The miles you drive managing your mobile home park are a legitimate business deduction — and with multiple properties, maintenance visits, lender meetings, and prospective park tours, those miles add up fast. Understanding the current IRS standard mileage rates and how to document your deductions correctly keeps money in your business and out of your tax bill.

2024 and 2025 IRS Standard Mileage Rates

The IRS updates the standard mileage rate annually. For 2024, the business mileage rate is 67 cents per mile for business driving. For 2025, the rate is 70 cents per mile. These rates apply to miles driven for legitimate business purposes — visits to your parks, meetings with lenders, attorneys, and accountants, and travel related to acquiring new properties.

What Mileage Qualifies for MHP Owners

As an MHP owner or operator, your deductible business mileage includes driving to inspect your parks and properties, traveling to meet with your lender, attorney, or accountant about park business, driving to view prospective acquisitions, and travel related to POH deliveries, setup coordination, and vendor meetings at the park.

What does not qualify: your commute from home to your primary office (even if that office handles park operations), personal errands, and miles driven on trips that mix personal and business purposes where business is not the primary purpose.

Standard Mileage Rate vs. Actual Expense Method

MHP owners with a high-mileage vehicle can choose between the standard mileage rate and the actual expense method. The actual expense method lets you deduct a proportional share of your vehicle’s gas, insurance, repairs, depreciation, and registration based on the percentage of miles driven for business. For vehicles with high operating costs or heavy depreciation (new trucks and SUVs commonly used for park maintenance), the actual expense method may produce a larger deduction.

However, once you use the actual expense method for a vehicle, you generally cannot switch to the standard mileage rate for that vehicle in future years. Choosing the right method at the start matters — and the answer depends on your specific vehicle, how many miles you drive for business, and the vehicle’s cost and condition.

Mileage Log Requirements: What the IRS Expects

The IRS requires contemporaneous records for vehicle deductions — meaning you log miles at or near the time the driving occurs, not reconstructed from memory at year-end. A valid mileage log for an MHP owner includes the date of each trip, the business purpose (e.g., “Inspect Lot 14 plumbing repair at Riverside MHP”), starting and ending odometer readings or total miles, and the destination.

Apps like MileIQ, Everlance, or even a simple spreadsheet all satisfy IRS requirements if the data is recorded contemporaneously. The absence of a mileage log is one of the most common reasons the IRS disallows vehicle deductions in an audit — and it’s entirely preventable.

Vehicle Deductions Beyond Mileage: Section 179 and Bonus Depreciation

If you use a vehicle in your MHP business and choose the actual expense method, you may also qualify for Section 179 expensing or bonus depreciation on the vehicle’s purchase cost. For SUVs over 6,000 pounds gross vehicle weight (a threshold many trucks and larger vehicles meet), Section 179 expensing is available up to the annual limit, and bonus depreciation may apply to the remaining basis.

These elections interact with your vehicle’s business-use percentage. A truck used 80% for business can only apply these deductions to 80% of its cost. Luxury auto limitation rules under IRC Section 280F cap depreciation deductions on passenger automobiles, but vehicles with a GVWR over 6,000 pounds typically exceed the definition of “passenger automobile” and avoid those caps. See IRS Publication 463 for the complete rules on vehicle expense deductions.

Multi-Park Owners: Tracking Vehicle Use Across Properties

If you own multiple parks, your mileage log should identify which property each trip relates to. This matters because your vehicle expenses are deducted at the entity level — and if different parks are in different LLCs, the correct entity should be expensing the mileage. Intermingling vehicle deductions across entities creates issues that show up at the individual return level when K-1s don’t match vehicle deduction patterns.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I deduct mileage from my home to my mobile home park?

If your home is your principal place of business and you have a qualifying home office, you may be able to deduct travel from home to your park. Without a qualifying home office, the drive from home to your first business location is generally a non-deductible commute. Consult your tax advisor on the home office rules — they are specific and require documentation.

What is the mileage rate for 2025?

The IRS standard mileage rate for business driving in 2025 is 70 cents per mile. Rates are set annually and may change for 2026 — always verify with the current IRS Rev. Proc. or Notice before filing.

Should I use the standard mileage rate or actual expenses for my truck?

For a new, expensive truck used heavily for MHP operations, the actual expense method often produces a larger deduction in early years due to Section 179 or bonus depreciation on the purchase cost. For an older, less expensive vehicle, the standard mileage rate is often simpler and competitive. Model both options with your CPA before your first year using the vehicle.

Does the vehicle have to be in my name or the LLC’s name?

Both arrangements work, but the accounting and deduction rules differ. A vehicle titled in the LLC and used exclusively for business is simpler from a documentation standpoint. A personally-owned vehicle used partially for business must be allocated between business and personal use, and that allocation must be documented in your mileage log.

How far back can the IRS audit vehicle deductions?

The standard IRS audit window is three years from the filing date. For substantial understatements, it extends to six years. Keep your mileage logs and vehicle expense records for at least three years after the return is filed — six if you have any question about the return’s accuracy.

This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute tax or legal advice. The MHP Accountant recommends consulting a qualified CPA for advice specific to your situation.