Is the sale of a vacation home a capital gain?
Mia Phillips
Updated on March 16, 2026
A second home, or a timeshare, used as a vacation home is a personal use capital asset. A gain on the sale is reportable income, but a loss is NOT deductible.
What’s the tax rate for selling a vacation home?
For 2018, the 39.6 percent tax bracket begins at $418,400 for single people and $470,700 for married couples. To figure out your capital gains tax on the sale of your vacation home, you can do more than just subject the basis, or what you paid for the property, and the amount for which you sold it.
How to report the sale of a vacation home?
To enter the sale of your vacation home in TaxAct: From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop), click on the Federal tab. On smaller devices, click in the upper left-hand corner, then select Federal. Click Investment Income to expand the category and then click Gain or loss on sale of investments Click Capital gain or loss (Form 1099-B)
How to adjust loss on sale of vacation home?
If the result of the sale of your vacation home is a loss, then you will need to adjust the basis so no loss is reported. On the screen titled Investment Sales – Adjustment Code(s), select L – Other Non-Deductible Loss (including Personal Loss) from the drop-down list, and enter the adjustment amount equal to the loss.
What happens when you sell a vacation home?
In that case, the property is deemed to automatically “roll over” (i.e., transfer) at its ACB and no gain will be immediately reportable. On the other hand, parents may wish to give the vacation property to their kids. Doing so will result in an immediate capital gain if the property has gone up in value since the date of acquisition.
Where do I enter the sale of my vacation home on my taxes?
To enter the sale of your vacation home in TaxAct: From within your TaxAct return (Online or Desktop), click on the Federal tab. On smaller devices, click in the upper left-hand corner, then select Federal. Click Investment Income to expand the category and then click Gain or loss on sale of investments.
Is there a way to pay for a vacation home?
Tom and Linda are thinking about cashing out a $200,000 401 (k), their only retirement savings, to pay for the vacation home. This would be a terrible way to pay for a vacation home, and here’s why: If you’re younger than 59 1/2, you’ll take a 10% early withdrawal penalty hit. You’ll owe taxes to the IRS.
How are taxes calculated when selling a vacation home?
If you’re selling a vacation home that you haven’t ever rented out, the taxation will be similar to that of a second home. The taxes will be calculated based on the sale price, less what you paid for the property (your tax basis). Just like a second home, the tax rate will be based on whether the property was held for more or less than a year.
What happens when you sell your vacation home?
So if you lost money on stocks and bonds, sell them when you sell your house to offset some of your house gain. If you leave a vacation home to children or others in your will, their basis becomes what the home is worth when they inherit it.