Rental loss

[Kerrie Carre]

My husband and I own 6 rental properties. His sister and 3 children moved into one fully intending to pay rent. However she fell ill, lost her job, and has not paid but a few months rent this year. Of course my question is how can I write this loss of rent off on my taxes?

I did look a bit into the "passive loss ("PAL") rules" but I'm not exactly sure how this works. Any incite into this would be greatly appreciated.