New Office Furniture

[rynlee]

Hello - 

Last year I moved into a new office and purchased office furniture.  Should these be treated as a deductible business expense or depreciable assets?   How do I know which furniture items to treat as which?

To complicate things, I did not pay for the furniture outright but instead set up a monthly payment plan that will continue on into next year.  What does this imply regarding the above?

[Vanessa A]

The monthly payment plans do not complicate anything.  When you make a purchase and assume a liability for it (ie. put it on a credit card or payment plan) it is treated the same as paying for it. 

Office furniture is generally a 7-year depreciable asset.  However, as you are walking through TurboTax, you will be given options expense these items or depreciate them depending on the cost. This section is not yet available in TurboTax as the IRS has not finalized all forms.  It is expected to be ready mid to late January. 

[rynlee]

Thanks, Vanessa.  How do you recommend I choose between one or the other.  Is there a certain expense level at which it begins to make sense to list the items as depreciable assets?

[KurtL1 · Accepted solution]

When you are deciding how you should record your assets you have three ways of handling the purchase of office equipment: 

1. Depreciate the cost of the asset over 7 years. This spreads the cost of the asset to offset your income over the 7 years. Per IRS.gov 7 Year Assets
2. You can expense all or part of the asset under the Section 179 option. You would expense the amount you elected under this option in the year of acquisition and if you did not elect the full amount you would depreciate the remainder over 7 years. The limit on the amount of Section 179 expense is $1,020,000.in 2019. Per IRS.gov Section 179
3. If the asset cost is under $2,500 you can expense the amount in the year of acquisition per the "de minimis safe harbor election". Per IRS.gov Expense Under $2,500

In making the selection you will need to 1) Consider if you need the expense in the current year to reduce your income or to use the loss on your business to reduce your other income; or 2) Spread the expense of the next 7 years to reduce future income.

In making the selection between using Section 179 and the "de minimis safe harbor election" you should base your decision on whether you will keep of the asset for the whole 7 years. Under the Section 179 option, if you dispose of the asset before the full 7 years you will need to take back into income part of the cost of the asset (Recapture).

[rynlee]

Thank you.

If I do expense the costs associated with furniture, in what section of TurboTax would I list these costs?

[MaryK4]

Regardless of which option you choose, you would enter them under Business Assets in the Business, Farm, or Rental section of TurboTax.

@rynlee