If you expense the assets, they may only generate a tax deduction in the current year. You can deduct up to $25,000 of a rental loss each year, but this deduction is phased out with adjusted gross income of $100,000 to $150,000. If you can't take the full deduction in the current year, it is applied to future years, but only against rental or other passive income.
If you choose to depreciate the assets, then they will be deducted from rental income in the current and future years. I you think your income in future years will be significantly greater, to the extent you are pushed into a higher tax bracket, then you would normally choose to depreciate your assets, to reduce future income that is taxed at a higher rate.
So if your income is under $100,000 and your rental loss is under $25,000, you may want to expense the assets so as to get a full tax deduction for their cost in the current year. Otherwise, it may be better to depreciate them.
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