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A Quick Guide to Clear All Your Queries about Capital Gains and Property Depreciation

There are many questions that come to mind associated with tax depreciation report. You may often hear people asking how to claim their reductions? How to make the most of it? There are many such interrelated queries that investors have in their minds. So here in this article, we will take you down through a few questions that will clear all your doubts.

What is exactly property depreciation? Is it beneficial?

Property depreciation can be thought of as the depreciation of value on a building or property owing to the wear and tear that naturally occurs over the years. But property depreciation is not bad at all times; in some cases, it can reap benefits for you. When you have to pay taxes, property depreciation can be a boon that allows you to claim for property investment returns which means fewer taxes to be paid at the end of the year.

Capital works and its association with CGT

Capital works can be claimed on the building structure, which includes walls, roofs, bricks, electrical cables, tiles, etc. Claiming for capital work deductions can help in lowering the value of the base of your possession, which is further added to the capital gain. Thus you can expect a rise in the CGT amount, which becomes applicable during the sale process.

CGT and equipment depreciation

Many might not be aware of this, but you can even claim depreciation deductions on removable plants and mechanical equipment. Yes, you have heard it right, when you plan to sell your property, the profit or loss percent is computed separately on such items. You can seek assistance from tax depreciation quantity surveyors at Deppro to become more acquainted with the details. If the depreciation asset’s termination worth is higher than the cost then, you get to have a capital gain. On the other hand, the reverse case applies to incur a capital loss wherein the cost is higher than the termination price.

Can investors file for a discount?

A business owner who has invested in a property for more than a year stands eligible for a 50% CGT exemption. But, it is mandatory that they hold the property for more than a calendar year from the date of signing the contract.

Does property depreciation claim add to capital gains?

Yes, one can claim for equipment deduction and capital works at marginal taxable rates. Being in possession of a property for a period greater than 12 months makes you eligible for claiming a 50% deduction while selling your property. This implies that only half your property value is carried further for CGT, enabling you to file for capital work deduction claim. This will bring in some additional cash flow to your account, allowing you to be confronted with better opportunities for investments and to reduce the burden of your loans.

Types of CGT exemptions for people who reside in the property

If you are someone who dwells in the property, then you are excused from CGT as long as you use that property for your residence. Also, the land should not be more than two hectares. On the other hand, if the owners rent out the property to someone else and consider moving out, then the CGT exemption can be filed for about six years. But there stands a condition that such people should not purchase or own any other residential place.

Conclusion:

So these were a few things that you need to know as an investor to claim for property tax deductions. If you have more such questions haunting your mind, do let us know! We are here to help!

Renting or Buying: Which is the best choice for a commercial property?

Deciding whether to purchase or rent a commercial property may be tough at an instance. When you plan to buy a property, you have to pay for it upfront. In case you have taken a loan, you only own the property once you have cleared the loan. But, when you rent a property, you would be considered as a tenant rather than the owner. So, before contacting an agency to know about tax depreciation investment property, here are some important things you must know:

What happens when you rent a commercial property?

When you consider availing a property on rent, you have to bear the costs as per the terms of the lease. While the landlord pays the capital cost, you can think about investing money in your business and focus on growth. If you wish to invest in the property, then you need to go through the rental property depreciation report. This would give a fair idea of how the tax would be deducted for the year.

How can renting a property be beneficial for you?

Once you avail a commercial property on rent, you can think about shifting to another location only when the lease ends. If you observe fluctuations in the market conditions or a change in personal life, then you wouldn’t have to bother much for a longer-term. Establishing a business at a property on rent can really help when the business is going to evolve in the forthcoming years. Renting also implies that you have to give less upfront cost. The concerned person has to pay a deposit equivalent to anything between 25% and 50% of the actual purchase price. If tax depreciation reports are what you’re concerned about then, you could contact Deppro.

What happens when you buy a commercial property?

When you make up your mind for buying a commercial property, you initially have to bear the upfront cost and the ongoing costs ahead. As you manage your business, you do have the right to make structural changes to suit your requirements. You may also think about selling or giving the property on rent a few years later. You can do anything without approaching an agent or a landlord.

