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The Daily Insight

How many years during the 5 year period leading up to the sale of a taxpayers residence must the taxpayer actually own and use it as their principal residence?

Author

Andrew Ramirez

Published Apr 04, 2026

Ownership and use requirements. The gain on the sale of a home is excluded from income only if, during that five-year period, the taxpayer owns and uses the property as a principal residence for periods totaling two years or more.

two years
Ownership and use requirements. The gain on the sale of a home is excluded from income only if, during that five-year period, the taxpayer owns and uses the property as a principal residence for periods totaling two years or more.

What are the rules for selling a primary residence?

However, when they sell their home of primary residence, they could qualify for an exclusion of a $250,000 gain ($500,000 if married filing jointly) if they meet the following requirements according to the IRS: 2 They owned the home and used it as their primary residence in at least two of the five years preceding the sale of the property.

When does a home become a principal residence?

They owned the home and used it as their primary residence in at least two of the five years preceding the sale of the property. They did not acquire the home through a like-kind exchange in the past five years. They did not exclude the gain from the sale of another home two years prior to the sale of this home. 3 3

How many months of residence do you need to sell your home?

If you owned the home and used it as your residence for at least 24 months of the previous 5 years, you meet the residence requirement. The 24 months of residence can fall anywhere within the 5-year period, and it doesn’t have to be a single block of time.

When do you sell a principal residence do you get a tax exclusion?

Principal residence describes a person’s primary residence. When a principal residence is sold, the seller may qualify for a tax exclusion.