It is perfectly normal for long term residential rental real estate to show a loss each and every year. In fact, it's not all that normal for rentals to show a profit. But it does happen due to some changes in the law in 2018.
When your rental losses exceed your rental income, once they get the taxable rental income to zero, any remaining loss is just carried over to the next year, where it can be deducted *if* you have the rental income to deduct it from.
With each passing year your passive activity loss (PAL) carry over will increase. But in the year you sell the property, all those carry over losses can be realized and deducted in full (with possible limits).
First, those losses are deducted from any capital gain you may realize on the sale. If it gets your taxable gain to zero, the remaining amount of loss is deducted from any other ordinary income, such as W-2 income. If there's still more loss (not all that common) then it gets carried over to the next year where it can be claimed (with limits) against other ordinary income.
Not taking depreciation will hurt, more than help. If you don't depreciate the property, then in the tax year you sell or otherwise dispose of the property, you are still required to recapture and pay tax on the depreciation you *should* have taken. So for you, it's lose-lose any way you look at it.
