Augusta rule: rent your home to the company for meetings
Explore: well supported, often missed.
The Augusta rule lets you rent your home for up to 14 days a year without paying tax on the rent. It gets its name from homeowners in Augusta, Georgia, who rent their houses out during the Masters golf tournament.
For a business owner, the useful version is renting your home to your own company for real business meetings. The company deducts the rent as a business expense, and the rent you receive is not taxed. Done properly, it moves money from the company to your family with a deduction on one side and no tax on the other.
How it works
You can rent your home to anyone for up to 14 days a year and not pay tax on the rent. When the renter is your company, the company deducts the rent and you keep the income tax-free.
An example: the Harpers
The Harpers, the sample family in the Cratchit demo, own Harper Restoration Group, an S corp. They hold monthly leadership meetings at their house in Cary, 12 days a year, at $1,000 a day based on two quotes for comparable meeting space nearby.
The company deducts $12,000 of rent, the Harpers receive $12,000 they don't pay income tax on, and Cratchit estimates the strategy saves them about $3,383 in tax this year. Each meeting has an agenda and notes, there's a written rental agreement, and the company pays the rent from its own account.
What makes it hold up
- A real business use each day, such as a staff or planning meeting, with an agenda and notes
- Rent at the local going rate, with two or three comparable quotes
- A written rental agreement and an invoice from you to the company
- Rent paid from the company account, 14 days or fewer a year
Risks
Allowed by law and low risk when documented. The Tax Court has disallowed rent that was above market or had no record of real business use. It only works with a company that files its own return (an S corp or partnership); renting to a company that reports on your own return is paying yourself.
Questions to ask your CPA
- Does the Augusta rule work for this company, given I own it?
- Is my daily rate defensible for my area?
- How should we record each meeting so it holds up if questioned?
Common questions
How many days can I rent my home to my business?
Up to 14 days in a year. Rent for 15 days or more is taxable income, so keep the total at 14 or fewer.
Does the Augusta rule work for an LLC?
Only if the LLC files its own tax return, as an S corp or a partnership does. A single-member LLC or sole proprietorship reports on your own return, so renting to it is paying yourself and saves nothing.
How much rent can I charge?
The local going rate for comparable space, such as a hotel meeting room or event venue nearby. Keep two or three quotes. The Tax Court has disallowed rent that was above market.
What records do I need?
A real business purpose for each day with an agenda and notes, a written rental agreement, an invoice from you to the company, and payment from the company's account.
Cratchit runs every strategy in this library against your real numbers, rates it, and keeps the records that make it hold up. Take a guided tour with the Harpers, a sample family.
Try the demoRelated strategies
Education, not advice. Tax law changes and every situation is different, so confirm the details with your CPA or tax advisor before acting. This page was last checked against tax law as of October 2026, including the 2025 tax law, in October 2026.