Deprecation report

Yes I think so. I paid a slightly higher amount for my first report and pay a little bit less for subsequent reports. Money well spent.
 
That's about right. Talk to your accountant, sometime you will find if you mention their name, you can get better discount with the same service provider :)
 
Obviously I'm a tad biased, but here's a fact: there is not a single QS firm out there that pulls its fee out of a hat and decides to charge that arbitrarily. You need to investigate the differences between a $300 report, a $500 report and a $700 report. And if the people who manage your money (accountant, financial planner) make a suggestion, ask them why and listen to them.

A Quantity Surveyor is a professional like an accountant or a solicitor. A depreciation schedule is an important part of your investment strategy. You get what you pay for.
 
I agree with BMT - you can get a different report for a different price, and yes they are definitely worth it.

Cheers Ivan
 
so how would you determine if paying $700 would get you more value than a $400 report? How would you know you got more value for money (return) if you went with the higher fee company?

i am looking getting one done as well, but there are so many QS companies out there. How do you pick one that would get you the highest return? any recommendation?
 
My experience thus far-
I have used BMT for all our IPs.
They have been easy to deal with, quick to get in an inspect each place and the report has been complete within a few days.
Have done minor renovations (sub 15k) over the years and they have updated the schedules each time at no extra charge.
From memory last report was $600.

To be clear I have no affiliation with them- just happy with the service they have provided.

Cheers
Ben
 
Yes, there are a few out there, btc.
You would want to avoid the online DIY providers.
And you want to go with a company that only does Depreciation Schedules.
One that will update them free of charge.
One that use the LVPool and all that technical stuff.
One that produces a document that accountants like.
One that sends qualified people to inspect properties.
One that other property investors recommend.
That should narrow down the choices a bit.
Scott
 
Yes, there are a few out there, btc.
You would want to avoid the online DIY providers.
And you want to go with a company that only does Depreciation Schedules.
One that will update them free of charge.
One that use the LVPool and all that technical stuff.
One that produces a document that accountants like.
One that sends qualified people to inspect properties.
One that other property investors recommend.
That should narrow down the choices a bit.
Scott

Hi Scott,

Quick question, when should these be done? ASAP or due financial year?
 
To all those who would consider either not bothering, or using the cheapest. Let me keep it short and sweet. Stop it.

You are penny pinching. Admirable but not smart. This is not the area to penny pinch. Do it on your groceries by shopping at aldi if you want, but not here. You just spent hundreds of thousands on a property. The Depreciation Schedule will save you thousands over the life of it. If you ever get audited by the ATO you DO NOT want to be asked about a dodgy report.

I have a preference for Scott at Depreciator. My reasons are contained in this thread.

I hear very good things about BMT, and Washington Brown also. Personally I wouldn't go outside of those three. Happy to hear if others have recommendations but that is my 2 cents.
 
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Thanks all.

Demoivre, it's useful, but not essential, to do a Dep Schedule soon after purchase. Useful because it means you capture all the Assets in the property when you start renting it out so if you need to dispose of them after a few months they have a value.
But you really only need to to have the Schedule before you go to see your accountant to get your tax done. Lots of people don't do it till June or July. The only downside with that is that every company doing Depreciation Schedules is flat out then. Plenty of the Schedules we do are backdated a couple of years because people haven't got around to it.
It reckon the best time to get a Schedule is when there are no tenants. That makes things so much easier for everyone. Our guys love it when a job comes up with no tenants involved.
Scott
 
I contacted BMT on Friday to arrange schedules for both my properties. Spoke with Lucy (?) and found the experience very efficient.

My next step is to go through the porperties and fill in the asset register BMT sent me, take photos, and send the info back to get my schedule calculated.

Fairly painless.
 
I contacted BMT on Friday to arrange schedules for both my properties. Spoke with Lucy (?) and found the experience very efficient.

My next step is to go through the porperties and fill in the asset register BMT sent me, take photos, and send the info back to get my schedule calculated.

Fairly painless.

While some of that certainly does sound like us, other parts don't. We asked you to fill in an asset register and take photos? That sounds like a DIY option and we don't have one of those. Perhaps the asset register is a furniture inventory. This sounds strange to me.

I had a look at the jobs we set up on Friday and could only see one Scott, and the job details don't match what you were saying. I don't suppose you'd mind sending me a private message with your job number so I can check this out and maybe give you some guidance/clarification?
 
While some of that certainly does sound like us, other parts don't. We asked you to fill in an asset register and take photos? That sounds like a DIY option and we don't have one of those. Perhaps the asset register is a furniture inventory. This sounds strange to me.

I had a look at the jobs we set up on Friday and could only see one Scott, and the job details don't match what you were saying. I don't suppose you'd mind sending me a private message with your job number so I can check this out and maybe give you some guidance/clarification?

Sorry, my bad folks. Depreciator was the company, not BMT. Apologies for any confusion.

My brain is scrambled eggs... I need a Xmas holiday.
 
And you want to go with a company that only does Depreciation Schedules.

Nothing against Depreciator or any other reputable QS's out there, but as a QS working for a company that does traditional "core" QS services such as cost planning and estimating for construction projects from conception through to completion, we also produce depreciation schedules but is not solely what we do. In fact as a percentage of turnover depreciation is a very small percentage. We have been preparing depreciation reports for the 21 years I have worked there and have done so before I started. We prepare depreciation schedules for domestic properties but I'm sure nowhere near as many as Depreciator would do. Most of what we do is for the institutional end of the market, such as investment funds and the like (that spend $200m on a property, not $200k).

Our view is that not just preparing depreciation schedules is a good thing as we have an up to date cost library of current and historical construction costs and don't rely upon building cost publications. We believe that having both current construction knowledge as well as cost knowledge is an advantage to having just one. Depreciator (and others) do a good job - they have their viewpoint and we have ours. Like in any business, points of view may differ.

The other points Depreciator makes seem fine but I didn't agree with the "only does depreciation schedules" point. I'll leave it to others to decide whether or not they believe it to be an important factor for them.
 
Nothing against Depreciator or any other reputable QS's out there, but as a QS working for a company that does traditional "core" QS services such as cost planning and estimating for construction projects from conception through to completion, we also produce depreciation schedules but is not solely what we do. In fact as a percentage of turnover depreciation is a very small percentage. We have been preparing depreciation reports for the 21 years I have worked there and have done so before I started. We prepare depreciation schedules for domestic properties but I'm sure nowhere near as many as Depreciator would do. Most of what we do is for the institutional end of the market, such as investment funds and the like (that spend $200m on a property, not $200k).

Our view is that not just preparing depreciation schedules is a good thing as we have an up to date cost library of current and historical construction costs and don't rely upon building cost publications. We believe that having both current construction knowledge as well as cost knowledge is an advantage to having just one. Depreciator (and others) do a good job - they have their viewpoint and we have ours. Like in any business, points of view may differ.

The other points Depreciator makes seem fine but I didn't agree with the "only does depreciation schedules" point. I'll leave it to others to decide whether or not they believe it to be an important factor for them.

No link to your website? that would have topped it off mate ;)
 
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