Monthly Archives: January 2021

CA Proposition 58 and Prop 193 Exclusions

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Parent to Child Property Tax Transfer in California

Parent to Child Property Tax Transfer in California

Based on their recent efforts, how do the folks running the state of California, in the Legislature, think that adding property taxes will affect all these working families? Do they even consider how further unraveling property tax relief would affect the California economy as a whole? Does it ever occur to the politicos in the Legislature that going further in the direction of eliminating property tax breaks would literally be a social and financial disaster for the state as a whole?

Since Proposition 58 (as well as Proposition 193 concerning the “Grandparent to Grandchild Exclusion”) is such a critical element holding up property tax relief in the state of California, we might as well take a quick, very simple high-level look at how this all works. To take advantage of Prop 58, certain eligibility requirements must be met. For example, eligible children under this proposition include:

a) Children born of the parents in question
b) Stepchildren
c) Sons-in-law and daughters-in-law
d) Children adopted under the age of 18
e) Children of a child of grandparents (regarding Proposition 193)

Propositions 58 and 193 exclude three types of property transfers, avoiding property tax reassessment at current high market rates:

1. Transfer of a primary residence: The assessed value of a primary residence is eligible for reassessment exclusion, or exemption.

2. Transfer of property through gift, sale, or inheritance: Parent-to-child transfer through a trust will qualify for an exclusion of property tax reassessment.

3. The parent-child exclusion can only be used if the “transferee child” uses the home as the child’s primary residence, and files for the homeowner’s exemption for the property. The parent-child exclusion will not be available if the home is used as a vacation home or is rented out by the children. If the home is transferred to more than one child, they would all have to live together in the home as their primary.

4. A parent can only shelter $1 million of increased value from reassessment. Any appreciation above that will be added to the property tax assessed For instance, if the primary residence is currently assessed at $500,000 but is worth $1,500,000, the child receiving the home and using it as the child’s primary residence will keep the same property tax assessed value of $500,000. However, if the home is worth $3,000,000 and not $1,500,000, the $2,500,000 appreciation will result in an added $1,500,000 assessment; the child’s new property tax assessed value will be $2,000,000 ($500,000 current property tax assessed value + $1,500,000 of “excess appreciation”). This new limitation also applies to a family farm.

Proposition 19 eliminates the second current alternative completely. As of Feb 15, 2021, there will no longer be a Parent to Child exclusion for a transfer of any property other than the parent’s primary residence and a family farm. Although you can still get the benefit of Prop 58 and an irrevocable trust loan if you require that type of financing.

Proposition 58 does not automatically apply to each parent-to-child transfer. To receive the full benefit of Proposition 58, you are required to file within 3-years of the transfer of property ownership.

There are several forms you must file to take advantage of property tax reassessment exclusion. They are Proposition 58 Form BOE-58-AH: Claim for Reassessment Exclusion for Transfer Between Parent and Child; or Proposition 193. Form BOE-58-G: Claim for Reassessment Exclusion for Transfer Between Grandparent and Grandchild.

This completes a very simple, high-level view of what Proposition 58 is all about. Once you understand all that, the next step is to enlist the help of a trust lender to get approved to be able to take advantage of Prop 58 and an irrevocable trust loan for funding to equalize the finances between beneficiaries if some wish to hold on to inherited property while others are looking to sell out to outside buyers.

From that point onward, the next step is to make use of the trust fund loan process, if you wish to equalize financing between you and your siblings or co-beneficiaries, to retain inherited property from your parents and buyout property shares inherited by a sibling, or several co-beneficiaries. You can then own your inherited home without the encumbrances of co-beneficiaries to be concerned with.

Best CA Lender For A Proposition 58 Loan

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California Lenders for Irrevocable Trusts

California Lenders for Irrevocable Trusts

When Should a Trust Lender Enter the Picture?

