1031 exchanges, depreciation, tax benefits, entity taxation, deductions, and tax planning strategies.
Master tax strategies & implications with our progressive approach
Foundation terms you need to know first (24 terms)
Accrual basis accounting records revenues when they are earned and expenses when they are incurred, regardless of when cash actually changes hands. This method provides a more accurate picture of a business's financial performance over time.
A tax refund is a reimbursement to taxpayers of excess tax paid to the government. For real estate investors, it represents a potential source of capital for new investments or property improvements.
The marginal tax rate is the tax rate applied to your very last dollar of taxable income. It's crucial for real estate investors to understand how additional income or deductions will impact their tax bill.
A tax credit is a direct reduction in the amount of tax owed, dollar-for-dollar, providing a significant financial benefit to real estate investors by lowering their overall tax liability.
An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is a unique nine-digit number assigned by the IRS to identify a business entity for tax purposes, often required for real estate investment structures like LLCs and partnerships.
Complex strategies and professional concepts (46 terms)
The accounting process of recognizing the estimated cost of an Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) as a liability and capitalizing a corresponding asset, which is then depreciated over its useful life, reflecting the future costs associated with retiring a long-lived asset.
Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT) is a tax levied on the net income of a tax-exempt organization, including certain real estate investment vehicles, derived from a trade or business regularly carried on and not substantially related to its exempt purpose.
Tax-exempt debt refers to bonds or other debt instruments issued by governmental entities or qualified private entities, where the interest earned by the bondholder is exempt from federal, and often state and local, income taxes.
Premium financing is a sophisticated financial strategy where an investor borrows funds from a third-party lender to pay the premiums on a large insurance policy, typically a life insurance policy or substantial commercial property insurance, using the policy itself or other assets as collateral.
A Self-Directed IRA (SDIRA) is a specialized retirement account allowing investors to hold alternative assets like real estate, private equity, and precious metals, offering enhanced control but requiring strict adherence to complex IRS regulations to avoid prohibited transactions and Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT).
Capital Expenditures (CapEx) are significant funds spent by a real estate investor to acquire, upgrade, or extend the useful life of a property, rather than for routine maintenance or operating expenses. These investments enhance the property's value and are typically depreciated over time for tax purposes.
Capital Gains Tax is a tax on the profit realized from the sale of a non-inventory asset, such as real estate, calculated as the difference between the selling price and the adjusted cost basis.
A capital improvement is a permanent addition or alteration to a property that enhances its value, increases its useful life, or adapts it to new uses, rather than merely maintaining its current condition.
The accounting process of recognizing the estimated cost of an Asset Retirement Obligation (ARO) as a liability and capitalizing a corresponding asset, which is then depreciated over its useful life, reflecting the future costs associated with retiring a long-lived asset.
Capitalization of costs is an accounting method where certain expenditures, typically for significant property improvements, are recorded as assets on the balance sheet rather than immediate expenses, allowing them to be depreciated over their useful life.
A Cash Balance Plan is a type of defined benefit retirement plan that combines features of both traditional defined benefit and defined contribution plans, offering high contribution limits and significant tax deferral opportunities.
A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is a licensed and highly qualified accounting professional who provides expert financial and tax services, crucial for real estate investors to navigate complex regulations and optimize their investments.
A Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) is an irrevocable trust that provides an income stream to the grantor or other non-charitable beneficiaries for a specified term, with the remaining assets distributed to a qualified charity upon the trust's termination.
Checkbook control grants the administrator of a self-directed retirement account, typically an IRA or 401(k), direct authority to manage and invest funds by writing checks or initiating electronic transfers from a dedicated LLC, bypassing traditional custodian approvals for each transaction.
Contribution limits are the maximum amounts of money individuals can contribute to various tax-advantaged investment accounts, such as IRAs and 401(k)s, as set by the IRS annually. These limits are designed to regulate tax benefits and ensure equitable access to investment incentives.
Cost Segregation is an IRS-approved tax strategy that reclassifies components of a commercial or residential rental property into shorter depreciation schedules, accelerating tax deductions and boosting immediate cash flow for real estate investors.
Debt recycling is an advanced financial strategy where non-tax-deductible debt, typically a primary home mortgage, is converted into tax-deductible debt by using the equity to acquire income-producing assets.
Explore complementary areas that build on tax strategies & implications concepts
Personal budgeting, expense tracking, cash flow management, emergency funds, and savings strategies.
Credit scores, debt consolidation, loan management, credit repair, and debt payoff strategies.
Macroeconomic concepts, interest rates, inflation, Federal Reserve policy, and economic cycles.
Wills, trusts, estate taxes, succession planning, beneficiary planning, and wealth preservation.