Farmland Buyer’s Tax Move Rejected as Accounting Method Change

A real estate company can’t claim amortization deductions on its tax returns starting in 2009 to recover the cost of acquiring farmland, a federal appeals court said Friday.

Arkansas-based Conmac Investments Inc.'s attempt to claim the deductions amounted to an attempt to change accounting method without IRS approval, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled affirming a ruling by the US Tax Court.

Conmac said it decided to use amortization and claim tax deductions to recover the cost of acquiring land because other competitors were doing so. It also claimed the move was merely a change in ...