Cost Segregation for Commercial & Short-Term Rental Owners
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Looking for a Madison SPECS Alternative?

Cost Segregation Guides · Comparisons · Updated August 28, 2026 · Basis Property Group

Madison SPECS is an established national cost segregation firm generally positioned around larger commercial real estate portfolios. Basis serves the same mechanics, IRS Audit Techniques Guide aligned engineered studies, but is built with a budget tier and a free estimate first, and is weighted toward short-term rental and single-property owners who want a number before committing rather than a portfolio-level engagement.

Key takeaways

  • Madison SPECS is an established national cost-seg firm, CRE-weighted by reputation
  • Basis offers a budget tier alongside a full engineered study, both 70-page ATG-aligned reports
  • A free Preliminary Benefit Estimate at /qualify comes before any commitment
  • Basis's guarantee: 20x the fee on commercial, 30x on an STR, or the study is free
  • STR studies at Basis run entirely off listing photos, no site visit required

What Madison SPECS is known for

Madison SPECS is an established national cost segregation firm. Its public site did not return readable content for review beyond its name and category as of this writing, so this page relies on general market positioning rather than page-by-page specifics pulled directly from its site. Details about Madison SPECS come from its public materials as of August 2026; tell us if something is out of date, and we will correct this page.

Firms of this type, national practices with a longer institutional track record in cost segregation, generally build their pipeline around larger commercial real estate transactions and repeat-portfolio clients, where the scale of the engagement justifies a dedicated account relationship and a longer sales cycle. That is a legitimate way to run a cost segregation practice, and it tends to serve developers, REITs, and large private owners well, where the volume of properties under management makes a single, larger vendor relationship the more efficient path.

We would rather say that plainly than pretend to know details we could not confirm. If Madison SPECS publishes a clearer breakdown of its service tiers, pricing approach, or property-type focus, this page will be updated to reflect it rather than left to guess. The category it operates in, established national cost segregation, is a real one, and firms in it typically bring long track records to complex, high-value engagements.

Year-One DeductionsOffice / Warehouse benchmark$49,017Without a study(39-yr straight line)$330,674With our study(same building, year one)
Real benchmark: a $1,911,675 building basis (Office / Warehouse, less land). Straight-line 39-year depreciation without a study runs about $49,017 in year one. Our study identified $330,674 in first-year increased deductions on the same building (the section 481(a) catch-up plus year-one depreciation), at a $9,900 fee.

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What Basis is built for instead

Basis Property Group runs cost segregation for commercial and short-term rental owners, based in Pennsylvania, serving the whole US. Two tiers exist for a reason: a full engineered study for properties that warrant deeper site-level review, and a budget engineered study for owners who want the same 70-page, IRS Audit Techniques Guide aligned report at a lighter scope. Neither tier requires a portfolio relationship to access. One property is enough to start, and there is no minimum transaction size or asset count to qualify for either tier.

For short-term rentals the process is even lighter: the Airbnb or VRBO listing photos feed the component classification directly, no site visit and no owner homework required, which matters for an owner who does not have a facilities team coordinating access for a site walkthrough. That same principle carries into the commercial side of the business: an owner with one building does not need to build a relationship with a national account manager to get a study started, just a property and an estimate request.

The number that separates a study before you commit

A large national practice built around bigger transactions is not typically set up to hand a prospective client a free number in 60 seconds; the sales process usually runs through a call or an intake form first. Basis is built the opposite way. A free Preliminary Benefit Estimate models the likely first-year acceleration for your specific building before you spend a dollar, through the qualifier at /qualify, and nothing about the process requires a phone call to get that first number.

Property typeBuilding basis (less land)First-year deductionsFeeDeductions : fee
Medical Clinic$1,404,500$241,839$10,00024.2 : 1

That medical clinic example is a real quoted engineered study on a single commercial property, the same size of asset a smaller owner is likely comparing quotes on, not a portfolio-scale engagement spanning dozens of properties. A single-owner medical practice is exactly the kind of building that can get lost in a national firm's pipeline behind larger institutional accounts, which is part of why a direct, self-serve estimate matters for this size of property.

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The guarantee behind the number

Basis backs every study with a floor: at least 20 times the fee in first-year deductions on commercial property, or at least 30 times on a short-term rental, or the study is free. That guarantee exists precisely because every property is different, and it is the mechanism that makes the free estimate a real commitment rather than a marketing number attached to nothing. A national firm sized around institutional portfolios may not offer a comparable per-property floor, since its pricing and risk model is built around a different scale of client relationship entirely, spread across many properties rather than measured against any single one.

See how Basis compares to a large national firm like KBKG for a similar contrast on scale versus focus, or read what a cost segregation study actually costs for the fee side of the comparison. Both pages walk through the same underlying question: does a single building get the same attention inside a large national practice that it gets from a shop built around individual owners.

Getting your number

Whether a national practice or a smaller, estimate-first shop fits your situation better usually comes down to portfolio size and how much you want to see before committing to a fee. The free qualifier at /qualify gives you a real number either way, in about 60 seconds, with no commitment attached and no obligation to move forward. There is no reason to wait for a proposal call from a larger firm before you know roughly what your own building is likely to produce.

If you later decide a larger national relationship makes more sense for your situation, the estimate still tells you something useful: whether the number in play is worth the extra coordination a bigger engagement usually requires. Seeing the number first turns that decision into an actual comparison, instead of a guess based on firm size alone.

Which firm and which tier fits your tax situation is a question for your CPA. What the estimate shows is the number the mechanics produce for your specific building.

Frequently asked questions

Is Madison SPECS a national cost segregation firm?

Yes, it is an established national cost-seg practice. Its detailed public materials were not fully available for review as of this writing; this page relies on general market positioning and will be corrected if more specifics become available.

Does Basis work with single-property owners, not just portfolios?

Yes. Basis does not require a portfolio relationship. One commercial property or one short-term rental is enough to start, with a budget tier available for smaller-scope engagements that a larger national firm may not offer.

How fast can I see a number from Basis?

The free Preliminary Benefit Estimate at /qualify takes about 60 seconds and requires no commitment or phone call. It models the likely first-year acceleration for your specific building before you pay anything.

What does the Basis guarantee cover?

Every study identifies at least 20 times its fee in first-year deductions on commercial property, or at least 30 times on a short-term rental, or the study is free. That floor applies regardless of which tier you choose.

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Educational information, not tax advice. This page describes how federal depreciation rules and tests work in general. Whether any rule fits your facts is a determination for you and your CPA. Our study gives your CPA the engineering and the numbers to make that call.
Property Types
Multifamily & Apartments Hotels & Hospitality Restaurants Medical & Dental Retail & Industrial
IRS ATG Aligned  ·  Methodology per IRS Pub 946 & Treas. Reg. §1.168  ·  Engineering-based component studies  ·  Form 3115 / 481(a) look-back  ·  Works directly with your CPA
Basis works with commercial and short-term rental owners nationwide. Estimates run off the county's own assessment records, including a proprietary data engine covering more than 14,000 Pennsylvania commercial and industrial parcels.
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Content reviewed against IRS Publication 946, Treasury Regulation §1.168, and the IRS Cost Segregation Audit Techniques Guide. For educational purposes only; this site does not constitute tax advice. Consult your CPA before filing. Not affiliated with the IRS.