Posts Tagged ‘real estate’

1.  ETS is the only nationally licensed engineering firm with licensed engineers and tax experts on staff who marry the science of engineering with the principles of tax and accounting.

2.  Our multi-disciplinary expertise and vast, specialized experience enable us to deliver unmatched quality and service continuity.

3.  We understand the IRS technical issues involved in energy tax incentives, including the benefit of donating the savings from public buildings to designers. 

4.  Nationally recognized as experts, we have been asked to participate in local, regional and national conferences by making presentations to share our knowledge and expertise in addition to being published.

5.  We have LEED Accredited Professionals on staff.

6.  Our reports are forensic, fully insured and provide audit defense.

7.  ETS is approved by NASBA to provide continuing professional education (CPE) on energy topics and by the USGBC to provide CE credits for LEED professionals.

8.  ETS is a member of ASHRAE and USGBC and is an Energy Star Partner.

9.  We have been engaged by the Los Angeles Community College District to certify over 250 buildings to benefit the local stimulus.

10.  We have worked with Fortune 500 companies, Top 100-ranked accounting firms, national real estate firms, world-renowned architects, and many of the top lighting firms in the country.

To learn more about how ETS is helping CPAs, contractors, real estate investors and many others take advantage of valuable energy-based tax benefits, or to request detailed information, please contact us at 1.800.236.6519 or visit www.engineeredtaxservices.com.

Millions of dollars in tax benefits are frequently buried
like hidden treasure within your firm’s client records.

Engineered Tax Services (ETS) works with you to uncover these treasures to provide additional revenue for your firm and substantial tax savings for your clients.

Real estate clients rely on your expertise to provide them with tax strategies, techniques for maximizing revenue and expense reduction alternatives. Our experience shows that a quick and easy analysis of your clients’ depreciation schedules will assist you in generating significant tax savings for clients, building stronger client loyalty and developing additional long-term revenues for your firm. Our simplified process allows us to do this without any capital investment on your part and very little time commitment from your staff.   

Step 1 – Data Mining
The first step is to analyze your current client files to identify which clients have real estate holdings. Typically, in about an hour, your administrator can run a report through your tax software to generate a list of clients with real estate so that depreciation schedules can be run. Within a few hours, depreciation schedules are electronically redacted and printed with client numbers for identification purposes and forwarded to us for independent analysis.

Step 2 – Benefit Analysis
Upon receipt of the depreciation schedules, we will perform a benefit analysis to determine cost segregation and energy opportunities for each client. Within a week, qualified leads and estimated tax benefits for each will be identified.  Based on a firm your size, we anticipate discovering between 30 – 75 opportunities to be culled from the analysis process. We return the detailed estimates of the valuable tax savings identified to you and set up a conference with you and your partners to prepare a notification to qualifying clients.

Step 3 – Client Communications and Engagement
The next step is to communicate with the clients identified for cost segregation and energy opportunities. The timeline on this phase varies depending upon the availability of each client and partner, but generally takes between one and four weeks. In our experience, clients warmly welcome the news that additional tax savings are possible. We can handle the benefit discussions with clients or support you in your efforts. Marketing materials as well as ETS professionals may be available to help you with client communications.

Step 4 – Reporting
Once the engagement letters have been signed and received, we will prepare IRS-sanctioned reports and studies for each identified client. The cost segregation studies and energy reports as engaged by clients identified in the analysis are typically completed and delivered within 45 days from onset of the engagement.

Total Process Time:
90 Days to Treasures

The beauty of the Hidden Treasures assessment program is that you can:

• Create a new revenue stream
• Obtain new clients
• Solidify existing relationships
• Enhance your reputation
• Improve your firm’s competitive positioning in the marketplace
• …all with no capital needed…

We welcome the opportunity to explore the tremendous return on investment your firm’s participation in the Hidden Treasures program may yield. Please contact us for more information or to schedule a complimentary presentation.

Contact us at 1.800.236.6519 or visit www.engineeredtaxservices.com.

By James K. Zahn, FALA, Esq.

Recently, I received a call from my accountant. She called to inquire if I have ever had one of my architect clients attempt to receive a § 179D Deduction for Energy Efficient Commercial Buildings granted under Title 26 of the US Federal Regulations (fondly known as the “IRS Tax Code”). I was unaware of this particular section of the Code until her call, as none of my clients have ever asked about it or brought it to my attention. This article will concentrate on publicly-owned commercial buildings, because that’s where the architect is really in a position to greatly benefit from this unusual regulation. 

According to the US Government Printing Office, the IRS Tax Code is 13,458 pages long, and is contained in twenty volumes available for purchase at only $974, plus shipping and handling. Section 179D is a very small provision buried within a voluminous document and can easily be missed. I looked up § 179D on the internet and was astounded by what I found. This particular section of the tax code is a must read for all practicing architects and their accountants!

