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WHEN YOU SELL a home, any improvements you made while you owned it can be added to the cost “basis” of the property, which will reduce your taxable gain.
There are obvious examples: the cost of finishing a basement or adding a bathroom.
But there are many small improvements often overlooked: the cost of adding smoke detectors, new phone outlets, built-in shelving, lighting fixtures, a garage-door opener, to name a few.
Energy-saving measures, such as insulation and weather stripping, qualify as improvements. So do some landscaping costs.
