I've been following this thread closely as I'm dealing with my own HOA assessment situation - $7,200 for plumbing repairs and upgrades in my rental condo building. Reading everyone's experiences has been incredibly educational! One thing I wanted to add based on my recent research: if your special assessment includes any costs for legal settlements or judgments (like in your case with the litigation), those legal costs might have different tax treatment than the actual repair costs. From what I've learned, legal fees related to defending or maintaining rental property can often be deducted immediately, even if the underlying repairs need to be capitalized. Also, I noticed several people mentioned getting detailed breakdowns from their HOAs. In my experience, if your HOA is managed by a professional management company, they're usually more organized about providing detailed expense allocations than self-managed HOAs. It might be worth asking specifically for the "capital vs. operating expense breakdown" - that's the language that tends to get you the information you need for tax purposes. The $13,000 hit is definitely painful, but getting the tax treatment right could save you hundreds or even thousands in taxes depending on how much of it qualifies for immediate deduction versus depreciation. Definitely worth the extra effort to get proper documentation!

This is such a helpful discussion! I'm relatively new to rental property ownership and dealing with my first major HOA assessment - $6,500 for roof repairs and gutter replacement on my rental townhouse. Reading through everyone's experiences here has really opened my eyes to how important it is to get proper documentation from the HOA before filing taxes. I initially just planned to deduct the whole amount as a rental expense, but now I understand I need to determine what portion is repairs versus improvements. One question I have - several people mentioned requesting HOA meeting minutes. Is there a standard way to request these, or does it vary by HOA? Mine is self-managed by the board members, so I'm not sure if they even keep detailed minutes of their discussions about assessments. Also, for those who've been through this process, about how long did it take to get the detailed breakdown from your HOA? I'm trying to figure out if I should file an extension to make sure I get this right, or if HOAs typically respond quickly to these requests. Thanks to everyone for sharing their experiences - this community is such a valuable resource for navigating these complex rental property tax situations!

I'm really sorry for your loss, Dmitri. This is such a difficult situation to navigate while you're grieving. From my experience as a tax preparer, you're absolutely right that you can file married filing jointly for their final return since they were married at the time of death. Here are a few additional things to keep in mind: 1. Make sure to get a federal tax ID number (EIN) for each estate if you haven't already - you'll need these for any estate tax returns or if the estates generate income after death. 2. Check if they had any estimated tax payments due for 2024. As executor, you'll need to make those payments to avoid penalties on their final return. 3. Don't forget about state taxes - you'll likely need to file final state returns as well, and some states have different rules for deceased taxpayers. 4. If they had any joint bank accounts or investment accounts, make sure you understand which income gets reported on their final personal return versus potential estate returns. The IRS Publication 559 has detailed guidance on tax issues for survivors, decedents, and estates. It's dense reading but covers scenarios exactly like yours. You're doing the right thing by being thorough about this.

I'm sorry for your loss, Dmitri. This is definitely a complex situation, but you're on the right track asking these questions. One important detail I haven't seen mentioned yet - since your sister passed in March and her husband in October, you'll need to be careful about how you handle any income or deductions that occurred between those dates. Income that your brother-in-law received between March (when your sister died) and October (when he passed) should still be included on their joint final return, but you'll want to make sure you're not double-counting anything. Also, if either of them had health insurance premiums or medical expenses that were paid after your sister's March death but before your brother-in-law's October death, those can still be deducted on the joint return since they were still married filing jointly for the full tax year. The IRS Form 1041 instructions have a helpful section on "Income in Respect of a Decedent" that might be relevant if they had any retirement accounts or other assets that generated income after death. It's worth reviewing even if you end up not needing to file estate returns. You're doing a great job handling this responsibility during such a difficult time.

I went through a very similar situation when I had knee surgery in Mexico last year! The good news is that your deviated septum surgery absolutely qualifies for the medical expense deduction, and the IRS doesn't discriminate between domestic and foreign medical care. A few things that helped me navigate this process: 1. **Currency conversion**: I used the daily exchange rates from the Federal Reserve or IRS website for each payment date. Keep screenshots of the rates you used as backup documentation. 2. **Documentation**: Since you mentioned having everything translated to English, you're already ahead of the game. I also created a simple spreadsheet listing each expense, the original currency amount, exchange rate used, and USD equivalent. 3. **Travel expenses**: Since your trip was purely medical (not vacation + medical), you can likely deduct airfare, ground transportation to/from medical facilities, and reasonable lodging during recovery (up to $50/night as another commenter mentioned). 4. **Pre-authorization**: If you have any documentation from a US doctor recommending the surgery or stating it was medically necessary, keep that with your records. It strengthens your case if questioned. With your $58K AGI, you'll need to exceed $4,350 (7.5%) to start benefiting from the deduction, and at $9,800+ you're well over that threshold. Just use Schedule A and you should be good to go. The key is thorough documentation - which it sounds like you already have!