How can purchasing a property be beneficial for you?

Purchasing a property means you can develop your business at a specific location for the long term. You also don’t have to worry about shifting assets from one location to the other. But, before finalizing the decision, it’s better to go through the tax depreciation investment property rules. While you start paying the upfront fees, you won’t have to pay for the rent that may increase year after year. You can actually focus on bearing other expenses while the payment is made at a fixed rate. Later, you could also make up for capital gain when you decide to sell the property after some years.

Conclusion:

Finally, no matter what your decision might be, you can always gain some significant tax benefits when the officers consider tax depreciation. If you are the owner of the property, you can claim depreciation under division 43 and division 40. While division 43 refers to capital work deductions, division 40 refers to deductions for assets and plant equipment. When you submit the tax returns, you can claim the depreciation on investment property ATO as the deducted tax.

5 Tax Saving Tips on Your Investment Property

When you purchase and own an investment property, it gives you the benefit of saving plenty of tax. You get the advantage of claiming the various expenses and some depreciation against your rental incomes. When you prepare your property depreciation reports, it helps in minimising your tax burden. You must ensure that you manage your investment in the right manner so that it yields you profit. Your investment should also help you achieve your financial goals. An intelligent property investor may adopt several strategies to reduce his tax and increase his tax benefit.

Given below are some key tips that will help you save tax on your investment property:

1. Manage your capital gains:

Capital gains created in a particular year can be reduced by offsetting it against capital losses that you face. If you are keen to decrease the capital gain on the sale of a property, you may think of selling any asset that lost its value. You get a 50% discount on capital gains when an asset is held for over 12 months. Since the saving amount is huge, you should consider the timing of any sale. It is worth noting that the important date for calculating your capital gains is the contract date instead of the settlement date.

2. Manage your capital losses:

The capital losses that you may face in any year can be extended to future years. You may adopt this procedure when there are inadequate gains to absorb in the similar year. The capital losses can be extended to future years for an unknown tenure. You will not be able to carry the losses back. Therefore, if you achieved capital gain, you can initiate a loss to offset it against. You may seek the help of experts to find out your exact property tax depreciation.

3. Claim building depreciation:

It is the depreciation that you may claim on the building itself. How you will be able to claim it will depend on construction costs.  For a large number of properties, you may claim 2.5 percent of construction for at least 40 years. You must be able to determine the construction cost. The ideal way to decide it is by hiring a quantity surveyor to make a property tax depreciation schedule for you.

4. Expenses incurred for visits to the property:

It is important to note that if you face expenses related to property visits, you will be eligible to claim them. They will help in boosting your returns.

5. Plant & equipment depreciation:

This is the depreciation of assets within the property. It will include things such as curtains, fixtures, carpet, etc. You need to upgrade or replace these things at some point of time as they tend to depreciate faster.

Conclusion:

You may claim the above expenses and reduce your tax burden every year. You must assess the tax depreciation life effectively during this process. If you are conducting any renovation or replacing something major, don’t forget to do a scrapping schedule. The quantity surveyor will be able to calculate how much value is left for a particular item. After that, you will be able to claim that in the form of depreciation.

Depreciation on Renovations – What Are Substantial Renovations and Do I Qualify?

Owning a property has never been an easy task. People might look at the security and income it provides however, they fail to notice the hassle involved in maintaining a property. The most common problem with owning property is the need to upkeep and maintain it regularly. Also, owning a property means you need to pay various taxes, and ensure you are staying updated with the latest tax laws. This blog looks at the sweet spot where both these issues converge. We will look at some nuances of the latest laws regarding a Federal tax depreciation schedule.

Recent Legislative Changes

Let us first take a step back and see what has changed recently. Earlier, the date of purchase didn’t impact the eligibility of claiming depreciation. Any depreciation on pre-existing plant and equipment was eligible. In 2017, the law was amended to state that owners were not eligible to apply for ATO depreciation rates for installations made by the previous owner. The present owner, however, was allowed to claim depreciation on renovations carried out.

