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by marme 2819 days ago
If you buy equipment you can only deduct its depreciation costs every year. If you pay for services you can deduct the full cost from your taxes.
2 comments

Anyone who thinks spending $10 instead of $1, so that you can book the expense (presumably for a tax write-off which might save you 30%... MAYBE?) needs to stay away from Finances.
Correct, unless the org doesn't have the money to make all the capex upfront
You can typically take the full depreciation in the year you purchased the equipment under IRS Section 179, up to a limit which varies depending on which way the wind is blowing in Congress. For 2018 the limit is $1MM. Whether or not its more beneficial to you to take the depreciation over time is a question for your accountant—technically if you later sell the equipment you're supposed to recapture the revenue from the sale for tax purposes.