How do I calculate the average period of customer use?

For one class of property, divide the aggregate number of days in the relevant periods of customer use by the number of those periods. A customer-use period is the continuous or recurring period when a customer has the right to use the property. Do not add vacant days or owner-use days to this calculation.

Why does the checker use more than 100 hours instead of 100 hours?

Material-participation Test 3 requires more than 100 hours and participation that is not less than any other individual's. Exactly 100 hours does not pass that test. Six other material-participation tests exist, and some cannot be safely resolved with a short consumer questionnaire.

Do spouse hours count for the STR loophole?

Yes for Section 469 material participation. A spouse's participation counts even if the spouse does not own an interest in the activity and even if the couple does not file a joint return. The work still must be participation in the activity rather than excluded investor-type work.

Does a result saying the core gates are met mean the loss will offset W-2 income?

No. It means the inputs likely fit the two core Section 469 gates evaluated by the tool. Basis, at-risk, personal-use, excess-business-loss, entity, state, placed-in-service, and other rules can still limit or defer a loss. A profit or break-even activity also has no current loss to apply.

Is cost segregation required to qualify?

No. Cost segregation is a depreciation-timing strategy that may help create a tax loss. It is not a short-term-rental classification test or a material-participation test. Analyze qualification first, then model depreciation and every applicable loss limitation.

Free 2026 Interactive Tool

STR Loophole Calculator & Eligibility Checker (2026)

Check the common federal Section 469 paths for one activity and one tax year. See qualification gates and deduction limits separately.

A guide by Taxstra Tax & Accounting · CPA-led tax strategy for business owners

Written by Bryan Martin, CPA, Managing Partner and Founder of Taxstra. Last updated August 23, 2026.

What this tool can tell you

This checker evaluates the common seven-day classification path and several objective material-participation tests. It does not calculate savings, approve a tax position, combine multiple activities, or guarantee that a loss is deductible.

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Gate one

Calculate the average period of customer use

Use one activity and one tax year. Multiple property classes or grouped activities can require a different calculation.

What are these figures based on?

Total days in customer-use periodsDo not include vacant days or owner-use days.Number of completed rentalsCount continuous periods when customers had the right to use the property.

Educational federal screening only. One activity, one tax year. No savings calculation or eligibility guarantee.

How the STR Eligibility Checker Works

The checker keeps four questions separate: whether the activity fits a Section 469 non-rental category, whether the household materially participates, whether the activity is expected to produce a tax loss, and whether other rules may limit that loss.

A green core-gate result is not a filing conclusion. Read the complete short-term rental tax loophole guide before relying on the result.

What the Tool Deliberately Does Not Approve

Significant services, activity grouping, limited-partner treatment, travel, investor work, personal-service history, and the facts-and-circumstances test can be judgment-heavy. The checker routes those inputs to review.

It also does not decide Schedule E versus Schedule C, self-employment tax, QBI, state treatment, depreciation component classifications, or a currently usable loss.

Primary federal sources

Citations reflect U.S. federal tax law as of the article's last reviewed date.

STR Loophole Calculator FAQs

It checks the common federal Section 469 classification path for one activity and one tax year, then tests several material-participation paths that can be evaluated from objective inputs. It reports loss-generation and deduction-limit questions separately. It does not calculate tax savings, determine state treatment, or guarantee deductibility.

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