# Reporting capital gains from house sale



## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

I am an American living and working in Spain. Last year I sold my house (where I had lived for 23 years) and as a result I had capital gains of about $40,000. It was immediately reinvested in the purchase of another house.

Am I right in understanding that I don't need to report these capital gains in any way on my US tax return?

It seems too easy to be true...just want to check.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

Right answer - wrong reason. But in the end, it's all the same.

For US taxes, when you sell your principal residence, you can exclude up to $250,000 in gain on the sale. Period. There is no longer an obligation to re-invest in another principal residence. (And you can exclude up to $500,000 in gain if you're filing jointly and the house was in joint name.)

And unlike with the FEIE, "exclude" does not mean reporting the sale on a special form.
Cheers,
Bev


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## kalohi (May 6, 2012)

Thanks so much. Good news!


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