating and maintaining the LLC. Therefore, there is no real tax benefit to having an LLC.
You may also want to have a discussion with your attorney on the real level of protection you would receive from this strategy in your state. It would seem that in a lawsuit, a good attorney could argue that if the loan is in your name, but the property is in the LLC, there is no legal separation between you or the LLC and therefore the LLC could be disregarded.
Investor · Baltimore, MD · Member since 2008 · 17k+ posts · 13k+ votes
2y
@Jonathan Rosario I see this strategy mentioned all the time. I would not consider this without discussing it with both an attorney and CPA specifically familliar with the strategy and the risks.
Lots of issues to consider like title insurance, due on sale, comingling of funds, IRS red flags etc.
Of course it is a personal decision for each investor to make, but personally I think it is a really stupid idea.
Property Manager · Grants Pass, OR · Member since 2009 · 429 posts · 201 votes
2y
+1 to what @Greg Scott mentioned. Since LLC is pass-through, it just gets reported on the same Schedule-C as always. You just have the added costs of an LLC. Plus consider your commercial insurance costs in the LLC are going to likely be higher than a personal landlord policy.
The LLC does provide a layer of protection, but there's a lot of discussion all over BP and elsewhere about if that protection is better than just having a good insurance policy in the first place.
First time investing into real estate. I am in the stages of purchasing a property with a traditional loan, then transferring ownership to an LLC to protect my personal assets.
Once the home is under the LLC Ownership, am I able to deduct expenses/mortgage interest payments from my own personal W2? I am currently employed.
Yes it can come off of your w-2!
I do this every year, caviat is that it must be a single member llc, then you can combine it with your w-2 and deduct losses from your taxable income.