2010 to 2016
Depreciation on a property built in 2012
A residential building whose construction began in 2012 is deducted at 2.5% of its construction cost a year, for construction begun after 15 September 1987. Counting from 30 June 2012, its 40 years run from the 2012–13 income year to 2051–52, and from 2026–27 it has 26 income years left. Our national series puts new houses at $1,159 per m² of floor area in the year to 30 June 2012, 5% up on 2011's $1,101.
- Rate
- 2.5%
- Years left
- 26
- Last year
- 2051–52
What a house built in 2012 cost, state by state
A standard 200 m² single-storey brick veneer house at 2012 rates, less the builder's plant (3.4% of its cost that year), listed separately; the deduction is 2.5% of it a year.
| State | Rate per m² in 2012 | Construction cost | Deduction a year | Left to claim |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | $1,192 | $215,933 | $5,398 | $140,348 |
| Victoria | $1,165 | $210,998 | $5,275 | $137,150 |
| Queensland | $1,060 | $192,063 | $4,802 | $124,852 |
| Western Australia | $930 | $168,468 | $4,212 | $109,512 |
| South Australia | $829 | $150,119 | $3,753 | $97,578 |
| Tasmania | $1,211 | $219,368 | $5,484 | $142,584 |
| Australian Capital Territory | $1,208 | $218,757 | $5,469 | $142,194 |
| Northern Territory | $1,862 | $337,377 | $8,434 | $219,284 |
Indicative. "Left to claim" is the deduction a year times the 26 income years left; the first and last are usually part years.
The cost per m² around 2012
From 2011 to 2012 the standard house's rate per m² rose 0.3%, from $1,106 to $1,109: the 37th steepest of the 40 year-on-year changes since 1985. In 2013 it rose 3% again, to $1,145. At 2025's rates it costs $347,938 to build, 1.7 times its 2012 cost of $200,830, and the deduction is worked from the 2012 figure.
Building in 2012, nationally
The ABS measure: the value of new houses built (land excluded) over their floor area, so it follows the kind of house as well as prices, and its 2012 is the year to 30 June 2012.
The rate per m²
Our national series puts new houses in the year to 30 June 2012 at $1,159 per m² of floor area, 5% up on 2011's $1,101 and 73% up over the ten years from 2002's $671.
The average new house
We put the average new house of 2012 at 244.9 m² of floor area, the ABS's 2012 figure: at 2012's $1,159 per m², it cost about $284,000 to build.
How the figure was reached
How 2012's figure was arrived at: the published ABS average cost over the published average floor area. It rests on 3 sources and is graded A, from A (a published figure) to D (an assumed rate of growth).
2012 in Division 43's history
- Counting the calendar year each began in as its first, 2012 is the 28th year of capital works for homes (from 18 July 1985), the 26th year of the rate of 2.5% over 40 years (from 16 September 1987) and the 21st year of structural improvements' claims (from 27 February 1992).
- 2012 came 5 years before section 40-27 on second-hand plant (from 7.30 pm on 9 May 2017).
Where it stands in 2026–27
2026–27 is the 15th of its 40 income years at 2.5%. 26 income years, this one counted, carry 65% of its construction cost; the 35% of the 14 years before is spent, whoever owned it then. The first half of its years ends with 2031–32.
A kitchen replaced ten years on, in 2022, is new capital works with 40 years of its own, claimed until 2062: 10 years past 2012's own last income year, 2051–52. Every renovation since 2012 is the same, whatever the house's own date; its invoices and photos date it.
Renovating a rental built in 2012: the old plant and works Houses of 2010 to 2016 beside the other years Using a previous owner's scheduleA standard house's plant, fitted new in 2012
In 2012 the builder's plant was about 3.4% of a standard house's cost, listed apart from the building; plant prices stood at 90% of 2020's by our plant index, and the ABS house construction price index for Australia stood at 83% of its June quarter 2020 level in the June quarter 2012. Fitted in 2012, with each life counted from 30 June 2012 as the building's years are, all 6 below have passed their effective lives, the last in 2023–24; a replacement bought new for a let property starts its own.
| Item | Installed new, 2012 prices | Effective life | Life ends, income year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oven | $1,456 | 12 years | 2023–24 |
| Cooktop | $573 | 12 years | 2023–24 |
| Dishwasher | $970 | 8 years | 2019–20 |
| Electric hot water system | $1,319 | 12 years | 2023–24 |
| Carpet | $3,457 | 8 years | 2019–20 |
| Blinds | $1,319 | 10 years | 2021–22 |
Common questions
How much depreciation can I claim on a house built in 2012?
On a 2012 building, 2.5% of what it cost to construct, each year until 2051–52. For a standard 200 m² brick veneer house that is about $5,398 a year in New South Wales, $5,275 in Victoria and $4,802 in Queensland, with 26 income years left. Plant new to you adds to that, as does any renovation since 2012.
I bought a 2012 property second-hand. Does the deduction start again?
No: a 2012 building's 40 years run from its completion, not from your purchase, so a buyer claims the 26 income years left, 2026–27 to 2051–52, on the original construction cost rather than the price paid. Fitted new in 2012, 142 of the 181 kinds of plant our catalogue prices have passed their effective lives, and the other 39 end from 2026–27 to 2041–42. Section 40-27 reaches plant acquired from 7.30 pm on 9 May 2017, when a 2012 house was 5 years old or so: bought from an earlier owner since then, the plant that came with a 2012 house is generally not deductible (the 2017 rules set out who it reaches and the exceptions).
What was the rate for 2012?
2.5% a year over 40 years, for construction begun after 15 September 1987: counting from 30 June 2012, the 2012–13 to 2051–52 income years. Construction begun on any day of 2012 qualifies, the window having opened on 16 September 1987, and 14 of its 40 income years have passed.
What did it cost to build a house in 2012?
In the year to 30 June 2012, our national series puts new houses at $1,159 per m² of floor area, 73% up over the ten years from 2002's $671, and the average new house, about 245 m², cost about $284,000 to build. At 2012's rates, our standard 200 m² single-storey brick veneer house, less the plant listed separately, cost about $200,830 at the national rate, against $199,886 in 2011 and $207,351 in 2013. In 2012 it was cheapest in South Australia, at $150,119, and dearest in the Northern Territory, at $337,377. Where the 2012 build's own cost is not documented, a schedule estimates it at 2012's rates, about $200,830 for that house nationally, by an appropriately qualified person, as Taxation Ruling TR 97/25 accepts.
General information only, not advice about your circumstances. Speak to a registered tax agent before relying on it.