Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)

Definition of "Adjusted Gross Income (AGI)"

Dale Tomalewski  real estate agent

Written by

Dale Tomalewski elite badge icon

Coldwell Banker Real Estate Services Inc.

We all know what income is or what gross income means, but what is adjusted gross income? When a company calculates its income to determine their taxable income, they take the gross income to measure their adjusted gross income (AGI). The AGI is where the calculations begin for a taxpayer’s tax bill and the baseline for most deductions and credits. When a taxpayer files their taxes online, the software will calculate their AGI for them. 

The adjusted gross income measure of calculation is used to calculate a filer’s tax liability. In active participation, an AGI can make an active participant investor in real estate eligible or not for deductions and influences the claims for deductions and credits.

What does Adjusted Gross Income Mean?

To simplify it, an adjusted gross income is the gross income modified in the tax code. While gross income is the money earned during a year (salary, capital gains, dividends, interest income, alimony, rental income, royalties, and retirement distributions), the AGI considers allowed deductions from the gross income to determine the figure the income tax liability is calculated.

For tax activities, the most useful measure of calculation is the AGI, as deductions are taken out of the gross income. Those deductions are known as adjustments to an individual’s income.

How to calculate Adjusted Gross Income?

The start of the adjusted gross income calculation starts with adding all sources of income from that year. Here we’ll have salaries, profit from a property sale, pensions, unemployment compensations, Social Security payments, or other income types that weren’t reported in the tax returns. From this, the taxpayer subtracts allowed deductions and payments. That leaves a taxpayer with their adjusted gross income.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

As a hopeful house hunter, renter, or seasoned real estate investor, you've probably come across baffling terms. One such term is "adhesion contract." It might sound complex, but don't ...

(1) Methods that involve discounting the future cash flows generated by an income property. These techniques are used primarily for valuation. (2) Methods of selecting and ranking ...

A recorded plat defines a subdivision map that you have to file in the county recorder’s office. It will show the location and boundaries of your parcels of land. Knowing this, we can ...

(1) Judgment against a defendant who does not respond to the plaintiffs lawsuit or fails to appear in court at the hearing or trial date. (2) Judgment issued by the court against the ...

Characteristic of a trust that prevents the invasion of its principal by the trustees while providing a lifetime income to its principal beneficiary with the rest going to the son's ...

Legal lien on property on behalf of an individual who has not been paid for material furnished in constructing property. The material enhanced the value of the property, and as such the ...

Homes with division of ownership or use of a resort unit on the basis of time periods. For example, a resort home may be divided into 25 time shares of two weeks each, with two weeks left ...

A reassessment or a reappraising is a decision or strategy made by the owner or the state or local authorities. The reassessment definition is a revision of an earlier assessment. Property ...

Underground pit or tank used to store sewage. ...

Popular Real Estate Questions