Can I write off a washer/dryer purchase on my taxes if I own & rent a home?

Heresheis111
Heresheis111 Member Posts: 7 Newcomer
edited January 15 in Credits/Deductions

I own & live in my home but I also rent out rooms in it. My washer & dryer broke. Can I write off the new ones to pay for it & if so will I get the full amount back as long as I owe the total in taxes?

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  • Taxlady06
    Taxlady06 FreeTaxUSA Agent Posts: 59
    Answer ✓

    If you rent out part of your home and the washer and dryer are part of the home that is available to be used by your renters, a portion of the expense would be considered a rental expense.

    Because washer and dryers have a useful life of more than one year, these would be considered a depreciable asset. Depreciation is an annual income tax deduction that allows you to recover the cost or other basis of certain property over the time you use the property. It is an allowance for the wear and tear, deterioration, or obsolescence of the property.

    In your situation you will need to determine how much of the cost of the appliances applies to the rental activity. For example, if you own a two-bedroom home and rent out one of the bedrooms and share all of the living spaces (including the laundry), 50% of the cost of the washer and dryer would be applicable to your rental activity.

    You can then list the washer and dryer in the Rental Income section as a Depreciable Asset. You will enter the cost of the items based on the rental usage. We will calculate the depreciation based on the information entered and this will be included as a rental expense to reduce your taxable rental income.

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  • kiarab
    kiarab FreeTaxUSA Agent Posts: 59

    Hello,

    Items for personal use are generally not deductible. If the washer and dryer was used by your renters, then you may be able to deduct the percentage used by the renters. For example, say you had three renters and you all used it equally. You would then be able to deduct 75% of the cost.

    Usually, you claim it by depreciating the asset. This means you claim a bit of the cost every year until the useful life span of the asset has ended. By the end, you should have deducted the business use percentage of the cost of the asset. The software will have a space for you to enter depreciable assets (which are generally things that are expected to be used for more than one year).

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