Same building. Faster deductions.
Most owners depreciate a building straight-line over 27.5 or 39 years. A cost segregation study reclassifies components — flooring, fixtures, site work, certain building systems — into 5, 7, and 15-year buckets, front-loading depreciation into the years you actually want the deduction. The study itself is an engineered third-party study. I scope it, review it, and file the result — as both the CPA who signs the return and the licensed GC who knows what’s actually in the building.
It's a timing move, not a bigger deduction.
A cost segregation study on a rental property is an accelerated-depreciation move for real estate investors, not a bigger deduction. Every building depreciates the same total amount either way. Straight-line spreads it evenly over decades. A cost segregation study has an engineer-level review reclassify specific components — carpet and flooring, certain electrical and plumbing, cabinetry, site improvements — out of the 27.5/39-year bucket and into 5, 7, and 15-year buckets that qualify for accelerated and, in many years, bonus depreciation.
The result: a much larger deduction in the first one to two years of ownership, when it usually does the most good — offsetting income from the acquisition, a renovation, or a good year.
Studies are most valuable on properties that are being acquired, substantially renovated, or built — because that's when itemized cost data exists and the reclassification is most defensible under IRS guidelines.
Cost seg rarely stands alone.
It's one lever of five, and it's strongest combined with the others — because the same underlying data (what was bought, what was built) feeds each one.
1031 Exchange
Buying a replacement property in an exchange? A cost seg study on it is often most valuable in the same year you close — plan it before the deal, not after.
REPS
A large accelerated loss is worth far more to an investor who's REPS-qualified — it offsets ordinary income instead of sitting stuck as a passive loss.
Renovation & Cost-Basis Planning
I track itemized renovation costs as the work happens — exactly the data a cost seg study needs, instead of reconstructing it after the fact.
A cost segregation CPA in MA, serving investors nationwide
The study and the tax filing come from the same Massachusetts-licensed practice, so nothing gets lost translating an engineer's report into your actual return.
Best suited to a few specific moments.
Just closed on a property
The purchase price and closing costs are fresh — the ideal moment to commission a study before the first tax return is filed.
Mid-renovation or just finished
Itemized construction costs are exactly what a study needs. We track this as the GC on the job, so nothing has to be reconstructed later.
Sheltering a high-income year
Sold a business, had a large bonus, or otherwise had an unusually high-income year — a study timed right can offset it, especially paired with REPS.
Cost segregation, in plain English.
Does a cost seg study increase my total deduction? +
What's "depreciation recapture," and does this make it worse? +
Is a cost seg study worth it on a smaller property? +
Do you do the engineering study yourself? +
How does this work with a 1031 exchange? +
Find out what a study is worth on your property.
Bring the property and your last return. In 20 minutes I'll show you whether a cost seg study makes sense, roughly what it could unlock, and how it stacks with REPS or a 1031.