There are many ordinary, middle-income families, often referred to as “trust fund heirs” who put their assets into a trust with the help of an experienced trust lender like Commercial Loan Corp. When Mom or Dad passes away, and the property is held in trust,  some beneficiaries either sell their inherited property or they keep the property and, through  a trust loan and Proposition 58 tax benefits, manage to lock in a low property tax base, and frequently buyout an inherited property from co-beneficiaries, to be able to own an inherited  home without difficulties and complications from shared property ownership. 

On the other  hand, if beneficiaries in that position decide they’d prefer to sell the property directly to an outside buyer, instead of receiving a typically higher payment from a trust loan – then those beneficiaries will get significantly less money due to realtor fees (typically 6%) when the property sells. 

Interestingly enough, beneficiaries will generally net, on average, $16,400 or more by not selling the property – and instead having at least one sibling, a co-beneficiary, take advantage of Proposition 58.  Moreover, the average family estate will net $45,000+ more than if the property was sold outright to an outside buyer, with the  revenue from that sale being divided evenly between the  beneficiaries.

Higher taxes imposed on families by Proposition 19 will tend to compel a great deal of beneficiaries to sell their inherited property, even if their preference is to keep  the old home and/or land.  Naturally, this is often good for realtors, who will tend to bank more commission revenue from increased sales.  However It’s not good for a middle class or working class family who is suffering the loss of a generally beloved Mom or Dad.

A trust lender usually enters the picture when enlisted by a beneficiary, or beneficiaries, who wish to keep their inherited property, while buying out owned shares of the same inherited home, mutually inherited by siblings.

Trust lenders who run their practice with integrity generally work with siblings that have lost a parent and are  helped a great deal by the California Constitution’s provision that serves to protect beneficiaries from owing  thousands of dollars in property taxes,  as they settle estate or trust business matters and typically complicated financial issues.

A trust loan introduced into this type of estate or trust equation allows a beneficiary or beneficiaries, often referred to as “trust fund heirs” by realtors and real estate attorneys, to retain the home they have happily inherited from their Mom or Dad – safely and securely, at a nice low property tax base. 

Meanwhile, without having to actually sell the property, co-beneficiaries walk off happy as clams, with more cash in their pocket having had a loan to an irrevocable trust used to buyout their shares in their inherited property – than if the property had been sold to an outside buyer, at current market value. 

Middle class beneficiaries typically do their own research on how to protect their inheritance from the tax man… On property tax breaks that make real sense, on trust lenders when inheriting property taxes; on property tax transfer and estate planning; and usually on their legal right to keep parents property taxes as well as having the ability to transfer parents property taxes at the same low tax rate that their parents had. 

Many beneficiaries will conduct their own research on property tax benefits first (prior to going to a trust lender) on how to avoid property tax reassessment, on Parent to Child Transfer benefits and  the complex Parent to Child Exclusion (from current tax evaluation). 

Beneficiaries gravitate to info-sites such as the state government BOE site at https://www.boe.ca.gov  or to a well known trust lender like the Commercial Loan Corp firm we mentioned here, they can also be reached at 877-464-1066; generally due to their reputation as a firm with a family  atmosphere, where clients all seem to get treated like V.I.P.s  regardless of their net worth or the value of their inherited property.

Loans to Irrevocable Trusts

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Loans to Irrevocable Trusts

Loans to Irrevocable Trusts

How Can I Inherit a Home & Keep the Low Property Tax Base?

Perhaps a lot of regular middle class folks out there waiting for an inheritance aren’t aware of it – but since 2016 many of us in the business of dealing with middle class heirs, waiting for an inheritance in trust or in an estate, involved in an unusually large number of conflicts between heirs or beneficiaries… Frequently turning ugly and downright out of control. 

As you can guess, these conflicts typically revolve around the subject of money… Frequently, in an estate scenario, one or more siblings insist on selling the home they have inherited from Mom or Dad, to generate “fast cash” – often in heated opposition to co-beneficiaries inheriting the same home, for example, who insist on retaining that property, as the emotional or sentimental value for them far exceeds the cash value. 

