Overview
When acquiring, renovating or building real estate, most taxpayers tend to overstate the amount of 39-year real property. This limits the depreciation deductions available to taxpayers in the early stages of their investment. A cost segregation solves this problem by reclassifying assets by maximizing the property eligible for treatment as 5-, 7- or 15-year property. This depreciation optimization frees up substantial cash flow.
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Experience & Philosophy
Our philosophy to fixed asset services including cost segregation begins with focus on the CPA-client relationship, ensuring expectations are aligned at project start to maximize the benefit to the client. Upholding our commitments to our CPAs and applying our technical expertise are at the core of each project. This is often the reason CPAs continue to utilize McGuire Sponsel to build incremental revenue through trusted specialty tax consulting.
How McGuire Sponsel Can Help
McGuire Sponsel’s unique approach to cost segregation employs civil, structural and architectural engineering knowledge coupled with tax law experience to identify components that qualify for accelerated depreciation. Our team’s blend of engineering and tax code expertise provides tremendous value throughout a project. The professionals at McGuire Sponsel perform a site inspection for every study and all costs, along with their classifications, are then documented to withstand IRS scrutiny.
Client Success Story
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$423M
NEW OFFICE BUILDING IN CHICAGO, IL
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$35M
FIRST YEAR INCREASED CASH FLOW
What Makes a Great Prospect
Studies can be performed for current year transactions or on a retroactive basis. While every client is unique, we typically see a consistent benefit when the following criteria are met:
- Acquisition or New Build in excess of $750,000
- Interior renovation in excess of $200,000
- Companies with large fixed asset schedules
- Companies that renovate or make repairs frequently
Let's Talk
If a property has been acquired, newly built, or renovated, please connect with our practice leaders.
TALK TO A PRACTICE LEADERResources
- Case Study
- Webinar
- White Papers
Commercial Office Portfolio
McGuire Sponsel's cost seg team performed a cost segregation study on a $195 million portfolio of office buildings located in Arizona, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington D.C. Our specialists physically inspected the properties, tenant listings, and general ledgers to optimize depreciation and partially disposed assets. The result was a $9.4 million increase to the first year cash flow.
Using Depreciation to Plan for Recessionary Pressures
With the chance of a recession increasing taxpayers are starting to make moves to prepare for a potential recession. In this webinar we discuss how taxpayers can utilize depreciation and other timing issues to prepare for recessionary pressures. We discuss how to utilize the cash flow opportunities afforded by cost segregation to prepare for a downturn in the economy. We also review the updated cost segregation audit techniques guide and discuss how this affects cost segregation decisions.
Leasehold Improvements & Depreciation
For the last few years the IRS has allowed for certain leasehold improvements to receive special treatment for depreciation. While rooftop or outdoor HVAC units are not eligible for this treatment, the IRS confirmed HVAC units located inside a building and feeding tenant areas are eligible for 15-year treatment and bonus depreciation. This confirms the position McGuire Sponsel has taken for our clients.
Resources
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podcastsFixed Asset ServicesAugust 28, 2025From Blueprints to Bonus: Where Cost Seg Tech Stops Short
by Dave McGuire and Austin BrownHost Dave McGuire discusses the role of software and automation in cost segregation with guest Austin Brown, a leader in...
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case studiesFixed Asset ServicesAugust 25, 2025
Multi-Tenant Office Building
by Dave McGuireMcGuire Sponsel was contacted by a CPA firm to conduct a cost segregation study for a recently purchased multi-tenant office...
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podcastsFixed Asset ServicesJuly 31, 2025
“One Big Beautiful Bill” & Bonus Depreciation, Cost Seg, & More: What CPAs Need to Know
by Tim LeMasters & Dave McGuireHost Tim LeMasters is joined by Dave McGuire, shareholder and co-founder of McGuire Sponsel, to discuss fixed asset planning, bonus...
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webinarsFixed Asset ServicesJuly 29, 2025
Depreciation Decisions That Deliver: Leveraging the OBBB for Bonus, Energy, and Beyond
by Dave McGuireThe passage of the OBBB introduces sweeping changes to depreciation rules—extending 100% bonus depreciation, sunsetting key energy incentives like Section...