Which Renovations Qualify?

The changed laws would be applicable only if the renovated property was then leased out. Also, the depreciation can be claimed only if the depreciation claim is made within six months of the property being leased out. The owner would be able to claim depreciation for both plant and equipment as also for capital works. The details of such renovations would need to be enlisted in the rental property depreciation report. Finally, there is another important point to keep in mind; after substantial renovations have been carried out, the property is also considered by this law as a new residential premises. Therefore, depreciation can be claimed on both elements of the property – renovated structure and new premises.

Let us see what kind of renovations would qualify for such depreciations. External walls, as well as interior supporting walls, are included. Similarly, renovations to the floor or the roof of the property also fall within the ambit of the modified law. Even if you are modifying staircases inside the house, you can claim depreciation for them. Some owners go deeper and even replace or remove the foundations of the structure. Even such renovations are eligible for claiming depreciation. On the other hand, it is important to remember that only ‘substantial’ changes would qualify. So if you have installed a new piece of equipment in your kitchen, it is likely not to be considered as a renovation. These fine points of the law might not always be easy for you to understand. This is why it is always recommended to use the services of a quantity surveyor. Such a professional can create a depreciation report in accordance with legal requirements.

Conclusion:

We still recommend that you utilise the services of a reputed consultant like Deppro, qualified and experienced quantity surveyors ensure that you do not miss out on any tax breaks that you are eligible for.

Differences in Depreciation between Houses and Apartments

Several factors need to be considered when calculating how much depreciation is required to be offered a particular property. Among those factors, the type of the property is one of the crucial factors that you cannot overlook when preparing a property report. It may be either apartment units or houses. Striking similarities exist when you calculate depreciation for both – houses and apartments. It may include the price of the property and the age of the property. You will come across differences when you take into consideration how the property was built.

Here are some essential depreciation differences between apartment units and houses:

1. Amount of Labor:

When you build an apartment unit and a house, the amount of labor will be more for an apartment. This is due to the multiple floors in an apartment unit. And, this is the reason why the apartment unit’s build cost is different from house with regards to capital works also known as division 43. It is specifically the case for new apartment units with several floors. Apartment units are eligible to claim a small portion of the common areas that helps in enhancing the depreciation further. This claim can be made under plant and equipment (division 40). This means that an apartment unit owner is eligible to claim the equal amount or more depreciation. You need to find out your depreciation residential rental property in accordance with the rules.

2. Plant & Equipment:

The next vital factor is the Plant & Equipment aka Division 40 – that these two types of properties may claim. Both apartment units and houses are eligible to claim plant and equipment costs. This includes light, blinds, shades, etc. Owners will also be able to claim a portion of common strata tools spotted in the common areas of an apartment which may consist of lifts, gym equipment, and fire extinguishers. These items can be claimed under Division 40 of Plant & equipment. These additional sources of depreciation permit owners of apartment units to claim higher depreciation in comparison to houses. You can prepare your tax depreciation schedules on the basis of these items. If doubts persist, you may hire a quantity surveyor.

3. High Cost of Construction:

Owners of apartment units will be able to get more tax deductions per year compared to a house owner. This is because of the higher cost of construction and eligibility to claim various strata items for apartment owners.

Conclusion:

An apartment unit will fetch higher tax deduction in comparison to a house. You may seek the services of a quantity surveyor who will carry out a site inspection. The quantity surveyor must have a vast knowledge of Australian tax return; which will help to establish the amount of plant and equipment items on the property and take measurements of the property and make vital notes to boost the depreciation schedule.

Own a Rental Property? Know Your Tax Deductions

Rental properties are a very lucrative investment opportunity for those involved in real estate. Apart from creating a property as an investment, it also turns the investment as a regular source of capital from tenants. However, rental properties also come with some significant taxes. But if you are smart enough, there are ways to save on the taxes. Let’s take a look at how you can claim tax refunds on your rental property.

