Reference
Component & asset-class reference
How common commercial components map to MACRS recovery periods and Rev. Proc. 87-56 asset classes. Classification depends on function, permanence and installation — the class is a pointer to authority, not a guarantee for every component in every building.
| Asset class | Recovery period | What it covers | Example components |
|---|---|---|---|
| 57.0 Distributive Trades & Services | 5-year (§1245) | Trade fixtures and equipment-serving MEP — components that serve identifiable removable equipment or the property's specific business function rather than the building generally. | Dock equipment; kitchen exhaust hoods; roll-up storage doors; car-wash tunnel equipment; medical gas & specialty plumbing; specialty athletic flooring; showroom & service-bay equipment. |
| 00.12 Information Systems | 5-year (§1245) | Removable low-voltage data, communications and electronic security systems not embedded in the building structure. | Structured cabling & fiber; POS/data/security cabling; cameras, card readers and access control; nurse-call and clinical low-voltage. |
| 00.11 Office Furniture, Fixtures & Equipment | 7-year (§1245) | Freestanding office/admin furniture and fixtures — the 7-year office-content baseline that rides many commercial fit-outs. | Reception & admin office furniture; parts-department / NOC office furnishings; customer-lounge FF&E. |
| 00.3 Land Improvements | 15-year (§1250) | Site work outside the building. Excavation and grading remain non-depreciable land; the improvements on top are 15-year. | Truck-court & drive-aisle paving; forecourt & display-lot paving; site & pole lighting; fencing, gates & bollards; site drainage; monument signage; underground yard fire loop. |
| — Nonresidential real property (building shell) | 39-year (§1250) | The structural shell and building-serving systems that stay in the long-life pool. A defensible study is disciplined about what stays here. | Slab, load-bearing walls, roof & envelope; base-building HVAC (human-comfort); interior fire sprinklers (ESFR); life-safety electrical; the insulated envelope of a walk-in or cold-storage box. |
Component index
Every named component modeled in the live property-type guides, with its typical recovery period and where it appears.
| Component | Typical recovery period | Property type |
|---|---|---|
| Above-slab specialty kitchen plumbing (pre-rinse, dishwasher rough-ins) | 5-year | restaurants |
| Animal-facility plumbing — floor/trench drains, hose bibs, hydrotherapy | 5-year | veterinary clinics |
| Bar systems — speed rails, glass washers, underbar refrigeration, CO₂/N₂ & draft lines | 5-year | restaurants |
| Branded interior finishes, specialty interior signage, fitting rooms | 5-year | retail |
| Built-in banquettes, booth seating, branded dining millwork & bar | 5-year | restaurants |
| C-store gondolas, checkout counters, coolers & merchandising fixtures | 5-year | gas stations & convenience stores |
| Canopy graphics/branding, store signage, dispensers & controls | 5-year | gas stations & convenience stores |
| CBCT / panoramic imaging electrical & mounts; amalgam separators | 5-year | dental offices |
| Central vacuum & air compressor systems | 5-year | dental offices |
| Client parking, outdoor dog run/exercise yard, site lighting, signage | 15-year | veterinary clinics |
| Climate-control HVAC (climate-controlled units) | 5-year | self-storage facilities |
| Clinical low-voltage — nurse call, patient monitoring, clinical data cabling | 5-year | medical office buildings |
| Cold-storage refrigeration equipment (refrigerated warehouses) | 5-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
| Cold-storage refrigeration equipment (where present) | 5-year | manufacturing facilities |
| Compressed-air distribution & drops; specialty process plumbing / process gas | 5-year | manufacturing facilities |
| Compressed-air distribution, exhaust extraction, lube/oil/waste-oil reels | 5-year | auto dealerships |
| Customer parking, pylon/monument signage, site lighting, landscaping | 15-year | retail |
| Decorative & dining lighting; POS/AV/surveillance | 5-year | restaurants |
| Decorative, track & accent (merchandising) lighting | 5-year | retail |
| Display & inventory lot paving, high-mast lot lighting | 15-year | auto dealerships |
| Display infrastructure — built-in shelving, gondolas, slatwall, display cases | 5-year | retail |