This is such a timely question! I actually just went through this exact situation when I had gallbladder surgery in Thailand last year. The cost difference was incredible - what would have been $25,000+ in the US cost me about $8,000 including travel. A few additional points that haven't been mentioned yet: **Medical tourism documentation**: Since you specifically traveled for medical care, keep your travel itinerary and any medical tourism agency paperwork if you used one. This helps establish that the trip was purely medical. **Follow-up care**: Don't forget that any follow-up care you received back in the US related to your Costa Rica surgery is also deductible. This includes post-op visits with your regular doctor, any complications treatment, or physical therapy. **Payment methods**: If you paid with a credit card, the currency conversion on your statements can serve as backup documentation for exchange rates. I found this really helpful for smaller incidental expenses. **State taxes**: Check if your state also allows medical expense deductions - some states have different thresholds or rules than federal. Your situation sounds very straightforward since it was clearly medically necessary and you have good documentation. The fact that you got quotes in the US first actually strengthens your case - it shows you explored domestic options before going abroad for financial reasons, which is completely legitimate. Good luck with your return! Medical tourism is becoming more common and the IRS is well-equipped to handle these situations.

Wow, this thread has been absolutely invaluable! I'm dealing with almost the exact same situation - multi-member LLC with rental properties and I've been going in circles trying to figure out the proper reporting structure. What really helped me understand this was the explanation that Form 8825 is essentially like a "rental property Schedule E" that attaches to the partnership return. That mental framework makes so much sense! Our previous CPA also put property depreciation directly on Form 1065, so it sounds like this is a common mistake. I'm particularly interested in the Section 754 election that @Sasha Ivanov mentioned. Our partnership is stable now, but we're planning to add properties and potentially new partners over the next few years. It sounds like this election could be important for our situation, but I need to research it more. One question I haven't seen addressed: if we're using bonus depreciation on any of our rental properties (like for qualifying improvements), does that also get reported on Form 8825? I assume it would follow the same rule as regular depreciation, but I want to make sure before filing. Thanks to everyone who's contributed to this discussion - the practical advice here is so much better than anything I've found in official publications or general tax guides!

This entire discussion has been incredibly helpful! I'm a newcomer to partnership taxation and have been struggling with many of the same issues everyone has mentioned here. What I'm finding most valuable is how you've all shared real-world experiences rather than just theoretical tax code explanations. The mental framework of treating Form 8825 as a "rental property Schedule E" attached to the partnership return really clicked for me - that's the kind of practical insight that makes these complex rules actually understandable. I have a question that builds on the multi-state discussion: if our partnership owns rental properties in different states, and those states have different depreciation rules or bonus depreciation limitations, how do we handle that on the federal Form 8825? Do we follow federal rules for the 8825 and then make state-specific adjustments on each state's return? Also, regarding record-keeping, it sounds like maintaining separate documentation for management business expenses vs. rental property expenses is crucial. For those of you who've been through audits or IRS examinations, are there any specific types of documentation or record-keeping practices that you found were particularly important? Thanks for creating such a welcoming and informative community - this is exactly the kind of practical guidance that's so hard to find elsewhere!

can someone clarify wat counts as "deferred compensation" for form 990? our ED has a 457b plan and im not sure if thats supposed to go in subpart F or somewhere else?

This is such a helpful thread! I'm dealing with a similar situation as our nonprofit's treasurer. One thing I'd add about subpart F is to make sure you're being consistent year over year with how you calculate and report these benefits. We had an issue where we were estimating health insurance premiums one way in 2022 and a completely different way in 2023, which created some confusing variances when our auditor reviewed the forms. Now we keep a detailed worksheet that breaks down exactly how we calculate each component of subpart F - retirement contributions, health premiums, life insurance, etc. Also, don't forget that if your organization provides any kind of housing allowance or parsonage allowance to clergy, those typically need to be included in subpart F as well, even though they might be excludable from income tax. The key is documenting your methodology so you can explain it to auditors or the IRS if needed. Good luck with your filing!