ATO focus on rental property deductions

The ATO says it is increasing its focus on rental property deductions.

It says common errors made by rental property owners include: claiming rental deductions for properties not genuinely available for rent; incorrectly claiming deductions for properties only available for rent part of the year such as a holiday home; incorrectly claiming structural improvement costs as repairs when they are capital works deductions, such as re-modelling a bathroom or building a pergola; overstating deduction claims for the interest on loans taken out to purchase, renovate or maintain a rental property.