It could be suspended because your income is too high. It could also be because you either didn't actively participate in the rental property, or you did not indicate when you entered your K-1 that you actively participate in the activity.
Rental income and losses are considered "passive". Passive income is the income you earn from rental real estate or other passive activities. An activity other than real estate is considered passive if you don't "materially participate" in it. Materially participate means spending 750 hours each year, in most instances. Passive income does not include income from a job or a business you manage, or investment income. Without passive income, to offset your losses, your rental losses become suspended losses you can't deduct until you have sufficient passive income in a future year or sell the property to an unrelated party.
There are two exceptions to the passive loss ("PAL") rules:
- you or your spouse qualify as a real estate professional, or
- your income is small enough that you can use the $25,000 annual rental loss allowance.
If your modified adjusted gross income is $100,000 or less, you may deduct up to $25,000 in rental real estate losses per year if you "actively participate" in the rental activity. You actively participate if you are involved in meaningful management decisions regarding the rental property and have more than a 10% ownership interest in the property. This allowance is phased out for taxpayers whose MAGI exceeds $100,000 and eliminated entirely when it exceeds $150,000.
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