Course Description

Whether you are going into business for yourself or advising clients, depreciation is an important deduction on the tax return. It is often a big deduction that presents lots of opportunities for tax savings – that is, if you understand how the calculation works! In this class, we will focus on building an understanding of what makes tax depreciation so unique. We will discuss first-year elections that can be made and look at the potentially costly depreciation recapture provisions.

Learning Objectives

  • State how depreciation differs for GAAP and Tax Purposes.

  • Recognize different useful lives for various assets for tax purposes

  • Identify accelerated depreciation methods

  • Recognize how to calculate depreciation recapture for non-real property

Additional Required Materials

  • Level: Overview

  • Field of Study: Taxes (NASBA); Tax Planning (CFP); Federal Taxation (IRS)

  • Who Should Attend: Small business owners or practitioners who are new to the industry, or only have a basic understanding of federal tax rules and are looking to deepen their understanding of how depreciation is accounted for on the tax return.

  • Required Knowledge: Basic understanding of federal tax rules.

  • Advanced Prep: None

Instructor

CPA, CPCU, MST, MBA David Peters

David Peters is the Founder and Owner of Peters Tax Preparation & Consulting in Richmond, VA. He has over fourteen years of experience in financial services, including 3 years in the hedge fund industry and six years in the insurance industry. David was the first-ever Chief Financial Officer at Compare.com - a position he held for over three years. He is a national CPE Instructor/Discussion Leader for the AICPA, Surgent, and Kaplan. He regularly teaches courses in accounting, finance, insurance, and ethics throughout the United States. He holds four Masters degrees and contributes regularly to various CPA publications, including NCACPA’s Interim Report, SCACPA’s CPA Report, and VSCPA’s Disclosures. He was also a co-author of the 2018 Virginia CPA Ethics course – a required course for all CPA’s licensed in the Commonwealth of Virginia.