Why is my cost basis higher?

There are several instances that can cause issues with the cost basis of securities in your Invest account. The three most common reasons are:

1. The Wash Sale Rule- when you sell a security at a loss then repurchase that security within 30 days.
2. Incoming ACAT- it can take a couple of weeks for the cost basis to transfer from the sending firm.
3. Recent corporate action on that security- may take several days for our Clearing firm to update the cost basis.
   
   

Corporate Action Causing Cost Basis Issue

If a company does a corporate action, like a ticker change or a merger, there can be a delay for our Clearing Firm to update the cost basis. Our Clearing Firm is waiting for the cost basis information from that company executing the corporate action. Sometimes the information is provided and updated quickly, other times it may take several business days. If you have additional questions, you will want to speak with one of our Investment Specialists.

ACAT Causing Cost Basis Issue

When you transfer assets from one firm to another, the cost basis is usually sent within a couple of weeks. If it has been more than 2 weeks since your ACAT and the cost basis has not been received, you’ll want to speak with one of our Investment Specialists.

Stock Purchase Causing Cost-Basis Issue (Wash Sale)

If you have a wash sale on one of your positions, it will inflate the average cost for that symbol. A Wash Sale is when you sell a security at a loss then repurchase that security, or one that is substantially similar, within 30 days (before or after the sale) that previous loss is not allowed by the IRS. The amount of the previous loss gets added back to your average cost.

You can learn more about Wash Sales with our SoFi Learn Article - What is the Wash-Sale Rule?