Hi,
I was discussing depreciation with a friend who has owned an investment unit since '97. On hearing about depreciation, he quickly rifled through his accounts realising that he has never claimed this. The building was built in 1984.
How far back can you go (if at all) when claiming depreciation?
Would the next step be engaging a QS (prior to sacking his accountant!)
Cheers
Yes, it pays to know more than your accountant in this caper, or at least be on a par with them to keep them on their toes.
Not sure about how far you can go back to claim the deductions (talk to your accountant about this), but if the property was built before Sept 1987 there is no depreciation left on the building. There is on buildings built between 1985 and 1987 (I think), but it is only for 25 years @ 4% per year from completion date. This ran out in 2002 at a guess.
You may still have some depreciation on the fixtures and fittings if there has been a recent reno and you can account for the costs of these.
Getting a Depreciation Schedule may still be worthwhile however, even on an older property such as this. Ring some Quantity Surveyor firms and ask them what they think.
My first step would be to ring up the accountant and discuss it with him first.
Cheers
ElkaGet a report done anyway. Firms like http://www.depreciator.com.au have a good guarantee that they will not charge you for the report if it doesn't pay for itself in tax refunds.
I believe you can go back four years but this may have changed since I was involved in helping someone backdate them. Easy enough to find out if you call the ATO or your accountant.
Ciao,
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