There is an old saying that goes something like this: the tax man giveth, and he taketh away. Ask most people and they’ll tell you how he takes from them in the form of higher taxes. When it comes to the self storage industry and different initiatives that many within it are undertaking, the tax man does an awful lot of giving.
The self storage industry is one that has been diligently working towards making conducting business as easy and customer-centered as possible. In order to do just that, many self storage facilities have installed kiosks at their facility so that customers can do what they need to (pay their bill, access their account, reserve/rent a storage unit, etc.).
In some cases, the cost of kiosks can be quite high making the purchase of one impossible for some self storage facilities. To ease that costs, the makers of INSOMNIAC self storage kiosks are informing potential clients of a significant tax break they can get, a Section 179 Deduction.
"Section 179 is a great deal for self-storage operators considering a self-service kiosk, but they have to order their kiosk soon," OpenTech President Robert Chiti said. "To qualify for the deduction in 2011, the kiosk must be in operation by the end of the year."
The Section 179 tax deduction allows taxpayers to deduct the cost of certain types of property and equipment as an expense. The types of property included are things that are tangible and considered to be important for a business to conduct operations.
A self-service kiosk that was too expensive could become affordable to a self storage facility once the deduction is applied. In time, making it easier for tenants to conduct business transactions with the facility will pay off.
Tax deductions can help self storage facilities cut costs and improve service in other ways as well.
Many self storage facilities have become concerned about the carbon foot-print that they are leaving on the environment. As much as they might want to reduce their impact on the environment, for many self storage facilities it is too expensive to engage in most ‘green’ initiatives. With the help of federal, state, and local tax breaks there have been a number of facilities that have taken on the challenge of going green.
Extra Space Storage began an impressive solar initiative unlike any seen in the self storage industry earlier this year with the help of tax breaks from the government. By the end of the year they plan on installing 20,000 solar panels in facilities across the country. Assuming the tax incentives do not go away, they plan on installing an additional 20,000 a year for the next four years as well.
Sources Used:
“Self-storage kiosks qualify for tax break.” SelfServiceWorld.com; 11 October 2011.
“Extra Space Storage Leads the Way in Solar Energy.” Self Storage Industry News; 29 July 2011.
The Section 179 Deduction; Section 179.org.
Section 179 Depreciation Deduction; Wikipedia.