#cost-segregation
Cost Segregation
Engineering-based studies that reclassify building components into shorter MACRS lives to accelerate depreciation deductions
Residential Assisted Living Bookkeeping: A Complete Guide for 6-to-16 Bed Owner-Operators
A working guide to bookkeeping for owner-operated residential assisted living and personal care homes — ASC 606 treatment of community fees, payer-mix subledgers for Medicaid waiver and VA Aid and Attendance, caregiver W-2 vs 1099 classification, cost segregation strategy after the 2025 bonus depreciation reset, and the seven KPIs that predict profitability in 6-to-16 bed senior care homes.
Salon Suite and Booth Rental Bookkeeping: A Practical Guide for Suite Operators and Independent Stylists
How salon-suite operators and booth-renting stylists should separate ASC 842 lease revenue from ASC 606 service revenue, capitalize the build-out under QIP and Section 179, navigate the DOL 2024 worker-classification rule and state ABC tests, and track the few KPIs — suite occupancy, RevPRSF, average tenure — that actually predict location survival.
Self-Storage Facility Bookkeeping: Revenue Streams, Lien Sales, Tenant Protection Plans, and Cost Segregation
A working guide for self-storage operators on ASC 606 revenue recognition across rent, lien sale proceeds, deposits, and tenant protection plans; cost segregation that shifts 20–40% of basis into 5- and 15-year lives; and the economic occupancy and RevPAF KPIs lenders underwrite.
Form 3115 for Small Businesses: A Practical Walkthrough of Section 481(a), Automatic Consent, and the Audit Protection Traps
How small businesses use Form 3115 to fix prior-year accounting methods without amending returns — covering the Section 481(a) catch-up math, automatic vs. non-automatic consent under Rev. Proc. 2015-13, three worked examples (cash-to-accrual, cost segregation, repair regs), and the five filing mistakes that forfeit audit protection.
Private RV Park and Campground Bookkeeping: Revenue Recognition, Cost Segregation, and Per-Site KPIs
How private RV park and campground operators should separate nightly, monthly, and seasonal site revenue under ASC 606, handle submetered utility pass-through, capture 15-year land improvements through cost segregation, and reconcile the per-site KPIs that lenders and buyers actually read.
Car Wash Bookkeeping: ASC 606 Deferred Revenue, Cost per Car, and 15-Year MACRS Tunnel Depreciation
How express car washes should recognize unlimited membership revenue ratably under ASC 606, allocate variable cost per car across water, electricity, and chemicals (~$1.50/car target), and depreciate tunnel equipment under 15-year MACRS with cost segregation and bonus depreciation.
The Self-Rental Rule: Why Your Building Rents Are Nonpassive but Your Losses Stay Passive
Reg. 1.469-2(f)(6) recharacterizes net rental income from property you rent to your own active business as nonpassive while leaving rental losses passive. This guide explains the asymmetry, walks through a dentist example with a $200,000 cost segregation deduction, and shows how the Reg. 1.469-4 grouping election can collapse the rule.
Qualified Improvement Property Under Section 168(e)(6): How Restaurant, Retail, and Office Build-Outs Unlock 15-Year Recovery and 100% Bonus Depreciation
Qualified Improvement Property (QIP) under Section 168(e)(6) lets nonresidential interior build-outs use a 15-year recovery period and qualify for 100% bonus depreciation after the OBBBA. Covers the statutory test, three exclusions, TCJA-to-OBBBA history, a worked $540,000 restaurant example, and Form 3115 catch-up deductions.
Section 469 Passive Activity Loss Rules: How Real Estate Investors Unlock Trapped Losses
A practical guide to Section 469 for real estate investors and side-business owners — the seven material participation tests, the $25,000 active-rental allowance, the real estate professional carve-out, the short-term rental angle, and the disposition rules that release suspended losses.
Bookkeeping for Short-Term Rental Hosts: Schedule E vs. Schedule C, the 7-Day Average Stay Rule, and Material Participation
How Airbnb and Vrbo hosts classify income on Schedule E vs. Schedule C, calculate the 7-day average stay, and document material participation to unlock non-passive losses against W-2 wages.
Section 1245 vs. Section 1250: How Depreciation Recapture Erodes Your Bonus Depreciation Benefits
When you sell depreciated business property, Section 1245 recaptures prior depreciation as ordinary income (up to 37%), while Section 1250 caps the recapture on real estate at 25% — turning a 100% bonus depreciation deduction into a large tax bill at exit unless you plan with cost segregation, 1031 exchanges, and a clean fixed-asset register.
Real Estate Professional Status: How High Earners Use Section 469(c)(7) to Turn Rental Losses Into Tax Savings
A practical guide to Section 469(c)(7) Real Estate Professional Status — the 750-hour and more-than-half tests, the spousal rule, material participation and the grouping election, common audit failures, and how 100% bonus depreciation in 2026 makes REPS worth the documentation cost.