Capital grains

The recipient of a gift of an asset acquires the tax cost basis of that gift donor. However, if the asset was inherited, then the cost basis of the asset would be the fair market value at the time of decedent's death. 

When you sell property you pay tax on the difference between the sales price and your cost, also known as your basis.  When you sell land, it is likely taxed as a capital gain, meaning it typically gets better tax rates than "ordinary" income.  Your question states that the land you want to sell was "gifted" to you.  When you receive a gift, you also receive that person's basis.  If your parents also received this property as a gift, they also got it with their parent's basis.  So, if your grandparents bought the property for $10,000, that was their starting cost basis.  If they gifted the property to your parents, the cost basis stayed the same: $10,000.  So, when your parents gifted it to you, your basis would also be $10,000.  Now, if instead of a gift this land was inherited, there are different rules that apply.  For inherited property, you look for the value of the land on the date of death, when that land gets transferred to the next owner.  That gets more complicated because we need to know how the land was held (by one parent in their name?  by both?).   Now, if you want to defer/delay capital gains there are a few things to consider.  First, is you may be able to do a 1031 exchange.  That would allow you to buy a different piece of real estate, say in Indiana which may be closer to you.  The capital gains would not disappear, but would be built into the new property, usually by adjusting your cost/basis.  Second, you could sell the property and serve as the "lender."  If you sell and take installment payments from the buyer, then you may be able to spread the gain out over several years based on the payments you collect each year.  You would also have some interest income to report as well. The third option that comes to mind is to donate the property.  You wouldn't walk away with a large payment, but instead of capital gain, should have a tax deduction if you follow the proper steps. If you want to pursue a 1031 exchange, you need to work with qualified real estate professionals who have experience with these transactions.  There are a lot of steps and you don't want to make mistakes.  If you want to do an installment sale, I would also suggest working with a lawyer to ensure that you have a properly worded loan agreement and that you have proper rights to get the property back if the buyer/borrower stops paying.  The donation to a charity would require you finding a charity that would accept the land, and getting a qualified appraisal.  I would suggest reaching out to a tax attorney to help coordinate this to ensure you follow all of the complex IRS rules for this type of a donation.