For 1-4 unit residential property, a defensible study doesn't require a stranger walking through your rental. We use your closing statement, your photos, and a structured intake form to build an asset schedule that reconciles to your documented depreciable basis — and we review every file before it goes out the door.
Complete a structured online intake (about 15 minutes). Upload your closing statement, property photos, and improvement details — that's all we need.
Our team builds your asset schedule from a residential cost library, classified by recovery period and reconciled to your documented depreciable basis.
Every file passes through our tripwire QC system and is signed off by a Certified Cost Segregation Professional before a draft leaves the building.
You receive an audit-ready, ATG-aligned report — formatted for your CPA to implement. We're happy to coordinate directly with them.
Most cost segregation firms are built for commercial deals and charge accordingly. We're built for 1-4 unit residential and short-term rentals — the assets you actually own.
Single-family rentals, duplexes, triplexes, and quads. Our core practice — engineered for the price points and economics of residential investment property.
STR property — Airbnb, VRBO, and direct-booked — typically yields the highest reclassification ratios in residential. We model the furnishings, fixtures, and short-life assets that STR operators uniquely own.
Did you place a property in service in a prior year and miss the deduction? We perform "look-back" studies and your CPA captures the cumulative depreciation in the current year — no amended returns required.
For tax professionals who want a defensible residential cost segregation partner. We co-engage with your firm, deliver implementation-ready workpapers, and never poach your clients.
A directional estimate based on industry-typical reclassification ratios for residential property. Your actual results depend on your specific property, placed-in-service year, and bonus depreciation eligibility — and we'll sharpen the figure during a free feasibility review.
Depreciable basis assumed at 80% of acquisition price (land excluded). Reclassification ratios derived from typical residential studies by property type. First-year savings assume 100% bonus depreciation, restored for property placed in service after January 19, 2025. Not tax advice — confirm with your CPA.
Representative scenarios using typical residential reclassification ratios at current bonus depreciation rules and a 32% marginal rate. Your actual numbers will vary — these are illustrative, not promises.
22% reclassification · 32% rate · 100% bonus dep
25% reclassification · 32% rate · 100% bonus dep
32% reclassification · 32% rate · 100% bonus dep
We're not the cheapest place on the internet and we're not the boutique engineering firm. We're built for the residential investor who wants a real, defensible study at a price that makes sense for the property.
Our cofounder Eugene Marshall is an Enrolled Agent, founder of Magnolia Tax Services, and a real estate investor himself. The methodology is built from the tax professional's seat — which means CPAs don't have to translate our reports. They can implement them.
Every file passes a documented tripwire QC system — missing basis support, allocation ranges, evidence gaps, specialty asset claims — and a CCSP reviewer signs off before delivery. Designed for defensibility, not just speed.
Studies from $1,750. We don't quote $8K for a $500K rental and we don't pretend $400 of automation is a real study. The price reflects the work the property actually requires.
Refined was founded by a residential mortgage lender and a tax professional who couldn't find a cost segregation firm built for the way residential investors actually buy property. So they built one.
Branch Manager at Refined Mortgage Group at Fairway Independent Mortgage in Wauwatosa, and a Scotsman Guide top-producing loan officer. Over a decade financing residential real estate in the Milwaukee market — which means his pipeline already lives where our clients are.
Founder of Magnolia Tax Services, a virtual tax advisory firm serving individuals and small businesses across the Midwest. As an Enrolled Agent, Eugene is federally authorized to represent taxpayers before the IRS. He's also an active real estate investor — which means he sees cost segregation from both seats: the strategist designing the deduction and the owner who has to live with it.
An independent Certified Cost Segregation Professional reviews and signs off on every file before it leaves Refined. This isn't optional — it's the release gate.
Don't see yours? We reply personally to every inquiry within one business day.
The IRS depreciates residential rental property over 27.5 years. A cost segregation study identifies the components — flooring, fixtures, appliances, specialty electrical, land improvements, and more — that legitimately qualify for shorter recovery periods of 5, 7, or 15 years. With 100% bonus depreciation back in effect for property placed in service after January 19, 2025, that reclassified portion is fully deductible in year one. For a typical 1-4 unit residential property, we reclassify 20-35% of the depreciable basis.
No. For 1-4 unit residential property, a site visit doesn't add defensibility — and it does add significant cost. Our methodology is documentary: we work from your closing statement, your photos, county records, and the structured intake we send you. This is consistent with the IRS Audit Technique Guide for residential property and is how most defensible residential studies are produced.
Our pricing is transparent and formula-based — you can know your fee before you ever talk to us. The engineering fee is a flat $1,750 covering 1–4 units, plus $125 per unit above four (up to 12 units). For properties with a purchase price above $500K, a small value component is added: 0.15% of the price between $500K and $2M, and 0.25% above $2M, with the total rounded to the nearest $25. Optional Audit Support can be added at $495 (Basic) or $1,995 (Extended). Properties over 12 units, 1031 exchanges, and carryover-basis situations are quoted manually. For context, most commercial cost segregation firms quote $5,000–$15,000 for the same residential property.
5–10 business days from a complete intake to a delivered report. If you're up against a filing deadline, tell us at intake — we can usually accommodate.
Cost segregation is a long-established, well-documented IRS tax planning method backed by decades of case law and the IRS's own Audit Technique Guide. A study prepared to that guide's standards — which is the only way we prepare them — doesn't itself create audit risk.
Almost certainly not. Through a §481(a) adjustment, the depreciation you should have taken in prior years can be captured in the current year — no amended returns required. We perform "look-back" studies on properties placed in service up to about fifteen years ago.
Always — and many of our clients come to us through CPA referrals. Your CPA prepares your return; we provide the engineering report, the §481(a) computation, and an implementation summary tailored for their file. We never poach clients.
Because no one can guarantee an outcome with the IRS, and any firm that promises otherwise is bending the truth. "Audit-ready" means our deliverables are prepared to ATG standards, documented with workpapers, and reviewer-signed — so if the question ever comes up, the answer is in the binder.
Plain-spoken essays on the tax law, the methodology, and the strategy of accelerated depreciation for residential property. Written by our team.
No study is “audit-proof” — and the word is a red flag. What audit-ready actually means, and the documentation that holds up if the IRS asks.
Read the essay →Bought a rental and never did a study? A look-back claims every year of missed depreciation in your current tax year through a §481(a) adjustment — no amended returns required.
Read the essay →Real pricing on a residential study, why it costs far less than a five-figure commercial one, and a dollar-by-dollar look at whether the fee actually pays for itself.
Read the essay →A short call with our team to walk you through what a study would look like for your property — and roughly what it should return. We'll give you a candid yes/no on whether it makes sense, and a fixed-fee quote if it does.
No obligation. We reply within one business day. Not tax advice.