Read the Full Article for information every architect should know.

Energy Tax Benefits for Commercial Properties to be Focus of Seminar March 18 in Fort Lauderdale

Energy tax benefits that are important to commercial building owners, real estate investors, tenants, architects, engineers, contractors, property management companies and accountants – including some very valuable ones that must be instituted before April 15 – will be the subject of a special seminar Wednesday, March 18 from 7:45 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at The Tower Club, One Financial Plaza in Fort Lauderdale.

Ten local businesses have joined forces to present the seminar as a service to the local real estate and building community. In addition to promoting energy efficiency, they want to help the area’s commercial real estate industry understand what the new tax laws offer so they can reap the maximum tax benefits for energy-efficient building design, construction, upgrades and renovations.

The cost to attend “Understanding and Taking Advantage of the IRS Energy Tax Benefits – Go Green and Get Green ($1.80/sf),” is only $15 per person, and includes a continental breakfast. Space is limited. Reservations may be made by contacting Jennifer Reck of Danto Builders at (954) 229-2006 or Jennifer@dantobuilders.com by March 11.

Congress has already extended valuable energy tax benefits through 2013, and it may increase them from $1.80 per square foot to $3 per square foot later this year. The seminar will cover what these tax benefits are, who they affect, and how to go about achieving them and then applying for them. The seminar is especially vital for anyone involved in any energy-efficient construction that was completed in 2006, because they must complete an energy tax certification before their 2008 tax filings or the tax benefits they would have gained for 2006 may be lost forever. Energy tax benefits can be carried forward 15 years.

“The most often overlooked tax benefit relative to the Energy Policy Act extension is the tax benefits construed for commercial building owners,” said Julio Gonzalez, chief executive officer of Engineered Tax Services, the seminar’s keynote speaker. “Real estate investors can now reduce the payback period in investing in energy-efficient components with the added benefit of deducting up to the entire expense of these assets immediately, versus depreciating these assets over 39 years. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 includes a tax deduction for investments in energy-efficient commercial building property designed to significantly reduce the heating, cooling, water heating, and interior lighting energy costs. To be eligible, the energy-efficient commercial building property must be placed in service between Jan. 1, 2006 and Dec. 31, 2013.”

The certification process, five alternative ways a building may qualify for the energy tax benefits and a host of other related topics will be covered at the seminar, including public utility rebates and insurance savings for these same energy-efficient upgrades and construction.

“Contractors, architects and engineers who are the primary individuals responsible for the energy-efficient design of public buildings like public schools will be thrilled to learn that a hidden gem within the Energy Policy Act is that Congress allows the deduction to be allocated to the ‘person primarily’ responsible for designing the property, in lieu of the public entity,” Gonzalez said.

Representatives of the other companies hosting the seminar – Danto Builders & Companies, Spinnaker Group, Logical Green, JMWA Architects, All Energy Electric, Hill York, Levy Realty Advisors, Berkowitz Dick Pollack & Brant and Seitlin Insurance & Advisory Services – will answer questions following Gonzalez’s presentation. FPL representatives for the energy-efficient commercial rebate programs will also be available to answer questions.

For more information:
Debbie Danto, Danto Builders
Tel.: (954) 229-2006
E-mail: ddanto@dantobuilders.com

Cost Segregation Services are IRS-sanctioned techniques allowing businesses to accelerate depreciation on their facilities. In short, Cost Segregation Services and Cost Segregation Studies can substantially reduce income taxes by increasing depreciation allowances. However this process is a little more complicated than simply deciding to reallocate assets or claim a shorter depreciation period and then running the numbers yourself. According to IRS guidelines, a properly performed cost segregation study is based on a detailed engineering analysis. It requires a team of architects, engineers and accountants to be effective.

Show Me the Money

The following table details the results of a Cost Segregation Study for a company with annual income of $10M.

In this example, current year savings after a Cost Segregation Study is $800,000. This savings can be reinvested in the business or put to use in other investment activity.

So are the savings worth the effort? Well, typically 25 to 40 percent of the assets within a property can be reclassified. This allows you to recover costs over a shorter period of time, which in turn creates a substantial tax savings.

Cost segregation studies analyze Sec. 1250 based assets, which are bound to a traditional 39-year depreciation group, and reassigns specific eligible assets into Sec. 1245 property which most often enjoys a three, five or seven year depreciation. The cost segregation process, based on an engineering study and in accordance with strict IRS audit guidelines, often reduces taxable income thereby resulting in an increase in cash flow. These newly freed funds may be utilized for purposes that are more productive.

Isn’t it time you got a preliminary cost segregation feasibility study with proprietary software designed to analyze your properties and their depreciation schedule options? Call us to schedule a more in-depth discussion of this service today. Of course, there will be no fee associated with this meeting.