
Be prepared to pay a few hundred dollars for a residential appraisal, more for an appraisal of commercial property.īe wary of hiring an inexperienced appraiser. Ask a local real estate agent, bank, or loan broker to recommend someone. There are many ways to locate a licensed appraiser. The most defensible and accurate valuation of the property in question will be obtained from a formal appraisal conducted by a licensed real estate appraiser. Consult an attorney with expertise in tax and probate law for an opinion on the legal and tax implications of the DOD. They need to be approached with care, using best practices defensible in court. For example, if the decedent leaves a grocery store to his or her heirs, the equipment, furniture, general merchandise, and inventory conveyed with the store must be valued separately. It may also set a new income tax basis for the inheritors. It is also used to calculate the amount of estate tax due, if any. To do that, an appraisal must be performed to determine what the property was worth on that date, even if it was months ago, using historical sales and market data from that date of death.Ī DOD is used to identify if a federal estate tax return must be submitted to the IRS based on the value of the decedent’s real estate. The DOD assesses how much value the heirs actually got for tax purposes. It might take months to sort it out in probate, but legally that property belongs to the heirs the moment of passing. However, the property officially changes hands on the date of the owner’s death. Most appraisals calculate the property’s value on the date of the appraisal in anticipation of a future sale. The estate administrator will need to hire a real estate appraiser to obtain a “Date of Death Appraisal” (DOD) which assesses the fair market value of the decedent’s real estate as of the date of his or her death. The amount available for distribution as an inheritance.Whether there are sufficient assets to pay creditors.This inventory becomes the basis for many of the remaining legal procedures. Investment accounts and security holdings.The first responsibility of the estate administrator is to provide the court and the IRS with an estimate of the estate’s “reasonable worth.” This is known as a “Date of Death Appraisal.” It usually involves an inventory and analysis of the possessions and property the decedent left behind, including: The probate court appoints a legal representative for the estate of the descendant called the “estate administrator.” This could be the spouse, executor, someone named in the will, or an attorney. These requirements need to be fulfilled by the surviving spouse, executor, estate administrator, or other legal representatives.ĭepending on the state, the IRS recommends opening probate proceedings within 30-90 days from the date of death. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) lays out a list of requirements pertaining to deceased persons and their estates. The Date of Death Appraisal, also called a “date of death valuation,” is a real estate appraisal and a key component of the accounting of the worth of the estate required by the federal government. In this article, True Legacy Homes breaks down the Date of Death Appraisal, including:ĥ. One of the most important requirements to become familiar with is the Date of Death Appraisal, as it must be compiled soon after the passing of a decedent with real estate holdings. Learning about the process, in concert with expert legal advice, can help you execute your responsibilities correctly and with confidence. Although most of these steps are simple, others can be time-consuming and intimidating.


Knowledge about these legal steps before bereavement strikes can be invaluable when it comes time to navigate a hard time following a loved one’s death.

If you know you will be named the executor or trustee of one of your family members, the time to start learning about them is now, before their passing. Unfortunately, these strong emotions often precede bewilderment as you realize the many financial and legal steps that follow in the wake of a loved one’s passing. Your focus is on your family and on grieving the loss-and rightly so. After losing a cherished relative, the last thing anyone wants to think about is administering the estate. The death of a family member or loved one is a difficult time, no matter the circumstances.
