Asset ClassUseful Life
Land improvements and buildings
15 years
-
30 years
Rental homes and improvements
10 years
Furniture, fixtures, and equipment
5 years
-
30 years
Computer hardware and software
4 years
Site improvements
7 years
-
30 years
Leasehold improvementsLesser of lease term or useful life of assets
In-place leases7 years
Trademarks and trade names
15 years
Customer relationships4 years
Franchise agreements and other intangible assets
10 years
-
27 years

About PP&E Disclosures

The PP&E disclosure details a company's physical asset base — land, buildings, machinery, and equipment — along with the depreciation methods and useful life assumptions that determine how these costs flow through the income statement. Capitalization policy thresholds reveal management's judgment on the boundary between expense and asset, directly affecting both reported earnings and asset values.

Key signals: changes in estimated useful lives or depreciation methods can materially shift reported earnings without any operational change. Compare capital expenditures against depreciation expense — when capex consistently trails depreciation, the asset base may be aging and underinvested. Watch for large asset impairments or write-downs that signal overvalued carrying amounts. Asset retirement obligations reveal future environmental or decommissioning costs that are often underappreciated. Compare PP&E intensity (PP&E-to-revenue) against industry peers to assess capital efficiency and competitive positioning.