If a business buys substantially all their assets in the last quarter of the tax year, then there may be some unfavorable tax treatments on write-offs on acquired assets that are not eligible for bonus depreciation.

The IRS rules states that if a business "makes more than 40% on their 2011 asset purchase after September, regular depreciation is calculated on all assets put in use in 2011 and this amount is calculated on quarterly basis."

Thus, any assets that are acquired in late 2011 get only 1.5 months of depreciation instead of 6 months’ worth. (It is worth noting that this rule is not applicable to buildings).

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