Capital Gains and Tax

Before we delve into claims about tax deductions, we must understand an important concept: Capital Gains Tax. A capital gain is when the selling price of a property is more than its cost base. A capital loss is the reverse; the selling price is less than the cost base. The CGT is applicable when you derive capital gains from selling your property.

To minimize your CGT, the straight route is showing the capital gains as low as possible. There are perfectly legal ways to do so, primarily by including all possible expenses into the base cost of the property. You can also apply for capital losses from previous years if any. Creating the investment property depreciation schedule and capital works schedule is another way.

Tax Deductions You Can Claim

There are a variety of expenses you can claim for tax deductions, like:

  • Advertising expenditure for finding tenants
  • Any interest incurred over property investment loan
  • Insurance of the property
  • Travel expenses incurred while traveling to inspect your property (subject to scrutiny)
  • Water costs
  • Council costs, if any
  • Management fees of your real estate, if you hired professional help for the same
  • Deprecation on residential rental property assets like air conditioners

While it seems straightforward, being able to claim these tax deductions come with certain requirements. For starters, you must maintain all physical bills and/or bank statements for transactions covered above. Two things must also be maintained accurately: depreciation schedule and capital works schedule.

The depreciation schedule lists all the properties/assets you own on the rental property. It also mentions how much you can annually claim in depreciation tax deduction on rental property. The capital works schedule consists of the building and construction costs of the rental property. It is important to maintain all the bills while you were building the property. In case the bills are amiss, one can ask an architect or builder to assess the costs involved in the construction of the property.

Tax Deductions You Can’t Claim

There are also certain costs that you can’t claim for tax deductions:

  • Any cost incurred while you used the rental property for your personal use
  • All the utility bills paid by the tenants, like electricity, etc.
  • The inherent costs associated with buying and selling of properties are already included within taxes and thus cannot be claimed for tax deductions
  • Sometimes, owners borrow money against the property, like selling its equity or mortgaging it. The costs involved in such loans cannot be tax deducted.

Note: While we mentioned that inherent fees involved in buying/selling of properties are not eligible for tax deductions, many other charges during the buying/selling can be eligible for the same. Thus, it is advisable to maintain all bills of the process.

Final Words:

Rental properties are a great investment opportunity. By claiming the tax deductions in the right way, you can increase your profits from your property even further.

Significance of Real Estate Depreciation for Rental Property Investors

Many rental property investors fail to comprehend numerous tax advantages that they are entitled too, in particular, real estate depreciation. When you own a rental property, you are bound to receive tax advantages. Real estate depreciation can be defined as an income tax deduction wherein a taxpayer can retrieve the expenses or other costs. A depreciation schedule can bring down the taxable income of investors. A large number of investors also call it; a phantom expense. The IRS allows investors to avail tax deductions on the basis of an apparent decline in the real estate’s value. Real estate depreciation expects that rental property’s value dip over a period of time due to wear and tear. The investor may get cash flow from the property and may reflect tax loss courtesy because of real estate depreciation.

Advantages of displaying investment property tax depreciation

You can avail the advantages when you show investment property tax depreciation. The main advantage is that it can bring down the overall tax burden. It can also benefit real estate investors as they can save a substancial chunk of money every year on their taxes.

Investment properties that can be depreciated for tax deductions

If you want to make your property eligible for depreciation, you need to meet certain requirements. The taxpayer needs to have possession of the rental property and can also depreciate capital improvements. You must use the property in business or income-generating activity. If a taxpayer uses the property for business as well as for personal reasons, they can only deduct depreciation for business use. And, the property needs to have a calculable advantageous life of more than one year. You may seek some professional advice on how to calculate the exact depreciation residential rental property.