Hence, this often fires up a serious conflict within the family group.  Or – one or two heirs claim they should be receiving a much larger percentage of the family inheritance, which is frequently based on the sale of inherited property, as cash assets are often very modest in middle class estates these days.

Over the past four or five years, we can clearly see a significant increase in these family squabbles… often, for example, in 17 out of 20 estate or trust situations we often see in-fighting like this, that frequently destroys sibling relationships.  Or perhaps conflicts over the issue “to sell or not to sell” inherited family property, or even conflicts over the assessed value of that property… is merely the match that ignites emotional conflicts that were there under the surface to begin with.  It’s no surprise that we often see at least one or two inheritors, per estate or trust, that want  to keep their inherited home, with one or two, or more, beneficiaries pushing to sell the house as soon as possible. 

It’s very common these days to see siblings lock horns almost immediately, when the subject of selling their inherited home is raised. With additional battles flaring up over who should be receiving the larger share of cash assets – or “who” gets “what”  percentage of the home the family is inheriting.  home left by a beloved parent.  We see this pattern repeated over and over again; the same words, similar disputes and similar claims.

A Trust Loan Solution to Family Conflicts

In California, Prop 58 loans to irrevocable trusts often act as a solution to many family conflicts revolving around sibling disagreements over whether or not the family should  retain or sell inherited property from parents.  With a trust loan working in conjunction with Proposition 58 – a process referred to as Prop 58 loans to irrevocable trusts – you can then buyout  beneficiaries    and  end up owning  your inherited property by yourself.

Interestingly enough, siblings who insisted on selling out actually end up receiving more cash then if there had been no trust loan funded and outside buyers had become involved; so those siblings can move forward with their lives, leaving you in peace. Interestingly enough, most families that call  a trust lender to get this type of funding started and accomplished, know next to nothing about the process of Prop 58 loans to irrevocable trusts. 

Residential and commercial property owners should research and learn all about the benefits provided by trust lenders furnishing loans to irrevocable trusts to enable the buyout of property shares from sibling co-beneficiaries; along with CA Proposition 13 transfer of property, plus locking in a low property tax base rate in conjunction with Proposition 58 – all associated with a transfer of parents’ property and transfer of parents property taxes.

Homeowners in every state should understand what inheriting property taxes is all about, how to keep parents property taxes with property tax transfer of all sorts – and why parent to child transfer, or parent to child exclusion, is so profoundly important at the base root of property tax relief in California… and hopefully in other states as well, if motivated folks begin sending letters and emails to their representatives in Washington, and if, by a miracle, this catches on and actually sprouts results. 

Living in a state with low property taxes can provide a major benefit, rather than a liability, to your life. Even if many homes are pricey perhaps to begin with… lowering property taxes on them, to a number you can really feel, can have a profound affect on your lifestyle, and maintain the quality of your life, to where you need it to be.

Goods and services and real estate can be pricey in states like Connecticut, Texas, California, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts… these are all expensive states, in terms of day to day living… However, getting a “life-toll” such as property taxes down to a manageable level can change your entire outlook on your life, eliminating that particular financial struggle.

Moreover, the concept of paying yearly taxes on something you purchase and then keep for many years, might be flawed to begin with. What other large purchase you may make continues to charge you fees such as taxes, after the initial [large] purchase? A boat? Plane? Car? Motorcycle? None. Only real property. Perhaps the whole concept of taxing real estate after the initial purchase could use some fresh, new examination.

Speaking of trust liquidation, California is still the only state in America where you can avoid property tax reassessment at current rates; capped at 2% taxation basically as long as you own property inherited from parents initially… thanks to the 1978 CA Proposition 13.  Plus, the component involving Prop 58 and  “trust liquidity” is particularly  popular with middle class beneficiaries who want to sell the property shares they have inherited from a parent, and walk off with even more cash than if they had sold out to an outside buyer.  Conversely,  Proposition 58 trust loans are just as popular with members of families inheriting property from parents, who wish to buyout their siblings, co-beneficiaries, that are looking to sell their inherited shares.

