Question:   I rent my home out for two weeks each year. Do I have to show the income on my return?

Answer:   You must first consider if you use any dwelling as a home.

You are considered to use a dwelling as a home if you use it for personal purposes during the tax year for more than the greater of:

• 14 days
• 10% of the total days it is rented to others at a fair rental price

There is a special rule if you use a dwelling as a home and rent it for fewer than 15 days. In this case:

• Do not report any of the rental income.
• Do not deduct any expenses as rental expenses.
• If you itemize your deduction on Form 1040, Schedule A (PDF), Itemized Deductions, you may be able to deduct mortgage interest, property taxes, and any casualty losses.

It is possible that you will use more than one dwelling unit as a home during the year. For example, if you live in your main dwelling unit for 11 months and in your vacation home for 30 days, your main dwelling unit is a home and your vacation dwelling unit is also a home unless you rent your vacation dwelling unit to others at a fair rental value for more than 300 days during the year.