Keep renovation receipts: improvements can lower the tax when you sell

Lost receipts can cost you real tax when you sell.

In the US, your gain on a home sale is roughly the price minus your adjusted basis, and improvements add to that basis. Example: buy at $400,000, sell at $800,000. Without records, that's a $400,000 gain. With $80,000 of documented improvements, it's $320,000. After the $250,000 single exclusion ($500,000 joint if you qualify), taxable gain drops from $150,000 to $70,000. Repairs usually don't count unless they're part of a larger remodel. Keep records through the sale plus at least 3 years. See IRS Pub 523. General info, not tax advice.