Tangible Personal Property Filing Guidelines

• Tangible personal property - include all goods, chattels, and other articles of value (but not certain vehicles) capable of manual possession and whose chief value is intrinsic to the article itself.
• Items of inventory held for lease to customers in the ordinary course of business, rather than for sale, shall be deemed inventory only prior to the initial lease of such items and must be reported after their initial lease or rental as equipment and/or furniture or fixtures.
• Equipment on some vehicles. Examples: power cranes, air compressors and other equipment used primarily as a tool rather than a hauling vehicle.
• All fully depreciated items must be reported at original cost whether written off or not.
• Property personally owned but used in the business must be reported.

• Intangible personal property - that is, money, all evidences of debt owed to the taxpayer, all evidence of ownership in a corporation, etc.
  
  
• Household goods - such as wearing apparel, appliances, furniture, and other items ordinarily found in the home and used for the comfort of the owner and his family, and not used for commercial purposes.
  
  
• Automobiles, trucks, and other licensed vehicles - these are not taxable as personal property (Exception: the equipment, on certain vehicles, is taxable as personal property and must be reported. Example: Power cranes, air compressors and other equipment designed as a tool rather than primarily as a hauling vehicle.)
  
  
• Inventory - those chattels consisting of items commonly referred to as goods, wares, and merchandise which are held for sale to customers in the ordinary course of business.

With the exception noted in the following paragraph, a separate personal property return must be filed for each location in Miami-Dade County. Additional forms will be mailed on request.

Owners of vending machines, lp/propane tanks and similar free standing property at many locations may submit a single schedule in lieu of individual property statements, and are required by the Property Appraiser to provide a list of site addresses. Owners that previously reported on a Tangible Personal Property Return form or other owners of a similarly integrated property may submit a single schedule.

Enter only unadjusted figures in areas calling for original cost. An adjustment is a variation from purchase price paid. Adjusted figures must be explained on an attached supplemental schedule. Such schedules are considered part of the return. Florida law provides that the taxpayer shall also provide an estimate of the current fair market value of the property.

In the appropriate schedule list the original installed cost for assets of your business. Assets in each schedule must be grouped by year of acquisition.

The figure you enter as "original cost" must include the total original installed cost of your equipment, before any allowance for depreciation. Include sales tax, freight-in, handling, and installation costs. If a trade-in was deducted from the invoice price, enter the invoice price.

Add back investment credits taken for federal income tax purposes if those were deducted from the original cost. Include all fully depreciated items at original cost, whether written off or not.

If you own equipment that is out on loan, rental or leased to others, report it on the appropriate schedule and enter the totals on line 22.

• List each item of tangible personal property separately in the appropriate schedule except for "classes" of personal property. A class is defined as items that are substantially similar in function, use, and age. Do not use the terms "various" or "same as last year." This is inadequate reporting and may subject you to penalties for incomplete filing.
  
  
• List all items of furniture and fixtures, all machinery and equipment, supplies, and certain types of equipment attached to mobile homes. All expensed items must be entered at original cost.
  
  
• For each item, report your estimate of the current fair market value of the property and your estimate of the condition of that item (good, average, poor).
  
  
• Farm, grove, and dairy equipment
  List all types of agricultural equipment you owned as of January 1. Describe property by type, manufacturer, model number, and year acquired. The following is a partial list of the types of equipment which are to be reported: bulldozers, draglines, mowers, balers, tractors, all types of dairy equipment, pumps, irrigation pipe - show feet of main line and sprinklers, hand and power sprayers, heaters, discs, fertilizer distributors, etc.
  
  
• Hotel, motel, apartment & rental units (household goods)
  List all household goods, (i.e. Furniture, appliances and equipment used in rental or other commercial property). Both residents and nonresidents must report if house, condo, apartment, etc. is rented at any time during the year.
  
  
• Mobile home attachments
  For each of the following types of mobile home attachments (awning, carport, patio roof, trailer cover, screened porch or room, cabana, open porch, utility room, etc.), enter the number of items of that type which you owned as of January 1st. Enter the year of purchase, the size (length times width), and the original installed cost.
  
  
• Leasehold improvements - (i.e. Physical modifications to leased property)
  If you have made any improvements (carpeting, paneling, shelving, cabinets, etc., including modifications and additions) to property that you lease, list the original cost of the improvements. Improvement must be grouped by type and year of installation. Important: Attach itemized list or depreciation schedule showing inventory of individual improvements.
  
  
• Supplies
  Enter the average cost of supplies that are on hand, including expensed supplies, such as stationery and janitorial supplies, linens, silverware, etc., which may not have been recorded separately on your books. Include items that you carry in your inventory account but which do not come within the definition of "inventory" subject to exemption.
  
  
• Leased, loaned and rented equipment
  If you borrow, rent or lease equipment from others complete the schedule by entering the name and address of the owner or lessor and a description of the equipment, year you acquired it, year of manufacture (if known), the rent per month, and the amount it would have originally cost had you purchased the equipment new.