You do not get to deduct purchases of property against your income until you sell the property.You could defer the tax using a 1031 exchange. 

The deposit is typically owned by the tenant (until lawful deductions are made) & there will be regulations protecting the tenants’ rights.

My simple question: Can you deduct this from your rental income like you can mortgage interest, PM fees, etc.?

Interesting tax deduction that I was not familiar with. 

@Michael Morrison Whoever paid in the first place gets it back with an itemized list of deductions.

If I buy these things BEFORE I CLOSE ON MY FIRST RENTAL PROPERTY, can I still report it as tax deductions for 2021 (max amount I believe I am able to deduct is $5k in first year, start up business expenses, or whatever)?

hello BP community, I am in the very fortunate position of buying a little SFR for a long-time friend who has fallen on hard times and is in need of housing.If they pay a very small amount of rent each month to me (basically going to charge them just enough to cover property tax/operating expenses), is the property still considered "in service" / can I deduct depreciation for IRS tax purposes?

Considering you have so much equity and no matter what all fees will be deducted from your "cash out" I wouldn't worry too much about the points

@Thomas Ingrao you are basically negotiating for a $20 payment deduction a month over the life of the loan.

What are the allowable deduction limits?