Inland Empire · Warehouse & Industrial

Engineered cost segregation for Inland Empire warehouses.

Warehouses, distribution centers, and industrial property across Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Every Southern California engagement includes an on-site observation — most studies delivered within about two weeks.

Prefer to talk it through? Call (213) 444-2776.
Exploded engineering plate of a typical warehouse separated into six layers: roof and skylights, structural frame, equipment and racking, walls and dock doors, floor slab and foundation, and the site with paving, fencing, guard structure and yard lighting.
Illustrative — a typical warehouse, exploded into the component layers a study examines.
IRS ATG aligned
Methodology mirrors Pub. 5653
Fixed written fee
From $2,495 — quoted up front
On-site observation
Our technicians visit in ~1 week
CPA-ready report
Component-level, reviewer-approved
A representative equipped $5M Inland Empire warehouse
$637,971
moved into shorter recovery periods — 15.9% of depreciable basis in this illustrative model.
5-year
$276,193
15-year
$361,778
39-year
$3,362,029
$5,000,000 · 70,000 SF · built 2016 · 14 docks · 60,000 SF truck court · ESFR · material handling · compressed air · 8,000 SF office · land at 20%. Illustrative engine output (v3.23.0), not a completed study. Estimated total first-year depreciation $684,666 including 100% bonus on eligible shorter-life property.
Largest modeled accelerated components
Truck court paving (reinforced concrete) 15yr · $283,735
Dock equipment 5yr · $114,763
Material-handling infrastructure 5yr · $29,322
Compressed-air distribution & drops 5yr · $26,892
Site drainage & detention 15yr · $22,753
Heavy site lighting 15yr · $20,387
Selected components; smaller shorter-life items make up the remainder.
Local knowledge

What makes Inland Empire warehouses different for cost seg

Owners buying Inland Empire distribution buildings often underestimate how much of the property's value sits outside the building envelope. Truck courts, trailer storage, dock equipment, high-mast site lighting, and extensive paving frequently represent a larger share of total cost than in older infill industrial — and on the big-box product along the 60/10 corridor from Ontario to Moreno Valley and the 91/215 through Perris, that share is largest. AB 98 (2026) adds mandated solar, storage, EV charging, and landscaped buffers to new and expanded builds in this logistics concentration region — each a component a study has to classify.

Why it matters for your study

Because we visit the property, our engineering review measures the truck court and trailer yard, counts dock positions and equipment, and records high-mast lighting and yard improvements on site — the components that carry the most accelerated value on distribution product, and precisely the ones a desk study is least able to quantify.

Why industrial property rewards an on-site study

A distribution building is mostly shell and mostly yard. The components a study examines most closely sit in the parcel around the building and in the equipment attached to it — both poorly represented in the records a remote study relies on.

Aerial imagery shows that paving exists but not its boundaries, materials, or use. Listing photos show a dock without leveler configurations or equipment counts. Walking the property changes the evidence, not just the presentation. Where records already support the components at issue, our remote model applies and costs less.

What we document at the property

Truck court & trailer storage

Often the largest separately identifiable item on the parcel — and the least visible in a transaction file. We document boundaries, material changes, and use.

Dock & material-handling

Levelers, seals and shelters, bumpers, restraints, and conveyor rough-in — documented by configuration and count at the property, not inferred from photos.

Equipment-related electrical

Electrical serving identified equipment is evaluated separately where the facts support it. We document panel labels, connections, and records first.

Fire protection & life safety

Sprinkler, fire-alarm, and life-safety systems documented as part of the building record; specialized process systems get separate analysis.

One parcel, three kinds of answer

Illustrative. Actual classifications are made per property, on the facts.

Commonly accelerates

Truck court and trailer paving, aprons and dolly pads, fencing and slide gates, guard structures, yard lighting, dock equipment, and operations-specific power such as compressed air and material handling.

Depends on the facts

Site drainage and detention, electrical serving identified equipment, racking anchorage, office and mezzanine finishes, and separately documented tenant improvements.

Generally structural

Shell, structural frame, foundation and floor slab, exterior walls, roofing, general high-bay lighting, and building-wide fire protection — nonresidential real property depreciated over 39 years.

How the engagement works

01
Scoping
Basis, placed-in-service date, square footage, improvement history, records.
02
Fixed quote
A written fee up front — never a percentage of your deduction.
03
Observation
A field technician documents site improvements, equipment, and quantities.
04
Analysis
Reconciled to basis, modeled on industry-standard cost data, classified into MACRS lives.
05
Delivery
Quality-control and reviewer checks, then a CPA-ready component-level report.

New construction & expansion after AB 98

Beginning January 1, 2026, AB 98 (as amended by SB 415) imposes design and operational requirements on certain new or expanded logistics developments, with the strictest standards in the warehouse concentration region — Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Several produce features a study has to reason about. Each row is the question it raises, not a predetermined answer:

Landscaped buffers, walls, berms and irrigation
Which exterior improvements are separate from the building, and what recovery period applies?
Expanded setbacks and truck courts
What paving, concrete and associated site work can be separately quantified?
Solar and battery systems
How should separately identified energy property be treated, including tax-credit interactions?
EV charging infrastructure
Which charger, electrical and site components are separately identifiable, and how classified?
Cool roofing
Generally remains part of the building envelope rather than accelerating because AB 98 required it.

A summary of statutory requirements, not legal advice. Where these features exist they should be separately identified and evaluated rather than left as an undifferentiated portion of total building cost; separate identification does not itself determine the recovery period. Sources: AB 98 text, Holland & Knight, San Bernardino County LUS.

Inland Empire submarkets we serve

Riverside County
Riverside · Moreno Valley · Perris · Corona · Jurupa Valley · Beaumont
San Bernardino County
San Bernardino · Fontana · Rialto · Ontario · Redlands · Colton
West end / Chino Valley
Chino · Chino Hills · Montclair · Upland · Rancho Cucamonga

For property west of the counties, see our Los Angeles warehouse coverage. Related: industrial cost segregation, the sample warehouse report, and our Southern California commercial hub.

Frequently asked

Do you visit warehouses in Riverside and San Bernardino counties?

Yes. Southern California commercial engagements include an on-site property observation by one of our technicians, typically within about a week, documenting quantities, truck court and yard improvements, dock equipment, and installation details.

How long does a warehouse cost segregation study take?

Most commercial studies are delivered within about two weeks after the property visit, varying with building complexity, portfolio size, and record availability.

How much does an Inland Empire warehouse study cost?

Engineered commercial and industrial studies start at $2,495. The final fee depends on improvement basis, square footage, complexity, and documentation. We generally return a scoped quote within one business day — or you can call us at (213) 444-2776.

Does AB 98 affect cost segregation on a new Inland Empire warehouse?

It can change what the building contains. From January 1, 2026, AB 98 (as amended by SB 415) imposes standards on certain new or expanded logistics developments, with the strictest requirements in the warehouse concentration region, which includes Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Where landscaped buffers, solar and storage, or EV charging exist, they should be separately identified and evaluated.

What recovery period applies to a warehouse building?

A warehouse is nonresidential real property, depreciated over 39 years. A cost segregation study does not change that for the shell; it identifies components that may properly belong in shorter recovery periods, such as land improvements or tangible personal property.

Want your own numbers instead? Get a free 1-page preliminary depreciation estimate for your property — we do the work, you get the PDF.
See my estimated Year-1 savings →

Ready to scope your building?

Tell us the address, basis, and placed-in-service date. We generally return a written scope and quote within one business day — or call the office at (213) 444-2776.

Get a warehouse study quote →