Real estate agent: how do I deduct my mileage?

A real estate agent deducts showings, listing appointments, inspections and closings on Schedule C, since most agents are independent contractors, at the standard mileage rate or by actual expenses, as long as every trip is recorded with its date, mileage, destination and business purpose. Fifteen to thirty showings a week: 15,000 business miles in a year is ordinary.

At the 2026 IRS rate of 72.5 cents a mile, 15,000 miles is a $10,875 deduction. That figure only holds if each trip is dated, located and explained. A round estimate made in April is the first thing an examiner questions, all the more so because one car mixes weekend open houses and personal errands on the same odometer.

The commute rule catches agents constantly: home to the brokerage office is a commute, never deductible. But most agents start the day at a showing, and if your home qualifies as your principal place of business, home to the first property is business mileage. That single distinction decides thousands of dollars.

An agent keeps a calendar by necessity, with the property address: that is exactly what Kilevo needs. Each showing with an address becomes a round trip from your home or office to the property, and the appointment title becomes the purpose. Three showings back to back in the afternoon? Check them and click Link into a tour. You can import the past twelve months in one go, then let the nightly sync keep the log if you subscribe.

A showing entered as "2 pm showing" with no address produces nothing: put the property address in the location of the appointment. The Kilevo for real estate agents page details the method; for the tax side, check with the IRS or your accountant.