According to a survey from Balboa Capital, 82% of small business owners plan to use Section 179 of the Internal Revenue Code to deduct the cost of qualifying equipment purchased or financed in 2021.

“Section 179 provides welcome tax relief for eligible small businesses that invest in qualifying equipment, and the results of our survey reveal that a substantial number of SBOs are taking advantage of it,” Kevin Umeda, manager of sales planning and coordination at Balboa Capital, said. “More than 80% of SBOs who responded to our survey are planning to elect the Section 179 tax deduction.”

Umeda added that small business owners who are thinking about making capital equipment purchases still have time to do so.

“2021 is coming to a close, but Balboa Capital is positioned to help eligible SBOs reap the benefits of Section 179,” Umeda said. “We offer application-only funding for hard collateral of up to $500,000 with fast turnaround times. That means SBOs may be able to finance qualifying equipment, machinery, vehicles, software, technology and other expenditures before this year’s Section 179 deadline on Dec. 31.”

Survey Highlights

• When asked how familiar they are with the Section 179 tax deduction, 17% of SBOs said “very familiar” and 42% said “somewhat familiar.”
• 82% of SBOs plan to use Section 179 to deduct the cost of qualifying business equipment that was purchased or financed in 2021.
• 42% of SBOs are familiar with the Section 179 first-year bonus depreciation provision.
• 54% of SBOs plan to use the first-year bonus depreciation provision for qualifying equipment purchased or financed in 2020.
• Business vehicles topped the list of equipment that SBOs purchased or financed in 2021, followed by computers, software, heavy equipment, office equipment, office furniture, printing equipment and machinery.
• One in three SBOs said they would have purchased or financed more equipment in 2021 if they knew the Section 179 tax deduction limit was $1 million.
• 13% of SBOs did not purchase or finance any business equipment in 2021.
• Eight in 10 SBOs plan to invest in new or upgraded equipment during Q1/22.

Balboa Capital’s Section 179 survey was sent to a sample of SBOs in various industries during the first week of December.