Why Short-Term Rentals Offer a Unique Tax Opportunity
Owners of short-term rentals and Airbnb properties often upgrade interiors to deliver a five-star guest experience — new décor, modern appliances, smart locks, lighting, and outdoor amenities.
What many overlook is that these improvements aren’t just aesthetic — they’re accelerated depreciation opportunities waiting to be claimed.
Accelerated Depreciation for Furnished Rentals
Because short-term rental properties operate more like hospitality businesses than long-term housing, many interior components can be reclassified as personal property under IRS rules.
That means items such as:
- Furniture and décor
- Appliances and HVAC units
- Guest amenities (lighting, Wi-Fi systems, TVs, grills, hot tubs)
- Security and smart-home systems
can qualify for 5-, 7-, or 15-year recovery periods instead of the standard 27.5-year residential schedule.
👉 This classification allows investors to front-load depreciation deductions — often generating tens of thousands of dollars in the early years of ownership.
What That Means in Practice
Instead of waiting nearly three decades to recover your investment, you can unlock significant tax deductions upfront — freeing up cash flow for reinvestment or expansion.
For example, a $50,000 furnishing and appliance upgrade might yield $30,000–$40,000 in accelerated depreciation deductions through a detailed cost segregation study.
That’s real money back in your business — not years down the line.
Plan Ahead to Maximize ROI
If you’ve recently renovated or furnished a short-term rental, or you’re planning one, now is the time to capture every eligible tax benefit.
A professional cost segregation analysis identifies and documents which items qualify for shorter depreciation lives — giving you IRS-backed, engineer-certified support for your deductions.
Ready to See Your After-Tax ROI?
At Tax Logic™, we help short-term rental and Airbnb investors turn IRS code into growth capital.
📊 Schedule a complimentary Tax Logic™ Review to see how much after-tax cash flow your property is leaving on the table.
🔗 Book your review at theuniversedecoded.com/
