On Tuesday the 9th of May 2017 the government proposed changes to the depreciation of plant and equipment assets in the federal budget.
These proposed changes were passed by the Senate on the 15th of November 2017.
Shortly after these changes were proposed and following their legislation, a number of property investors contacted BMT Tax Depreciation to discuss how they might be affected.
Understandably so, as the last major changes to depreciation legislation were made by the government in the mid 1980’s.
The main concerns investors had were about the impact the changes would have on their existing arrangements, future purchases and more widely on the property market.
The good news for investors is that properties purchased prior to 7:30pm on the 9th of May 2017 are unaffected, as the previously existing depreciation legislation has been grandfathered.
This means that any investor who exchanged contracts prior to this date can continue to claim depreciation deductions as per before.
The changes outlined in legislation section two of Treasury Laws Amendment (Housing Tax Integrity) Bill 2017 remove a subsequent owner’s ability to claim a depreciation deduction for previously used plant and equipment assets (the easily removable or mechanical fixtures and fittings) in properties which exchanged contracts after the 9th of May 2017.
The legislation also confirms that the proposed changes will only apply to second-hand residential properties.
Any investor who purchases a brand new property can continue to claim depreciation for plant and equipment as normal.
The changes won’t affect an investor’s ability to claim the capital works component (deductions available for the wear and tear of the building structure and fixed items).
Depreciation of plant and equipment for non-residential/commercial properties is also unaffected.
The legislation also states that amendments to deductions for plant and equipment assets held in residential properties will not affect those carrying on a business, corporate tax entities, superannuation plans (other than Self-Managed Super Funds) and those who hold a property in a large unit trust.
Properties which have been lived in and turned into an investment property by their owners prior to the 1st of July 2017 are not affected. Owners can continue to claim plant and equipment depreciation and capital works deductions.
A property owner will not be able to claim depreciation on pre-existing plant and equipment assets within properties which have been lived in as a primary place of residence where the owner decides to rent the property out after the 1st of July 2017. Plant and equipment assets within this scenario are considered previously used.
There are scenarios where the values of plant and equipment will be needed. This includes when an asset is scrapped, where there is a partial or full CGT exemption and where the exchange date and settlement date on the sale of the property occur in separate financial years. Depending on the circumstances, a property investor who is unable to claim depreciation on previously used plant and equipment assets due to these amendments should be able to claim a capital loss for the decline in value of the plant and equipment assets. This capital loss should only be able to offset a capital gain and if needed can be carried forward to offset future capital gains.
Case study
The below scenario explains in detail how depreciation plays a role in assisting a residential property investor to improve the cash return from their property. It also compares the depreciation deductions for the first full financial year on a three year old house purchased for $600,000 before and after the 9th of May 2017.
In the example, the owner receives a rental income of $560 per week or a total income of $29,120. Expenses for the property, such as interest, council rates, property management fees, insurance and repairs and maintenance total $41,028.
In the first scenario, the owner is able to claim a total depreciation claim of $12,397 from both capital works deductions and plant and equipment depreciation.
Using depreciation, this investor is experiencing a weekly cost of $56 per week to hold the property.
In the second scenario, as the owner exchanged contracts on the property after the 9th of May 2017, they are only able to claim $6,126 in capital works deductions and will be unable to claim $6,271 in plant and equipment deductions.
This reduced claim would result in the investors weekly cost of holding the investment property increasing from $56 to $101, a difference of $45 per week or $2,340 in the first full financial year.
It’s important to note that the change will have the same effect on both positive and negative cash flow scenarios.
While we believe that generally the integrity measure has merit, the legislative changes go much further than what was necessary to deliver on the government’s intention of stopping subsequent owners from claiming deductions in excess of an asset’s value. The approach outlined in the legislation treats residential property investors differently by extinguishing a property investor’s ability to claim a deductions based upon a transaction.
We believe this is caused by gaps in current legislation around establishing a depreciable value for second-hand plant and equipment.
It’s more important than ever to work with a specialist Quantity Surveyor to ensure that all deductions are identified and claimed correctly under the new legislation.
Each and every BMT Tax Depreciation Schedule will be tailored to suit an individual’s property investment scenario, ensuring that all deductions are maximised.
Hi,
What a nice read, though before I order a report could someone please confirm my situation?
So I bought an off-the-plan apartment unit on 11 November 2017 and the settlement date was in late 2018, it actually was my primary place of residence between late 2018 – early 2020.
The unit was officially rented out on 1 July 2020 and 80% of the furniture and appliances were pre-existing ones. So in my scenario, I can’t claim these items under Division 40 at all? Not even those fixtures like range hoods, package aircon, hot water systems?
Thanks.
Eddie
Hi Eddie,
Thanks for your comment.
Yes, that’s correct. You won’t be able to claim pre-existing Division 40 assets which are classed as those that are ‘easily removable or mechanical in nature’ such as hot water systems.
But you’ll still be able to claim all new Division 40 assets, and all capital works (Division 43) of the apartment and a portion of the common areas. On average, capital works make up 85 – 90 per cent of total depreciation claims and if the apartment was constructed in 2018, you could potentially claim capital works until 2058.
Please get in touch with our team on 1300 728 726 and we can provide an obligation-free depreciation estimate over the phone.
Thanks,
The BMT Team