There are several different types of income in the US tax code.Two main types are “active income” and “passive income".Active income is money you earn from working, such as wages from a W-2 job or income from running a business.Passive income is money you earn from investments like real estate, stocks, or rental income from your RE portfolio where you earn $ without actively working.Normally, you can't use passive losses (like losses from real estate investments) to offset active income like your salary from a W-2 job.That is unless you are an RE Pro.The reality is, that Real Estate Pro status is just a filing status similar to filing married or jointly.And if you are a real estate professional you CAN use passive real estate losses to offset active income from other sources.To qualify as an RE Pro you must:1.

Gita,At least the way I prefer to do things is to only run accrual based accounting activity on my day to day operations.

Day traders are not exempt unless they elect mark-to-market (MTM) accounting, which eliminates wash sale tracking but taxes gains as ordinary income.To manage taxes, track trades closely, avoid overlapping purchases, or consider MTM election if trading actively.

It is not a set it and forget it thing though, you'll still need to be active and review monthly statements and manage things to make sure everything is running smoothly. 

I'll try to be more active on here :)

I keep coming across posters asking for advice on how to “scale” their investment or business activities.  

Hi Everyone,I am looking to get started with doing rental arbitrage with my cousin who is a Green Card holder, however, I am on a H1B Visa which restricts my ability to earn income "actively".

While the power can't be selectively turned off, it’s really about active management and oversight once the utilities are in the PM's name.

It's great to hear from someone active in the Rochester market.

Just being active and visible in the areas you want to buy in can work wonders.