Tips to calculate real estate depreciation

It is not a mammoth job to calculate the exact real estate depreciation. You can carry out the calculation in 3 easy steps given below:

  1. The real estate value is constituted by land and building values. And, depreciation applies only to the building. The first and foremost step is to allocate the property’s purchase cost. After that, the purchase cost must be allocated between the land and building value.
  2. As you know the land is not liable for depreciation, it is the building that will be subject to depreciation. The building is to be depreciated over the IRS prescribed useful life. The life is labeled as 27.5 years for residential rental property and 39 years for commercial land. Now you ought to divide the building value by 27.5 to obtain the depreciation expenditure. You can also take the help of experts to prepare the rental property depreciation schedule.
  3. Now you need to multiply the depreciation expenditure by the marginal tax rate. This will give you property tax savings from real estate depreciation.

Conclusion:

Real estate depreciation is a vital tax deduction for the scores of real estate investors. The real estate investors must not neglect it. It is crucial for investors to comprehend the fundamentals of depreciation. It will offer benefits to investors with tax planning. They will also comprehend the important after-tax investment returns. In the longer run, it will help them in claiming depreciation on a rental property.

 

How is Depreciation Applied Following Natural Disasters?

Irrespective of the country you are in, you would often hear of the havoc that natural disasters can cause. Whether it’s the bushfires in NSW or Queensland, or the Victorian floods this year, natural disasters happen with frightening regularity. While the loss of human life in such disasters is an irreparable loss, there are other ways that the victims suffer. For example, the destruction and damage of property causes losses of millions of dollars every year, for homes, offices, and commercial property. The owners of these properties find themselves in a very difficult situation. Some need to be rebuilt from scratch. Others are slightly luckier, and they can get by with replacing most of their assets.

This rebuilding and renovating after a natural disaster does often result in an almost new structure. As far as the property valuation goes, it impacts the tax payable as well. This is because the property attracts different depreciation rules after repairs following a natural disaster. Because of the different depreciation amounts and percentages, the tax-deductible due to depreciation also changes. After suffering such loss of property due to a natural disaster, the least you can do is to ensure that you don’t pay more tax than you ought to.

A Few Definitions

Before you get into the calculation of depreciation for tax purposes, it’s best to understand a few key terms that would often be used. When you need to undertake minor work in order to return your house to its earlier condition, you are said to be undertaking repairs. Sometimes, some fittings or fixtures of your house are spoilt, broken, or damaged after the natural disaster strikes. In that case, they would need to be replaced by new assets. When you undertake some works to improve the look, utility, or specifications/dimensions of some assets without replacing them, you are said to have improved or upgraded it. If you are working on your tax-related depreciation calculations yourself, it is imperative that you know and understand these terms – even if you are employing the services of a quantity surveyor, you should still be aware.

How to Calculate Depreciation?

If you wish to make an accurate property depreciation report, you need to understand the different calculations yourself. First, if it is simple repairs, then you need to immediately deduct those expenses if you do not have insurance coverage. If you have insurance, you need to also declare the insurance income you received. If your work is a little more detailed and you need to replace things, then you must first find out the residual value of that replaced asset – this is only if you do not have insurance. If you do, then before claiming depreciation on property, you must adjust the values of Individual Depreciation Assets and Capital Allowance. The flow of calculation would be similar when you are improving or upgrading your assets.

Conclusion:

There is no denying the fact that if your property is hit by a natural disaster, there is little you can do, except wait till it passes. But later, you can always make an accurate assessment of your depreciation to minimise your tax commitment.

How Much of Your Investment Property Costs Can Be Claimed on Tax?

Owning a property, while a good investment, can also be heavy on the taxes. However, only a few people know that much of it can be claimed as tax-deductible or as depreciated items. But how much and what exactly can be claimed on tax? Let’s take a better look.

Knowing the Typical Tax Deductions

To begin with, you must keep receipts of all your expenses on your property investment. Next, you should identify all the things that can be claimed for tax deductions. For land owners in Australia, there are a significant number of costs that fall under this:

  • Loan interest and fees for any ongoing loan. Both of these are usually included in the loan statement and can be directly used for deductions.
  • Land tax and council rates are tax-deductible. Body corporate fees for villas, apartments and townhouses alike are also usually tax-deductible.
  • Insurance for both the building and the landlord is tax-deductible.
  • Bookkeeping and account fees are also tax-deductible.
  • Miscellaneous costs like traveling costs to property, stationery items, phone cost, advertising for tenants, ongoing property management fees and re-letting costs are also usually tax-deductible.

