Depreciation on investment property is an essential tax allowance to claim. Please note that, as announced in the May 2017 Budget, from 1 July 2017, property investors can only claim tax depreciation for plant and equipment, if you actually bought it yourself; or it was included in the new property.
How do you depreciate a new property?
For residential properties, take your cost basis (or adjusted cost basis, if applicable) and divide it by 27.5. Put another way, for each full year you own a rental property, you can depreciate 3.636% of your cost basis each year.
Can You claim depreciation on a brand new house?
If you engage a builder to build a brand-new house, or do the work yourself and it remains an investment property, you will still be able to claim depreciation on both the structure and the plant and equipment items. This is because it’s brand new, and was brand new when you put in that oven.
When to claim depreciation on a new investment property?
This is the cost of building the investment property (i.e. the construction costs). This depreciation is spread over 40 years — the length of time the ATO says a building lasts before it needs replacing. For instance, on a new building that cost $200,000 to build, you could make a $5,000 tax claim each year for 40 years (i.e. 2.5% per year). 2.
When do you claim depreciation on a renovation?
If you engage a builder to renovate a property – or you do the work yourself – and it is also being used as an investment property, you will still be able to claim depreciation on it when you have finished the renovations. As above, this is because the assets you install are brand new, therefore you can still claim.
When to claim depreciation on second hand property?
Under current legislation, owners of second-hand residential properties who exchanged contracts after 7:30pm on 9 May 2017 cannot claim deductions for previously used plant and equipment assets. You can still claim depreciation for any brand-new plant and equipment assets you purchase and install in the property once it is income producing.
