If you got an investment property depreciation schedule (DS) can be  one of the major part of your reducing your tax. Normally the newer your property is with new attached appliances and  assets attached ,the more depreciation you can claim  and reduce tax. A depreciation schedule  can be made by  a genuine quantity surveyor or then organised by your accountant and can involve accounting  for many future years of depreciation that you can claim for your investment property. A lot more online websites are now offering online depreciation calculators as well,  though it is always better  to do  a depreciation schedule from a qualified quantity surveyor  as it can get quite technical .

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Some of the depreciation that  self prepares often miss  out on is , not claiming depreciation because they think their property is too old and also claiming depreciable items as a repair (deduction).

Be ready to shell out  anyway between $250 to $700 for a good depreciation schedule for your property. Quantity surveyor reports can also include a schedule of depreciable assets (capital allowances). You can claim a separate deduction for the decline in value of depreciable assets. Depreciation schedules from a qualified valuer are generally accepted  even though they are not on the ATO provided list.

Quantity surveyors are required to become registered with the tax practitioners board (TPB) in order to provide tax advice.

There are mainly two type of depreciation schedule reports that are prepared generally ,one that is prepared by information sent by you to the tax agent or Depreciation schedule  company  and one that is prepared by the quantity surveyor or DS company doing a site visit.

Technically there are two types of calculating  depreciation , Prime Cost and Diminishing Value methods of depreciation. Two methods can be applied when depreciating property, the Diminishing Value (DV) and Prime Cost (PC) method. Under the diminishing value method the deduction is calculated as a percentage of the balance you have left to deduct. Under the prime cost method the deduction for each year is calculated as a percentage of the cost.  If you claim using the Diminishing Value Method (DV), you are claiming a greater proportion of the assets cost in the earlier years of the effective life.If the owner was intending to retain ownership for a longer period of time then the PC option may be more suitable, as it provides a constant projection of what the investor’s tax deductions will be

List of online depreciation  calculators websites :

• Tax depreciation  calculator by washingtonbrown.com.au – http://calc.washingtonbrown.com.au/wbdcalculator/calculator.aspx
• Online tax depreciation calculator by http://www.bmtqs.com.au – http://www.bmtqs.com.au/tax-depreciation-calculator
• Use this calculator to increase the accuracy of the potential depreciation from homesales – http://www.homesales.com.au/research/depreciation-calculator.aspx
• Tax depreciation calculator by ljhooker.com.au – http://www.ljhooker.com.au/property-depreciation/depreciation-calculator

What is Depreciation

According to the tax office, under income tax law, you are allowed to claim deductions for expenses incurred in earning assessable income, eg. rent. The cost associated with the acquisition of capital assets, which provide benefit over their “effective life” may be written off over a period of time as tax deductions and this is essentially known as depreciation

What is a Tax Depreciation Schedule?

A Tax Depreciation Schedule is a professionally produced document highlighting items of plant, equipment and capital costs that may be depreciated. It incorporates the value of each depreciable item, including delivery costs, installation costs and the cost associated with bringing the plant into full operation.

• What can you claim? (ATO)

  If you own a rental property, you may be able to claim a deduction (usually at the rate of 2.5% per year in the 40 years following construction) for the construction cost of:

  • buildings
  • extensions, such as a garage or patio
  • alterations, such as adding an internal wall, kitchen renovations or bathroom makeovers
  • structural improvements – such as a gazebo, carport, sealed driveway, retaining wall or fence.

Depreciation of newly built investment property

– To give a very broad and general idea of depreciation you can claim for newly built investment properties -  if your Investment Property cost $200,000 to build, you could expect a $12,000 depreciation deduction in Year 1, and a $9,000 deduction in Year 2 and so on  based on Year 1:  6%.   Year 2:  4.5%.        Year 3:  4%.       Year 4:  3.75%.      Year 5: 3.5%.

List of websites providing  depreciation schedules in Australia :

The depreciation companies below have not been reviewed by us , but has just been provided  as a list  for your convenience

http://www.corpred.com.au/ – According to their website , Established in 1998, Corpred Enterprises is a professional practice of Quantity Surveyors and Construction Cost Consultants specialising in the preparation of Tax Depreciation schedules.

Contact details:

National Phone Number: 1300 854 206
National Fax Number: 1300 854 207
National Email: info@corpred.com.au

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http://www.washingtonbrown.com.au -  According to their website – Washington Brown is one of Australia’s leading Quantity Surveying firms who specialise in the preparation of comprehensive depreciation schedules that maximise tax savings on your investment property not only for for major developer or a small-scale  but also residential investors.

Contact details:

Nationwide Email: info@washingtonbrown.com.au

Nationwide Fax: 1300 99 06 13

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http://www.deppro.com.au – According to their website – A deppro provides a complete depreciation schedule available to investors in just two weeks.  they also provide it online  and to ensure a two-week turnaround, you need to complete our online application form and submit it. Fees start at under $600 for residential properties

Contact details:

Customer Service Hotline

P 1300 888 489
E info@deppro.com.au

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http://www.mydepreciation.com.au/ – According to their website,  they provide free estimates via sms and  the economy package costs $225 + gst. Their website says firm of fully qualified quantity surveyors who specialise in maximising the tax depreciation potential for investment properties

Contact details:

1300 319 809 -  24/7 Australian Customer Support

Links:

• [PDF] Guide to depreciating assets 2013 – Australian Taxation Office -You can download this publication in Portable Document Format (PDF) (NAT 1996, PDF, 928KB).
• http://www.aiqs.com.au/ – The Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (AIQS) is a professional standards body.  Through its leadership, standards and code of ethics, it ensures that practising Quantity Surveyors are dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of professional excellence. – http://issuu.com/aiqs_be/docs/a-list2012
• Sample depreciation schedule  Pdf
• Tax Practitioners Board -  http://www.tpb.gov.au

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