CSSI Review 2024

Pros

• Free initial cost segregation analysis
• Strong focus on compliance and maximizing tax savings
• Available in all 50 states

Cons

• No additional tax services
• Nontransparent pricing
• Limited customer support avenues

What Is CSSI?

CSSI – Cost Segregation Services, LLC is a firm that specializes in cost segregation for properties valued from $200,000 up to $1.5 billion. Since 2003, the company has completed over 45,000 cost segregation studies for commercial property owners.

CSSI puts an emphasis on its attention to detail, strict adherence to tax codes, competitive fees, and helping clients achieve maximum tax savings through cost segregation.

CSSI Services

Unlike other specialty tax firms that also focus on other tax incentives and credits (such as the employee retention credit), CSSI specializes in engineering-based cost segregation studies for commercial properties. CSSI’s services are available in all 50 states, with representatives available nationwide.

CSSI Fees

Like other cost segregation companies, CSSI does not disclose its fees online. This is because cost segregation fees are generally based on the size and complexity of the property being studied.

The company does, however, mention that its services are affordable. Unfortunately, it’s unclear how affordable, as none of its user reviews mention anything about fees. This resulted in an average rating for the company in terms of fees.

CSSI does offer a complimentary property analysis to determine if you qualify for cost segregation. Following your analysis, you can speak with a representative about the fees required to continue with the study. The availability of a free property analysis helped boost CSSI’s composite rating for fees to a respectable 3.8/5.

CSSI Features

CSSI doesn’t feature many of the services, tax calculators, and other tools and resources you may find with other specialty tax firms. For this reason, we did mark some points off of its rating, as we’d at least like to see a basic cost seg calculator. A lack of additional tax services also slightly lowered its overall score for features to 3.7/5.

CSSI focuses solely on cost segregation and ensuring maximum tax benefits and compliance with IRS guidelines. Here’s what to expect if you work with CSSI:

• Free Analysis: CSSI offers a complimentary preliminary analysis to determine if you’ll benefit from cost segregation. After filling out a short form, you’ll receive an overview of tax savings, a value analysis, an outline of required documentation, and an engagement letter that includes study fees.
• Emphasis On Compliance: CSSI uses an engineering-based approach to cost segregation and includes the 13 points outlined in the US tax code in each study.
• CPE Presentations: CSSI has continuing professional education (CPE) presentations available covering topics including bonus depreciation, QIP, and how the CARES Act impacts property owners. In-person and live web-based presentations are available and can be personalized for CPA firms.
• Educational Resources: CSSI provides several resources to help taxpayers learn more about cost segregation and other tax topics. This includes information about tax laws, case studies, and articles covering everything from year-end tax strategies to research and development tax credits.
• Quick Turnaround Times: CSSI completes most cost seg studies within six weeks.

CSSI Customer Service

While there are fewer customer service avenues than some other cost seg companies, there are still several ways to get in touch with CSSI. You can contact the company through its toll-free number or contact its office in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. You can submit an online form to get contacted via email or phone. You can also submit a short form to get started with your free initial cost segregation analysis.

Additionally, CSSI’s FAQs and articles can answer some questions about cost segregation and other tax-related topics. The company also has profiles on Facebook and LinkedIn, although these profiles are not updated frequently.

In terms of the quality of customer service, past clients are pleased with the professionalism, helpfulness, and responsiveness of CSSI representatives overall. The methods of contact and the overall quality of customer service led to the company’s 4.5/5 rating for customer service.

CSSI Reviews

One area where CSSI stands out is with its customer reviews. While many cost segregation companies only have client testimonials posted on their website, CSSI has a handful of user reviews published online. The majority of those reviews are positive, which helped boost CSSI’s score during our review to 3.9/5.

In addition to testimonials on its website, CSSI has received 3.7/5 stars (based on seven reviews) on Google. CSSI has also been recommended by users through forums like BiggerPockets.

CSSI Complaints

There aren’t many complaints about CSSI — as stated, most of the few reviews online are positive. However, a few complaints include:

• Unresponsive representatives
• No clear explanation on why properties didn’t qualify

Positive CSSI Reviews

Positive reviews of CSSI show that clients like the company’s:

• Knowledgeable team
• Substantial tax benefits through cost segregation
• Commitment to meeting timelines

Is CSSI Worth It?

CSSI has a solid reputation among property owners for its cost segregation services. The company emphasizes compliance and following regulations as it performs its cost seg studies, which is key to avoiding mistakes on your federal tax return and navigating an IRS audit.

The company boasts of affordable fees (although it’s not clear just how affordable), and looking through the company’s resources and case studies shows that CSSI is experienced in cost segregation — after all, it has completed over 45,000 studies since 2003.

If you’re looking for a company that offers additional tax credit services, you won’t find it here — CSSI focuses solely on cost segregation studies. However, if you want an experienced company that performs engineering-based cost segregation studies, CSSI is worth a look. It doesn’t cost a thing to get an initial analysis to learn more about the tax benefits that CSSI can help you claim.

If you’re still shopping your options, know what to look for in a cost segregation company. Then, head over to our list of the best cost segregation services to compare your options.

Cost Segregation Review Methodology

We spend hours researching and evaluating each cost segregation company we review at Merchant Maverick, placing special emphasis on key characteristics to generate our service provider ratings.

When rating cost segregation companies, we use an 18-point rubric that looks at features, fees, customer service, and user reviews. We weigh each section differently to calculate the total star rating.

• Features: 50% of the total star rating
• Fees: 35% of the total star rating
• Customer Service: 10% of the total star rating
• User Reviews: 5% of the total star rating

Each section is further broken down into granular, weighted subsections, in which we look at specific attributes, like whether a free initial analysis is available, which cost segregation resources are offered, and availability in all 50 states.

Learn more about how we rate cost segregation companies.