tax matters

I got a nice little surprise this morning when I checked my email.  Whenever we buy a unit and clean it up, we get a quantity surveyor in.  S/he writes up a schedule of everything in the unit (fixtures, fittings, furniture, appliances, you name it) which can then be used as a tax break.  Everything listed can be depreciated over time, which decreases the tax you pay.

Anyhow, I’d received the schedule for our neverending reno.  When we had it done, it took about two hours, because the guy liked a chat.  (As a comparison, when we had our 2-bed unit done, it took about 35 minutes.  The neverending reno is a 1-bedroom unit.)  It didn’t particularly worry me, as I wasn’t in a rush to be anywhere, and he seemed like a nice guy.  I didn’t think any more about it at the time.

Well, after having a look at the schedule, it appears that he’s done us some ‘favours’.  So, instead of listing the vinyl flooring (lookalike floorboards) as vinyl, he’s listed it as floating floorboards, which are worth a hell of a lot more.  There are a few little things like this scattered throughout.  Essentially, he’s ‘talked up’ the value of the stuff we’ve added to the property, which will increase our tax break.  Niiiiiiiiice!!

The funny thing is, I never would’ve picked it up normally.  It’s just that when I saw the email in my inbox, I thought I’d have a quick look through.

What’s the lesson from this, I wonder?  You catch more flies with honey than vinegar? Fortune favours the brave?  There’s no such thing as a free lunch?  Who knows.  I just know that for two hours of my life, we’ve been given what amounts to about $1000.  Not bad.