@Tom Rairdon If you’ve owned your short-term rental (STR) for over a year, it likely qualifies for long-term capital gains (LTCG) treatment, taxed at lower rates (0%-20%) compared to your 33% ordinary income bracket.

You are allowed to charge for ALL damages beyond ordinary wear-and-tear.

Buyers want patios, decks, and backyard spaces that extend the home’s livable area.

If you had identified the property, the cost and the travel cost would have been added to the basis of the property and depreciated.These initial investigatory costs are treated differently for flipping and rentals.1) Flipping: The travel cost to investigate will be treated as a business cost and deducted as an ordinary travel cost.

Both screen doors upstairs do not function correctly.Plumbing problems-The garbage disposal in the kitchen was not cleaned, is smelly and the rubber is flipped outwards.The bathroom sink in the smaller bedroom does not drain correctly despite us using an entire bottle of drain cleaner on it.Common areas that are not kept clean or have garbage-There was no attempt to clear the patio of years of accumulated debris and filth.

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.

I could perhaps use Section 179 for the solar overall, as solar would be necessary, although not ordinary to conduct R & D. 

If I can park the 388k ($415-27k) for one year at CD rate of 4.5% and then est 300k (after paying cap gain/depr recap) at 3.0% (assume CD rates lower) that interest income of about 24 months net of ordinary income tax is about the same as my current mortgage.Trying to play devil's advocate and think why selling this year does not make sense. 

Quote from @Melanie Baldridge: Why I like investing in real estate more than 401(k)s.Both offer tax deferrals, but here's the difference:If you're making pre-tax contributions to your 401(k), then withdrawals = ordinary income tax.With real estate gains, you're paying capital gains tax (which is typically lower).Plus, RE investors get:1.

Remember, if you decide to sell in a few years, any bonus depreciation comes back as ordinary income.