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Schedule E for landlords: a line-by-line guide
Schedule E (Form 1040), Part I is where individual landlords report rental income and expenses, one column per property. Here's what each line means, based on the IRS instructions.
Updated October 2026. General information for US landlords, not tax or legal advice.
Before you start
- Use one column (A, B, C) per property. If you have more than three properties, attach more Schedules E, but fill in the totals (lines 23a–26) on only one of them.
- A single-member LLC is usually disregarded for federal tax purposes, so its rentals still go on your Schedule E.
- If you provide significant services to tenants (such as maid service), the activity may belong on Schedule C instead.
The lines
| Line | What goes there |
|---|---|
| A / B | Did you make payments that require Forms 1099 (e.g. to a contractor), and did you or will you file them? The 2025 instructions use a $600 threshold for most payments; check the current year's instructions. |
| 1a | Property address. |
| 1b | Type of property (code 1 = single family, 2 = multi-family, 3 = vacation/short-term, etc.). |
| 2 | Fair rental days and personal use days, plus the QJV box for qualifying spouses. |
| 3 | Rents received, including advance rent, fees and deposits you keep. |
| 4 | Royalties (not rentals). |
| 5–19 | Expenses by category: advertising, auto & travel, cleaning & maintenance, commissions, insurance, legal & professional, management, mortgage interest, other interest, repairs, supplies, taxes, utilities, depreciation, other. |
| 20 | Total expenses. |
| 21 | Income or (loss): line 3 + 4 − line 20. |
| 22 | Deductible rental real estate loss after the passive-loss limit (Form 8582, if required). |
| 23a–23e | Totals across all properties: rents, royalties, mortgage interest, depreciation, total expenses. |
| 24–26 | Total income, total losses, and the net that carries to Schedule 1 (Form 1040). |
Expense lines and what belongs on them
| Line | Category | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Advertising | Listing sites, signs, ads, tenant-screening service fees |
| 6 | Auto & travel | Standard mileage (or actual costs) for rental trips, parking, tolls; 50% of meals when traveling away from home |
| 7 | Cleaning & maintenance | Turnover cleaning, lawn care, snow removal, pest control |
| 8 | Commissions | Leasing agent or rental commissions |
| 9 | Insurance | Landlord/dwelling policy, liability, flood |
| 10 | Legal & professional fees | Tax prep for the rental, attorney, eviction filings (not fees to buy or defend title: those are capitalized) |
| 11 | Management fees | Property manager's percentage and leasing fees |
| 12 | Mortgage interest (banks) | Interest from Form 1098; principal is never deductible |
| 13 | Other interest | Seller-financed or private loans, credit card interest for rental costs |
| 14 | Repairs | Fixing what's broken: leak, lock, broken window pane, patching drywall, repainting a room |
| 15 | Supplies | Smoke detectors, filters, bulbs, small tools and hardware |
| 16 | Taxes | Property taxes on the rental; payroll taxes if you have employees |
| 17 | Utilities | Water, sewer, trash, gas, electric you pay; rental-related phone calls |
| 18 | Depreciation | Building over 27.5 years; improvements and appliances on their own schedules (Form 4562) |
| 19 | Other | HOA dues, bank fees, software, licenses and permits, amortized loan points |
Rules that trip people up
- Personal use. If you used the unit as a home (personal use of more than the greater of 14 days or 10% of fair-rental days) and rented it fewer than 15 days, you don't report the rent or deduct rental expenses. Otherwise, split expenses between rental and personal days.
- Repairs vs. improvements. Repairs go on line 14. Improvements that better, restore or adapt the property are capitalized and depreciated on line 18.
- Form 4562 is required for property first placed in service this year, for listed property such as a vehicle, and whenever you claim auto expenses.
- Mileage. Standard mileage was 70¢ for 2025. For 2026 it's 72.5¢ through June 30 and 76¢ from July 1. Parking and tolls are added on top.
- Passive losses. Rental losses are usually passive. If you actively participate, up to $25,000 of losses can offset other income. The allowance phases out between $100,000 and $150,000 of modified AGI (Pub 925). Above that, losses carry forward.
- Mortgage interest. Interest from Form 1098 goes on line 12. Interest on loans from individuals goes on line 13. Points are deducted over the life of the loan.
Making Schedule E easy
Record each transaction under a category that maps to a line, all year long. The free template does this for one property, and the Rental Property Tracker builds the full Part I, including depreciation and mileage, for up to 10 properties.
Sources: IRS Instructions for Schedule E (Form 1040); Pub 527; Pub 925; Pub 946; IRS standard mileage rates.
FAQ
Who files Schedule E?
Individuals who receive rental real estate income (along with royalties, partnership and S corporation income, and more). Landlords use Part I.
Do I need a separate Schedule E for each property?
No. Each form has three property columns. Attach more forms if you have more than three properties, and put the combined totals on one of them.
Where does depreciation go?
Line 18, from Form 4562 or your depreciation schedule. Use the 27.5-year depreciation calculator to estimate it.
Can rental losses offset my W-2 income?
Possibly, up to $25,000 if you actively participate and your modified AGI is under $100,000, with a phase-out up to $150,000. See IRS Pub 925 and Form 8582.