Mother's Home

Please do NOT transfer the house to any of the chldren before your mother dies. When a person dies, the tax basis of the house, used in computing any capital gains tax, is stepped-up to either the value at her date of death or the value 6 months later, your choice. If she makes a gift of the house or any portion of it while alive, the person she gives it to gets the same tax basis she had when she made the gift. If she owned the home a long time, the basis might be very low compared with today's values.   Probate takes forever, is expensive, and is annoying. The answer is to transfer the home to a revocable living trust. Revocable means she can change it or even cancel it at any time before she dies or becomes incompetent. She can add more beneficiaries and delete any beneficiaries she decides not to make gifts to. We set up such trusts, provide a pour-over will as a back-up for any property that does not make it into the trust, provide you with blank durable powers of attorney for health care and financial decisions, in case you become incapable of making such decisions while still alive, and convey one piece of real property to the trust, usually the family home, for $1500.00. If you would like to hire me to do this, let me know, and I'll send you a list of the information I need. If you appreciate this free advice, please remember to refer me to any friends or acquaintances who need a lawyer. Referrals are still our best source of new business. Dana Sack