Careful with the repairs

Repairs are a tricky field when it comes to tax deductions. The nature and extent of repairs usually decide whether it is tax-deductible, but it is murky waters. Ongoing maintenance operations like gardening and pest control are generally included under tax deductions. Repair of objects within the property, like a faulty water heater, might be claimed under tax deductions (though you would need to check the specifics beforehand).

When you replace an item within your property altogether, legally it no longer remains a ‘repair’ and becomes instead an ‘improvement’. Any such improvements on the property cannot be claimed for tax deductions. However, such replacements are eligible for depreciation for property.

Using depreciation for deductions

For property owners, depreciation is often the best way to get tax deductions. As mentioned before, home improvement cannot be directly deducted from tax but is eligible for depreciation. Landlords usually opt for depreciation on investment property due to the sheer range it covers, almost everything within the property – garage, kitchen floor, windows, etc. – is eligible for it. Even items used for interior decoration like carpets and curtains can be included for depreciation.

However, the range can also often get confusing. It is easy to forget what items could be applied for depreciation and what couldn’t. There are professionals like quantity surveyors that can thoroughly examine everything on your property and prepare a depreciation schedule for investment pro.

Having a professional Deppro contact number in your pocket might come in handy! For instance, all of the legal costs involved in buying a property are not eligible for tax deductions. Instead of this, costs like stamp duty and legal fees can be used to reduce your capital gains tax when you sell the property in the future.

Conclusion:

Property investments can be a costly affair, thanks to the huge taxes they incur. But if you are smart enough, you can legally save a lot of money on tax claims.

Can Depreciation on My Rental Property Be Back-Claimed?

Several property investors are not fully aware of the tax benefits they can claim from their rental property. As per ATO rules, a certified quantity surveyor can help such investors reduce their tax burden. This is on account of the depreciation on their property every year. A quantity surveyor can help them make a detailed tax depreciation schedule for rental property. This would then help reduce their taxable income. As a result, the annual tax also gets reduced. Were you aware of this? If so, then you must be claiming the due depreciation tax benefit every year. But things not stopped here. Let’s say you missed claiming the depreciation on your rental property in some previous year. You might have given up that tax deduction as lost forever. But that is not correct. You can also back-claim your depreciation benefits on rental property. Read all about it here.

How Many Years Are Back-Claims Permitted?

This would have been the first question in your mind by now. The ATO has different sets of rules for different categories of taxpayers. If you are an individual taxpayer or the owner of a small business, then you can back-claim missed returns of the last two years. For other categories of taxpayers, this period is four years. For all these periods, the date of calculation is important. ATO guidelines state that the date of notice for tax assessment is the date from when the period is considered. In case you haven’t got any notice, then the date you filed your incomplete return is considered. Also, for the same period, you can submit more than one request for amendment.

The Process for Back-Claim of Previous Years

The process begins with a simple request for amendment made to the ATO, which is free of cost. After that, you need to wait for the ATO to send you the notice for submitting the amended return. While you wait, you should get your amended rental property depreciation report readied. The ATO website does provide all details for you to do it. But you should get this done by a certified quantity surveyor or at least consult your tax accountant. That way the chances of errors are minimised.

A Review of the Entire Process

Now that you know that a couple of years of delay can be corrected, you need to understand the complete picture. ATO rules allow you to claim tax relief on account of depreciation. Depreciation is the annual reduction that your rental property suffers. This is a normal accounting principle. You can claim depreciation for both fixed assets and other fixtures and fittings.

Conclusion:

You may have submitted incomplete rental home returns in previous years. It could be simply because you didn’t know about it or you might have missed it. All it means is that you paid a slightly higher tax that year. But that mistake can be easily corrected. You can back-claim for two to four years, depending on what type of taxpayer you are. Get in touch to learn more and speak to one of our professional team members for more insight.