About

Corporate accountants and tax professionals require more than just a quick estimate; they need a defensible, audit-ready schedule that tracks the value of an asset from acquisition to disposal. This Fixed Asset Depreciation Calculator is engineered for the rigors of financial reporting, allowing you to project the book value of capital expenditures over extended periods.

Proper asset management is crucial for minimizing tax liabilities and maintaining compliance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). By generating a month-by-month or year-by-year breakdown, this tool assists in forecasting cash flows, planning for capital replacement, and ensuring that your ledger matches the physical reality of your asset base. Whether you are depreciating a fleet of vehicles over 5 years or a commercial complex over 39 years, this utility handles the arithmetic so you can focus on the strategy.

Formulas

The schedule is generated by iterating through the useful life of the asset. For each period t:

BookValue_t = BookValue_t-1 − Depreciation_period

The periodic depreciation is constant:

Depreciation_period = Cost − SalvageTotalPeriods

Reference Data

Property Class (GDS)	Recovery Period	Examples of Assets
3-Year Property	3 Years	Tractor units for over-the-road use, race horses > 2 years old.
5-Year Property	5 Years	Automobiles, taxis, buses, trucks, computers, office machinery.
7-Year Property	7 Years	Office furniture, fixtures, agricultural machinery, equipment not otherwise classified.
10-Year Property	10 Years	Vessels, barges, tugs, single-purpose agricultural structures.
15-Year Property	15 Years	Retail motor fuel outlets, land improvements, municipal wastewater plants.
20-Year Property	20 Years	Farm buildings, municipal sewers.
27.5-Year Property	27.5 Years	Residential rental properties.
39-Year Property	39 Years	Non-residential real property (Commercial buildings).

Frequently Asked Questions

While this tool uses standard mathematical principles, tax laws (like Section 179 expensing or Bonus Depreciation) change frequently. This schedule represents a standard Book Depreciation. Consult a CPA for specific tax filing forms like IRS Form 4562.

Book Value is the net value of an asset on the balance sheet. It equals the original cost minus the total accumulated depreciation to date. It does not necessarily reflect the market resale value.

Depreciation stops once the asset's book value is reduced to its salvage value. You cannot depreciate an asset below its estimated scrap or resale value.

This tool assumes a 'Full Month' convention for simplicity. In complex tax scenarios, you might need 'Mid-Quarter' or 'Half-Year' conventions, which adjust the first and last year's depreciation amount.