Commercial · 39-year property
Cost Segregation for Auto Dealerships and Service Centers
A dealership is a showroom, a service factory and several acres of finished pavement. Two of those three reclassify aggressively.
Service and body shop infrastructure
Vehicle lifts and their foundations, compressed air distribution, exhaust extraction reels, oil and lubricant distribution, waste oil systems, alignment pits, paint booths and their make-up air, dedicated power to service bays and wash bay equipment are personal property serving the operation.
Display lots and lighting
The inventory display area is finished to a higher standard than ordinary parking, and it is lit to a much higher standard. Paving, curbing, display pads, light poles at elevated heights, feature landscaping, flag displays and pylon signage are 15-year land improvements — often the single largest reclassified category.
Component takeoff
What we pull out of auto dealerships & service
Grouped by the recovery period each component lands on. This is representative, not exhaustive — the takeoff on your building will be longer.
- 5Vehicle lifts, foundations and hydraulic distribution
- 5Compressed air lines, reels and drops in service bays
- 5Exhaust extraction systems and dedicated ventilation
- 5Oil, lubricant and waste-oil distribution and tanks
- 5Paint booths, mixing rooms and make-up air units
- 5Wash bay equipment, reclaim systems and dedicated plumbing
- 5Showroom decorative lighting, flooring and display millwork
- 5Service write-up casework, parts counters and shelving
- 5Signage, video walls, POS and dealer management cabling
- 7Shop tooling and diagnostic equipment
- 7Showroom and office furniture
- 15Display lot paving, aprons, display pads and curbing
- 15Customer and employee parking and drive aisles
- 15High-mast and display lighting, poles and site electrical
- 15Pylon and monument sign foundations, flag displays
- 15Landscaping, irrigation and feature planting
- 15Fencing, gates, bollards and storm drainage
- 39Showroom and service building shell, structure and roof
- 39Base HVAC, restrooms and general electrical service
- 39Fire protection mains and structural glazing
Questions
How much of the basis usually reclassifies on this property type?
Studies on auto dealerships & service typically move 22% to 34% of depreciable basis into 5, 7 and 15-year classes. That is a planning range from comparable buildings, not a promise — the number that ends up on your return comes from the actual takeoff.
What documents do you need?
The closing statement, the current depreciation schedule and the property address at minimum. Construction records, drawings, pay applications and change orders make the work more precise and often cheaper.
I bought this several years ago. Is it too late?
No. As long as you still own it and placed it in service after 1986, a look-back study captures every missed deduction and brings it forward on the current return via Form 3115. No amended returns.
Related
Other property types
The study is one piece. We can handle the rest of the return.
Deprecio is part of the Shurek Accounting & Tax family of brands. If you want the study and the tax work under one roof — the return, the Form 3115, entity structure, quarterly estimates, multi-state filings — that is a single engagement, not a hand-off between two firms.
No-cost feasibility review
Find out what your building is hiding.
A feasibility review is free and takes about twenty minutes. Bring the closing statement and the depreciation schedule; we will tell you plainly whether a study pays for itself.