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In the case of an employee, the preceding sentence
shall apply only if the exclusive use referred to
in the preceding sentence is for the convenience
of his employer.
In deciding whether a residence is the principal place of
business, it must be compared to all of the other places where
business is transacted. See Commissioner v. Soliman, 506 U.S.
168, 174 (1993) (superseded in part by statute on another issue
for tax years beginning after 1998). A deduction is allowed only
when the residence is the most important or significant place for
the business. The two primary considerations are the relative
importance of the activities performed at each business location
and the time spent at each place. See id. at 175. The relative
importance of business activities engaged in at the office in the
home may be substantially outweighed by business activities
engaged in at another location. See Strohmaier v. Commissioner,
113 T.C. 106, 112 (1999).
For an architect, drafting is an important function of the
taxpayer’s trade or business. Petitioner uses the office in his
residence to perform most of the drafting required by his
employment. However, petitioner testified that he spends
60 percent of his working hours in the office at NIRC, and the
remainder of his time is split between working in the field or in
the office in the home. The record does not show what functions
were performed by petitioner at the other locations. Because a
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Last modified: May 25, 2011