For You · Personal
Rental & Investment Property
Depreciation schedules, correct interest apportionment and a cost base that is ready long before you sell.
Overview
The deductions most investors leave behind
Property investors lose money in three predictable places. They never commission a depreciation schedule, so the largest non-cash deduction available to them is simply not claimed. They treat every expense as a repair, and the ATO reclassifies the significant ones as capital. And they keep no record of capital improvements, so the cost base at sale is understated and the capital gain is overstated.
We fix the first with a quantity surveyor's report, the second by classifying expenditure correctly as it happens, and the third by keeping a running cost base schedule for every property from the year we take you on. We also track land tax across states, which catches investors who buy in a second state without registering.
How we help
- 01
Depreciation schedules
A quantity surveyor's report commissioned and applied, typically recovering far more than it costs in year one.
- 02
Negative gearing and interest apportionment
Interest correctly apportioned where a loan is mixed-purpose or has been redrawn for private use.
- 03
Repairs versus improvements
Expenditure classified as it happens, so an immediate deduction is not later reclassified as capital.
- 04
Land tax across states
Thresholds, surcharges and trust rules tracked in each state where you hold property.
- 05
CGT on sale and the absence rule
Cost base maintained from day one, with the six years absence rule applied where a former home is rented out.
Resources
Never had a depreciation schedule prepared?
For most properties built or renovated since 1987 it is the single largest deduction available.
FAQ
Property investment questions
For most properties built or substantially renovated since 1987, yes, often several times over in the first year alone. The fee is itself deductible. For an older property with no renovations, we assess before recommending you commission one.
A repair restores something to its original condition and is deductible immediately. An improvement makes it better than it was and is capital. Replacing a broken fence panel is a repair; replacing the whole fence with a better one is not.
Only on the portion still attributable to the investment property. Redrawing for a car or a holiday contaminates the loan, and the interest must be apportioned from that point. A separate offset account avoids the problem entirely.
If a property was your main residence and you move out, you can continue to treat it as your main residence for up to six years while it earns rent, provided you do not claim another property as your main residence for that period.
Usually, once your landholdings in a state exceed that state's threshold. Thresholds, rates and trust surcharges differ by state, and holding through a trust often removes the threshold entirely. We check each state you hold in.
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+61 451 114 862Book a consultationThis page is general information only. It does not take your circumstances into account. Speak to a registered tax agent before acting on anything here.
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