Business Structure for real estate investing

[Pete Tallerico]

Hi everyone. I've read a lot about the many tax deductions you can write-off with investment properties (ie: depreciation, travel, cell phone, repairs, home office, property mngt to name a few). Do I need to establish a business entity (LLC or corp) for my investments to be able to use the many tax benefits that are available to investors? Is simply buying an owner occupied multi family enough to constitute the label "real estate investor". Just curious. Thanks guys in advance for any input!

Pete