JB asked 8 years ago
Hi! I own two houses. One is my own residence and 2nd is my kids with their mom (we are divorced). I am planning to sell the house I live in and move to a smaller house. Do I have to pay any taxes if I sell it as technically I own one more house? Thank you JB
Elena Furier Staff answered 8 years ago
Hi JB,
You can designate your house as principle residence which means you will not have to pay capital gains tax once you sell it. However, when you will sell the second property, sometimes down the road, you will have to include a capital gain in your personal taxes for that year.
At any given year, you can only have one principle residence, so if your second property appreciated in value more than the first, it will make sense to pay capital gains on first property in order to save money overall.