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Rental property depreciation calculator (27.5-year, mid-month)

Enter your purchase details and see your depreciable basis, the first-year amount, this year's deduction and the full schedule. It runs in your browser, so nothing you type is sent anywhere.

Depreciable basis–

Full-year deduction–

First-year deduction–

Deduction in tax year–

Year	Deduction	Accumulated	Remaining basis

Track this automatically, along with rent, expenses and Schedule E. Landlord Ledger runs this same depreciation math for every building and each roof, HVAC or window upgrade. It then puts the total on Schedule E line 18 per property.

Get Landlord Ledger — $12 Free Lite version

How this calculator works

Residential rental buildings are depreciated with the straight-line method over 27.5 years. Nonresidential (commercial) buildings use 39 years. Land is never depreciated. The calculator follows these steps:

Basis: purchase price + closing costs you may add to basis + improvements made before renting − land value.
Full-year amount: basis ÷ 27.5 (or ÷ 39).
Mid-month convention: in the first year you get the months after the month the property was placed in service, plus half of that month. A property placed in service in March earns 9.5 months, so (12 − 3 + 0.5) ÷ 12 of a full year.
Later years: a full year each year until the basis is used up. The last year gets the small remainder.

Worked example

You buy a single-family rental for $250,000 and add $4,000 of closing costs to basis. The county splits the value as 20% land ($50,000). You place it in service in March 2026.

Depreciable basis: $250,000 + $4,000 − $50,000 = $204,000
Full-year deduction: $204,000 ÷ 27.5 = $7,418.18
2026 (March, 9.5 months): $7,418.18 × 9.5 ÷ 12 = $5,872.73
2027 onward: $7,418.18 per year

“Placed in service” means ready and available to rent, not the closing date. A house you closed on in January but listed in March is placed in service in March. Appliances, carpets and furniture (5-year property) and land improvements (15-year) use different methods and may qualify for bonus depreciation. This calculator covers buildings and building improvements only.

Frequently asked

Do I depreciate the land?

No. Land is never depreciated. Subtract the land value from your basis. The county assessor's land/improvement split is a common source.

What does “placed in service” mean?

The date the property was ready and available to rent, not necessarily the closing date. If you renovated first, it's the month the renovation finished and it was listed or rented.

What about the year I sell?

The mid-month convention also applies in the year of sale. You take depreciation through the middle of the month you sell. The schedule above shows full calendar years.

Is a short-term rental 27.5 years?

Not always. Property rented mostly to transient guests can be classified differently, and some short-term rentals are depreciated over 39 years. Ask your tax professional which applies to you.

This calculator is for estimating and record-keeping, not tax advice. Check IRS Publication 527 and Publication 946, or ask a tax professional before filing Form 4562.