# tax write off for rental unit



## leafsfan (Jul 8, 2009)

My rental unit needed a new washer and dryer this year, so what i did was move the washer and dryer from my principal residence into the rental unit and bought new appliances for my house. Question now is how do I claim these used washer and dryers as a tax expense? Do I use the value that I paid for the new set?


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## MoneyGal (Apr 24, 2009)

Nope. You use the FMV of the set you put into the rental unit. If you want to figure out what the FMV is, you could estimate - or you could use the CCA rates for that class of equipment and figure out the declining balance over time. However, you may find the second method shows the asset is fully depreciated. (And I hesitate to add that CCA is not a method for determining FMV; however, it is sometimes used for that purpose in this circumstance.)


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## Accter (Jan 29, 2010)

MoneyGal said:


> Nope. You use the FMV of the set you put into the rental unit. If you want to figure out what the FMV is, you could estimate - or you could use the CCA rates for that class of equipment and figure out the declining balance over time. However, you may find the second method shows the asset is fully depreciated. (And I hesitate to add that CCA is not a method for determining FMV; however, it is sometimes used for that purpose in this circumstance.)


Any transfer from yourself to your rental unit should be completed at fair market value (FMV) of the assets. I wouldn't use the CCA rates as they have no bearing on the cost and would very likely undervalue the assets (getting you less tax). Instead I would price out a similar used pair and use that as your tranfer price and keep the calculation on the amount used. Tax is about reasonability and if you pick a reasonable calculation you will be good.


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