California business and residential property owners, in addition to having the right to keep parents property taxes, and transfer parents property taxes upon inheriting property, and then inheriting property taxes at the low Prop 13 two-percent tax rate maximum – can maintain a parental property tax transfer basically forever, as a Parent-to-Child Transfer, or Parent-to-Child Exclusion, as long as all requirements for Proposition 58 have been met. Californians can even apply for the same tax break on a secondary property inherited from parents.

If you’re a California property owner who is looking to buyout siblings who insist on selling their inherited property, while retaining the same inherited property from parents with a trust loan, avoiding property tax reassessment from that point on – you can find content that covers this in-depth, along with information on how to get approved for Proposition 58, on a state government Website like the California State Board of Equalization, which is found at  https://www.boe.ca.gov/proptaxes/faqs/propositions58.htm  

A lot of folks research these issues and delve more deeply into California property tax relief, on multiple levels, at established niche  Websites such as Commercial Loan Corp…  or a free resource blog like this one, Property Tax Transfer.  Trust loans working in accord with Proposition 58 or Prop 193 make it possible for heirs and beneficiaries to sell shares of inherited property, a beneficiary buyout of sibling property shares, or as realtors put it, “the transfer of property between siblings”, and “lending money to an irrevocable trust“ – typically from an irrevocable trust loan lender.

The fact is, we need to understand all about our rights, with respect to using a 6-figure loan to an irrevocable trust — not only as a way to buyout co-beneficiaries, but also as a tax break that locks in a low property tax base in line with CA Proposition 13 parental property tax transfer. 

Every property owner in every state in America should be more familiar with current changes to property tax relief laws in California; including the pesky little details that support the invaluable system that allows homeowners and commercial property owners to buy out co-beneficiaries’ mutually inherited property — focusing on the tax laws that makes sibling-to-sibling property transfers work in California.  Someday, perhaps in every state in America, if we want to make property taxes fair and equal to all property owners in this country.

How Does the Prop 58’s Parent to Child Exclusion Work?

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California Parent to Child Property Tax Exclusion

California Parent to Child Property Tax Exclusion

Importance of Retaining Proposition 58 & Property Tax Relief

Regardless of what critics of Proposition 58 and Prop 13 have to say in Op-Eds and Editorials in California newspapers… No matter how many times opponents of California property tax relief attempt to completely unravel and decimate invaluable property tax breaks protected by Prop 13 and Prop 58, during a Coronavirus pandemic no less – popular support for property tax relief in California holds… For commercial property owners and homeowners alike.

Despite a win here and there by opponents to property tax relief in California… supporters of watering down critical tax breaks such as the “Parent to Child Exclusion” win a battle here or there chiefly as a result of tricky, deceptive marketing; with slippery snake oil tax measures like Proposition 19 in 2020.

We just narrowly missed a statewide disaster, with the proposed property tax measure Proposition 15 almost passing, which would have resulted in egregious property tax hikes, raising taxes on apt building and office building landlords, commercial shopping center owners and store properties being rented out to hundreds of thousands of commercial tenants all across the state.  

This would have forced commercial and business property owners in all 58 counties in California to raise prices on all goods and services – simply to survive.  Moreover, this would have been the beginning of the final unraveling of the 1978 Proposition 13 tax relief package. The door to worse things to come, so to speak, would have been opened.  Fortunately, the door was closed.  At least for now.

The fact is, if Proposition 15 had passed in Nov. of 2020 everything you buy or rent in the state of California, even online, would have gone sky high.  So, clearly, this was a near miss of a total statewide economic melt-down. As it happens, the other deceptive property tax promoted in 2020, sponsored by the CA Legislature and the California Association of Realtors among others, Proposition 19, did in fact pass.  The lesser of two evils, so to speak.

