Depreciationon a 39yo house - worth it?

[theperthurbanist]

Hi guys,

With tax-time fast aproaching I am thinking about getting a derpreciation schedule done by a quantity surveyor/depreciation specialist on my IP but i'm not sure if in my case it will be worth the money. My situation:

*Property (detached house, double brick) is 39 years old (built 1973);

*Had a 1 room extension in fibro, tile, colourbond. But i'm not sure when this was built, possibly 10yr ago;

*Contains some newer fittings (2 reverse cycle AC, hot water system, irrigation station, 1-5 years old) but not much;

*It has only been an IP for 1 month, I have only owned it for 9 months;


So my questions are:
Q) Being so old, with only a few newer fittings and not many upgrades, is it worth paying to have a depreciation schedule done?

Q) As is has only been an IP for 1 month, will I therefore only recieve 1/12th of a years depreciation

Q) Can the full cost of my depreciation schedule/inspection be claimed in my tax return this year?

Q) Anything else i'm not considering?

Thanks in advance!

 

[theperthurbanist]

...apologies for my porely written title - must review before I press 'send'!

 

[nhg]

So my questions are:
Q) Being so old, with only a few newer fittings and not many upgrades, is it worth paying to have a depreciation schedule done?
Definitely, you would be surprised what you get back

Q) As is has only been an IP for 1 month, will I therefore only recieve 1/12th of a years depreciation
Not sure, though I'm certain you can claim that along with the depreciation of the fittings for a lot longer. Keep in mind the schedule will likely have a list of other items netting you a few hundred deductions each year, my 50 year old houses are netting me $thousands in depreciation

Q) Can the full cost of my depreciation schedule/inspection be claimed in my tax return this year?
Best ask an accountant, though I would say yes, I certainly believe so, if you pay for it this year

Q) Anything else i'm not considering?
Do it, most of my friends don't have depreciation schedules, they really don't know what they are missing out on

I use Scott from Depreciators, though I hear BMD is also good or Washington Brown.


Thanks in advance![/QUOTE]

 

[depreciator]

Assets valued under $300 e.g. a rangehood, you claim in full immediately.
Assets valued between $300 and $1,000 you claim at 18.75% in the first part year - even if that part year is only a couple of days.
Assets over $1,000 and building stuff you claim pro rata.

If you have any pics, send them to me and I'll tell you what I think you'll be able to claim. It's not a big deal - we do this all the time.

[email protected]

 

[justlearning]

We've got properties from the 60s. We didn't get depreciation schedules in the early years as we too didn't think it was worth it. But after listening to advice from others we finally got them done for each property. It was worth it...I was surprised how much can be claimed and will definitely do it for future properties no matter how old.

 

[MartinW]

You can claim the cost of the depreciation report in the year it is paid - so if paid before June 30 then claimable this year ie. 2012/2013.

Rgds

www.houseofwealth.com.au

 

[MRO]

Who do you use in Perth for depreciation schedules? I have a early 80's house that I need a report for. Never considered getting it done but this forum has convinced me. I only thought the benefit would be big enough to justify the cost on newer and bigger houses.

Might have to see if I can prepay for the report this week.

 

[theperthurbanist]

Might have to see if I can prepay for the report this week.

Likewise! Thanks or the responses so far guys, sounds like it could very well be worthwhile.

Who do you use in Perth for depreciation schedules?

Well I can't 'recommend' them as I've never used them before, but I was going to give BMT Tax Depreciation a call as that is who I have flyers for. Perth: 08 94852111. Hopefully their service is as good as their marketing. They do claim "You will receive double your fee in deductions in the first full year or there will be no charge"!

Definitely open to other recommendations though.

 

[chilliblue]

A depreciation report will also be useful when you are scrapping items at the end of their life.

I.e ovens, light fittings etc

 

[HD_ACE]

Well I can't 'recommend' them as I've never used them before, but I was going to give BMT Tax Depreciation a call as that is who I have flyers for. Perth: 08 94852111. Hopefully their service is as good as their marketing. They do claim "You will receive double your fee in deductions in the first full year or there will be no charge"!

Definitely open to other recommendations though.

I used them for two ips in perth. one i wasnt sure it would be worth it but their garantee sold it for me and lucky i did go with it as there is still a bit to claim


cheers

 

[westminster]

I'll be using Scott/Depreciator for any further properties simply because his advice has been spot on and his PDF on Depreciation is friggin' excellent reading. So I'll be giving something back for his excellent advice - he has people in Perth who can do the report.

Go read http://www.depreciator.com.au/ebook-download.html

They do offer a guarantee too

"If we can't get you more depreciation than our fee in the first full year of your schedule ... You get to keep the schedule FREE and use it in your tax assessment for the FULL 20 years with our compliments"

In the past I have used DepWest. Cost was about $450 but expect a bit of a surcharge if you MUST have it before EOFY.