Tax-deferred exchanges of commercial or investment real property are a common strategy for real estate owners. Federal courts have taken a pro-taxpayer approach in allowing taxpayers to structure these exchanges. California has not until recently.
High property values in California highlight the need for careful property tax planning. If you have owned your property for many years, it is likely that your property's assessed value for property tax purposes is significantly lower than today's fair market value. If your property should be reassessed, you or your family members could be faced with a significant increase in the annual property tax.
The Federal Government assesses a tax on assets that are gratuitously transferred to another person. Assets transferred during the donor's lifetime are subject to gift tax.
Married couples often don’t give much thought to the characterization of their property as community or separate. In general, community property is all real or personal property acquired by a married person during the marriage. Separate property is all property owned by the person before the marriage, all property acquired by the person after marriage by gift, bequest or devise, and the rents and profits from the person’s separate property.
