Because of the economic impact of inflation, many companies may need to conserve cash and not buy much equipment this year. As a result, you may not be able to claim as many depreciation tax deductions as in the past. However, if your company owns real property, there may be another approach to depreciation to consider: a cost segregation study.
Depreciation Basics
Business buildings generally have a 39-year depreciation period (27.5 years for residential rental properties). Typically, companies depreciate a building’s structural components — including walls, windows, HVAC systems, plumbing, and wiring — along with the building. Personal property (such as equipment, machinery, furniture, and fixtures) is eligible for accelerated depreciation, usually over five or seven years. And land improvements, such as fences, outdoor lighting, and parking lots, are depreciable over 15 years.
Often, businesses allocate all or most of their buildings’ acquisition or construction costs to real property, overlooking opportunities to allocate costs to shorter-lived personal property or land improvements. Items that appear to be “part of a building” may in fact be personal property. Examples include removable wall and floor coverings, removable partitions, awnings, canopies, window treatments, signs, and decorative lighting.
Pinpointing Costs
A cost segregation study combines accounting and engineering techniques to identify building costs that are properly allocable to the tangible personal property rather than real property. Although the relative costs and benefits of a cost segregation study will depend on your particular facts and circumstances, it can be a valuable investment.
It may allow you to accelerate depreciation deductions on certain items, thereby reducing taxes and boosting cash flow. Because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the potential benefits of a cost segregation study are even greater than they were years ago because of enhancements to certain depreciation-related tax breaks.
Worth a Look
Cost segregation studies have cost all their own, but the potential long-term tax benefits may make it worth your while to undertake the process. Contact our firm for further details.