| Dock equipment — levelers, seals, shelters, bumpers, restraints | 5-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
| Drives, aprons & loading-lane paving | 15-year | self-storage facilities |
| Dryers & blowers; vacuum systems | 5-year | car washes |
| Exam & treatment casework; surgical O₂/anesthesia/scavenging | 5-year | veterinary clinics |
| Exam-room casework — sink cabinets, procedure counters | 5-year | medical office buildings |
| Forecourt paving, pump-island concrete | 15-year | gas stations & convenience stores |
| Full-wall mirror systems | 5-year | fitness & gyms |
| High-amp electrical service drops to production equipment | 5-year | manufacturing facilities |
| Imaging power/mounts, surgical lighting & booms, in-house lab/pharmacy casework | 5-year | veterinary clinics |
| Imaging-suite MEP — MRI conditioning, CT cooling, panoramic power, equipment mounts | 5-year | medical office buildings |
| Kennels, runs & animal housing (removable cages, gates, enclosures) | 5-year | veterinary clinics |
| Kitchen exhaust hood, fire suppression, ducting & make-up air | 5-year | restaurants |
| Lead-lined partitions & doors | engineer review | medical office buildings |
| Material-handling infrastructure — conveyor rough-ins, tugger/forklift charging | 5-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
| Material-handling infrastructure (conveyor rough-ins, tugger charging); dock equipment | 5-year | manufacturing facilities |
| Medical gas distribution — O₂, vacuum, medical air, nitrous oxide | 5-year | medical office buildings |
| Merchandising refrigeration (grocery/convenience) — cases, condensers, condensate drains, dedicated power | 5-year | retail |
| Movable corridor partitions, aisle lighting, wayfinding | 5-year | self-storage facilities |
| Nitrous oxide / oxygen distribution | 5-year | dental offices |
| Parking, outdoor functional-fitness/turf area, site lighting, signage | 15-year | fitness & gyms |
| Parking, patio hardscape, site lighting, monument sign, drive-thru lane | 15-year | restaurants |
| Parts-department racking, customer-lounge FF&E, sales/F&I millwork, pylon sign electrical | 5-year | auto dealerships |
| Patient parking, site lighting, canopy, signage | 15-year | medical office buildings |
| Patient parking, site lighting, signage, landscaping | 15-year | dental offices |
| Pay stations, POS & site controllers | 5-year | car washes |
| Per-operatory utility drops (water, air, vacuum, drain) | 5-year | dental offices |
| Perimeter fencing/gates, site lighting, gate arm, signage, drainage | 15-year | self-storage facilities |
| POS counters/cash wraps and POS/data/security cabling | 5-year | retail |
| Pylon sign structure, canopy foundations, spill containment / oil-water separator, bollards | 15-year | gas stations & convenience stores |
| Reception/pro-shop millwork; branded finishes; sauna/steam, pool mechanical (where present) | 5-year | fitness & gyms |
| Roll-up storage unit doors | 5-year | self-storage facilities |
| Security, cameras, keypad & gate access | 5-year | self-storage facilities |
| Service-bay vehicle lifts, alignment racks, tire/balancer equipment | 5-year | auto dealerships |
| Showroom OEM image-program finishes, display/accent lighting, digital signage/AV | 5-year | auto dealerships |
| Sound / AV distribution; studio specialty lighting & controls | 5-year | fitness & gyms |
| Specialty athletic flooring (rubber / cushioned / sprung) | 5-year | fitness & gyms |
| Specialty plumbing — scrub sinks, dialysis loops, eyewash | 5-year | medical office buildings |
| Stacking-lane & vacuum-pad paving, oil-water separator, canopies, lot lighting | 15-year | car washes |
| Truck-court & trailer paving — heavy-duty reinforced concrete | 15-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
| Truck-court & trailer paving, heavy site lighting, drainage, fencing | 15-year | manufacturing facilities |
| Tunnel equipment — conveyor/correlator, wash arches, applicators | 5-year | car washes |
| Walk-in coolers & freezers (box, refrigeration, insulated panels) | 5-year | restaurants |
| Warehouse low-voltage & security — data backbone, WiFi, scanners, cameras | 5-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
| Water reclamation & treatment; chemical delivery & tunnel controls | 5-year | car washes |
| Yard fire loop, hydrants & yard fire pump | 15-year | warehouses & distribution centers |
See the glossary for the underlying terms, and each property-type guide for the component's full authority and caveat.