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Form 1099-S: Real Estate Transactions

tax form, United States

Written byNancy Ashburn

Fact-checked byThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Decorative illustration of a 1099-S tax form, featuring abstract green and beige background patterns and placeholder text in a tabular format.

Use Form 1099-S to report proceeds from the sale or exchange of real estate.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

If you sold real estate or exchanged property during the tax year, you may receive Form 1099-S, one of several Forms 1099 used to report different types of transactions to the Internal Revenue Service. The form reports the sale price and other details of the transaction that you need when preparing your federal income tax return.

Some home sales aren’t required to be reported on Form 1099-S. The closing agent may not need to issue the form if the sale of your principal residence qualifies for the home sale capital gains exclusion. For many homeowners, the exclusion covers up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 for married couples filing jointly).

Key boxes on Form 1099-S

Box 1: The closing date for the real estate transaction.
Box 2a: The property’s sale price. This amount may be divided between Box 2b, which reports the portion received in cash or notes, and Box 2c, which reports the portion received in digital assets, such as cryptocurrency.
Box 3: The address or legal description of the property.
Box 4: Real estate taxes associated with the sale. Depending on your situation, you may be able to deduct these taxes.

Using Form 1099-S

Use Form 1099-S together with your closing documents and other tax records when preparing your federal income tax return. Keep the form with your records even if your entire gain qualifies for the home sale exclusion, because you may still need the information to document the transaction.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Nancy Ashburn