Residential rental · 27.5-year property
Cost Segregation for Student Housing
Purpose-built student housing is multifamily with the amenity budget of a resort and the furniture package of a hotel. Both push the short-life percentage above conventional apartments.
Fully furnished by design
Beds, desks, chairs, dressers, living room and dining furniture, televisions, in-unit laundry and the full appliance package are standard. Because units are leased by the bed, the per-square-foot furnishing density is materially higher than in conventional multifamily.
Amenity-heavy competition
Study lounges, gaming rooms, fitness centres, resort pools, sand courts, coffee bars, package systems, access control, shuttle stops and structured parking are competitive necessities in this asset class. Nearly all of the amenity fit-out is 5-year property, and the exterior amenity deck and site work is 15-year.
Component takeoff
What we pull out of student housing
Grouped by the recovery period each component lands on. This is representative, not exhaustive — the takeoff on your building will be longer.
- 5Unit furniture packages — beds, desks, seating, casegoods
- 5Appliances, in-unit laundry and kitchen equipment
- 5Cabinetry, vanities, countertops and closet systems
- 5Flooring, blinds, decorative lighting and ceiling fans
- 5Study lounge, gaming, coffee bar and fitness build-out
- 5Access control, key systems, cameras and package lockers
- 5Data, Wi-Fi infrastructure and television distribution
- 7Common-area and amenity furniture
- 7Fitness and recreation equipment
- 15Pool, deck, cabanas, sand courts and outdoor amenity hardscape
- 15Parking, drives, sidewalks and shuttle stops
- 15Site lighting, landscape lighting and signage foundations
- 15Landscaping, irrigation, fencing and screening
- 15Storm drainage, retention and site utilities
- 27.5Structure, envelope, roof and corridors
- 27.5Elevators, stairs and life-safety systems
- 27.5Central mechanical, plumbing risers and electrical service
Questions
How much of the basis usually reclassifies on this property type?
Studies on student housing typically move 22% to 32% 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.
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.