Updated November 7, 2026. Quick answer: Box 3 of Form 1099-S shows the address or legal description of the property transferred. The filer enters the street address with city, state and ZIP code, and adds a legal description such as section, lot and block only if the address does not sufficiently identify the property. Box 3 kept the same number from the 2025 form to the Rev. December 2026 form.
What the seller’s copy says
“Box 3. Shows the address or legal description of the property transferred.” The same box number appears beside the caption on the form itself.
What the closing person enters
“Enter the address of the property, including the city, state, and ZIP code.” Where the address alone does not identify the property well enough, the filer also puts in a legal description: “enter a legal description, such as section, lot, and block.” Two special entries exist for timber: “For timber royalties, enter “Timber royalties.” For lump-sum timber payments, enter “Lump-sum timber payment.”” The covered property types are listed in the instructions, and they include “Improved or unimproved land, including air space.” and “A condominium unit and its appurtenant fixtures and common elements, including land.”
What to check on your copy
The box identifies the property; nothing on your return is computed from it. Check that it matches the property you sold. A mailing address in box 3 instead of the property address, a transposed lot number, or a vacant lot entered by its street address are the kinds of errors worth raising with the filer. A correction is the filer’s to issue, so contact the closing office named in the filer box. If you sold several parcels in one closing, the legal description is what ties each parcel to the form.
Box 3 across form years
The label did not change: “Box 3. Shows the address or legal description of the property transferred.” The boxes around it did.
| What the box reports | 2025 form | Rev. December 2026 form |
|---|---|---|
| Date of closing | Box 1 | Box 1 |
| Gross proceeds | Box 2 | Boxes 2a, 2b and 2c |
| Address or legal description | Box 3 | Box 3 |
| Services or property as part of the consideration (checkbox) | Box 4 | Box 6 |
| Foreign transferor (checkbox) | Box 5 | Box 7 |
| Buyer’s part of real estate tax | Box 6 | Box 4 |
| Reserved | none | Box 5 |
| Digital asset code, name, units and date | none | Boxes 8a to 8d |
Edition
This page reads Form 1099-S and the Instructions for Form 1099-S as revised December 2026, and the 2025 form for the older box numbers, all files irs.gov served on November 7, 2026 (sha256 in the kit data). Box numbers belong to the form year, so check the revision printed on your own copy before you follow a box reference.
Common mistakes
- Assuming box 3 is your mailing address. It is the address of the property transferred, and your own address is in the transferor box.
- Skipping a wrong lot or parcel description because the street address is right. The legal description is what the instructions use when the address does not identify the property.
- Expecting a timber sale to show a street address. The instructions give separate entries for timber royalties and lump-sum timber payments.
Related: Form 1099-S instructions, and home sale taxes.
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Answer againSources
- Form 1099-S, Proceeds From Real Estate Transactions (Rev. December 2026): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1099s.pdf
- Instructions for Form 1099-S (Rev. December 2026): https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1099s.pdf
- Form 1099-S (2025 revision, the layout before the December 2026 revision): IRS archived PDF (irs.gov)
Read from the IRS documents linked above on November 7, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the account provider or the IRS is the right place to confirm anything consequential.