REG — Quick Sheet
Property Transactions: Basis & Cost Recovery
Read time: ~5 minutes
One-minute revision
- Gift basis: carryover for gain; lesser of donor's basis or FMV for loss (no gain/loss between the two)
- Inherited basis: FMV at death, automatically long-term
- MACRS: equipment 5/7 yr 200% DB half-year (mid-quarter if >40% in Q4); residential rental 27.5 yr; nonresidential 39 yr, both mid-month straight-line
- OBBBA: bonus depreciation 100% permanent (property acquired after Jan 19, 2025), no dollar cap, can create an NOL
- OBBBA: §179 limit $2.5M, phase-out from $4M; §179 limited to business income (carries forward)
- Order: §179 → bonus → MACRS. Land is never depreciated.