I sold propertyI had owned 36 yrs the sale + income was less than ninety nine thousand what?

Question

what percentage 5 or 15 % do I use for capital gains tax

Answer 1

Depends on your other income. If you'd have paid over 15% on it if there weren't the breaks for long term capital gains, then you'd pay 15%, otherwise 5%. It doesn't matter what your gain was on that particular sale, or how long you'd held the property as long as it was over a year and a day to make it long-term.

Fill out schedule D - it will lead you through the calculation.