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The Daily Insight

How is long term property gain calculated?

Author

Henry Morales

Published Mar 25, 2026

Long-term capital gain = full value of consideration received or accruing – (indexed cost of acquisition + indexed cost of improvement + cost of transfer), where: Indexed cost of acquisition = cost of acquisition x cost inflation index of the year of transfer/cost inflation index of the year of acquisition.

What are long term gains taxed at?

Long-term capital gains tax is a tax applied to assets held for more than a year. The long-term capital gains tax rates are 0 percent, 15 percent and 20 percent, depending on your income. These rates are typically much lower than the ordinary income tax rate.

Is the sale of a vacation home a capital gain?

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.

Can a vacation home be your primary residence?

Make your vacation home your primary residence: To be eligible for the $250,000/$500,000 exemption on the tax gain, you must have lived in a home for two out of the last five years before selling. Remember: You must be able to give proof of residency with items like a driver’s license, voter registration card or utility bills.

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.

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.