Top deductions
for investment properties in Australia
What kinds
of expenses can you claim when you own an investment property?
The costs
can add up pretty quickly, but the upside to shelling out for ongoing
maintenance, repairs, and mortgage interest is that the list of expenses you
can claim on your tax return is longer than a supermarket receipt.
The
following list will help ensure you don’t miss anything.
The cost of advertising and marketing for new tenants
Your
property manager will charge you for marketing your property or for advertising
it for lease.
If you or
your agent market your property using online, print media, brochures, and
signs, you can claim these advertising expenses against your income in the same
year that you paid for them.
Loan interest and bank fees
If you have
a principal and interest loan against your investment property, while you can't
deduct the principal repayments, you can claim a tax deduction for any interest
accrued on your regular repayments as an investment expense.
Interest-only
loans are a popular option among investors since they allow them to deduct
their full repayments for a period before the loan reverts to both principal
and interest repayments.
Body corporate fees and charges (not including special levies)
If your
property is on a strata title, you can claim the cost ofbody corporate
fees.
These often
include common area maintenance and garden expenses, as well as building public
liability and insurance.
Building, contents, landlords, and public liability insurance
If you have
insurance on your investment property (building insurance, contents insurance,
landlord insurance, or public liability insurance) you can claim the cost in
your tax return.
Landlord
insurance typically covers tenant-related risks such as damage to the contents
and building, or loss of rental income.
Council rates
Council
rates can be deducted in the year that they are paid, although you can only
claim them during periods in which the house was rented.
For
example, if your investment property was only rented for 219 days of the year,
then you can only claim your rates for that period.
This means
you would claim 60% (219/365) of the total amount you paid in council rates for
your investment property that year.
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Jason Gwerder
Thursday, 23 June 2022