Can the expense of one sole proprietorship be written off against the profit of another

Question

I have a successful rental business, it's regularly profitable and it's an llc
If I start another business, and that business records a loss for the year, can I write off that loss against the profits from my other business?
An example would be if I start a company that's building software and we spend 2 years building with no profits. Can I take those losses and reduce the tax burden from my rental income?
Can I write off those losses against other streams of income I have like from stocks as well?

Orange Coast- reinstate Monica · Accepted Answer

The government has declared landlording and investing to be 'passive' activities that do not belong on Schedule C. Landlording is on Schedule E. Investing on Schedule D (capital gains/losses) and 1040 (dividends). If you wish to make these activities active, you would have to get a real estate license (for landlording) and become a day-trader (for 'active trader' status). It sounds like your activities in 2020 do not qualify, so they are 'passive'.
When it comes to 'active' income, your sole proprietorships' profits and losses will cancel out, but you first have to account for each business on separate Schedule C forms: https://blog.taxact.com/schedule-c-self-employment-income/
Form 1040 will tell you to what extent (if any) that 'active' Schedule C losses can reduce your taxes on 'passive' income.

Can the expense of one sole proprietorship be written off against the profit of another

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