Preparing a report for a commercial property is similar in principle to the preparation of a residential report but with two critical differences:

1. Commercial buildings are generally unique and of a custom design. Accordingly, in order to maximise your claim it is imperative to select a quantity surveyor who has experience in estimating complex designs – valuing simple construction such as a house is one thing but valuing the construction cost of property worth millions of dollars requires a high level of expertise. In this respect we advise that our depreciation service is complimented by our ongoing provision of cost estimates and court-recognised expert opinions.

2. The ATO provides effective lives for commercial property based on a large number of industry groupings (e.g. manufacturing, mining, hospitality etc). It would be incorrect to apply residential rates to commercial properties – in our experience, not all our competitors are familiar with this.

Leased Premises (Fitout Works)

A lesser-known fact is that you do not have to own the building in order to claim for a capital works and depreciation deduction. If you are leasing non-residential premises and you provide ‘fit-out’ works (eg. to an office a restaurant or a shop), you can claim a deduction against the value of this work – in the instance that you have known costs the ATO will require that these costs be advised.

Additionally, a depreciation report may be required by the property owner so they claim back the value of their contribution (‘Landlord’s Contribution’) to the fit-out works.

Our Expertise

Over the years, ACP Quantity Surveyors have prepared capital works and depreciation reports for the following commercial properties:

Hotels, motels & pubs
Warehouses and industrial buildings
Offices
Petrol stations
Shopping centres
Restaurants