Although not perfect, there is still enough room within the property tax system in California so beneficiaries inheriting property from parents, and homeowners, can still make good use of Prop 13, of Proposition 58 and the “Parent to Child Exclusion”…  Beneficiaries can still take advantage of trust loans and the ability to buyout co-beneficiaries if they wish to sell off their inherited ownership in inherited property… plus lock down a low Proposition 13 property tax base.  So Proposition 13 remains, for the moment, troubled… but intact.

The right to avoid property tax reassessment is crucial for California’s economic well being. It means beneficiaries can still make use of Prop 58 and irrevocable trust loans to buyout co-beneficiaries wanting to sell off inherited property.  It means residents can inherit and keep parents property taxes, and can transfer parents property taxes. Inheriting property taxes from parents at a low base rate is critical for middle class homeowners. Otherwise, selling off inherited property becomes unavoidable and inevitable.

Middle class heirs, new home owners, frequently are not able to pay current market-value property tax rates – in a hyper expensive state… in the midst of an out-of-control pandemic, where nearly 7 million people in this state are out of work or under-employed, or are still working from home at a 50% salary level.  Not to mention the astronomical costs associated with illness and the loss of life, for family members.  Items that healthcare insurance refuses to pay for.

The folks supporting the realtor community, CA Association of Realtors, politicians running the State Legislature, and organizations such as the California NAACP State Conference, California Senior Advocates League, California Statewide Law Enforcement Association, Californians for Disability Rights, and the Congress of California Seniors simply must begin to look at middle class families and working family life more realistically.  You’d think they would be,  however they apparently did not read the fine print, and were hoodwinked into voting for Prop 19 in Nov of 2020.

By simple good luck homeowners and beneficiaries can still make use of Prop 58 and a trust loan process to buyout inherited property from siblings while locking down a low Proposition 13 protected property tax base.  Had those organizations read the fine print, they would have noticed that certain tax relief protections they took for granted were under direct attack – such as the ability for eligible homeowners to transfer their tax assessments within counties and to homes of equal or lesser market value;  To retain the right for folks age 55 and older, or people with disabilities, to keep the same number of times they are able to transfer their tax assessments;  To be able to transfer tax assessments on inherited homes, including inherited properties not used as primary residences, to be transferred from parent-to-child or grandparent-to-grandchild – without any issues or problems.

California still retains Proposition 13 property tax breaks, and  beneficiaries can still make use of Prop 58 and trust loan funding.  However, had Proposition 15 been successful, and had the Proposition 19 people gotten everything they had wanted – loading all these new proposed property taxes on top of regular working people would have had an extremely negative affect on the majority of the population of California.

Based on their recent efforts, how do the folks running the state of California, in the Legislature, think that adding the property taxes they had wanted to add would affect all these working families? Do they even consider how further unraveling property tax relief would affect the California economy as a whole?

Does it ever occur to the politicos in the Legislature that going further in the direction of eliminating property tax breaks, as they would like to do, would literally be a social and financial disaster for the state as a whole?

The Governor and his friends need to give this some serious thought.

 

Does Prop 58 Actually Exclude Transfers of Property from Reassessment?

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Crucial Property Tax Breaks: “The Parent to Child Exclusion”

It would be worthwhile for a professional polling organization in California to conduct a objective poll or survey to see whether homeowners in particular are now more appreciative of the gift they were given in 1978 with Proposition 13 as well as Proposition 58 and how that excludes from reassessment transfers of real property between parents and children, used in conjunction with trust lenders such as the Commercial Loan Corp… referred to as a “Parent to Child Exclusion” or “Parent to Child Transfer” as attorneys like to call it. h

We believe it would be clear from such a poll that Californians now  see more clearly that such precious property tax breaks, more or less taken for granted for decades, are now under direct threat… from numerous organizations, such as the CA Association of Realtors (C.A.R.), the Governor of California and the California Legislature itself, supposedly sworn to protect the rights and financial well being of the general public and not of special interest groups such as C.A.R., California Conference Board of the Amalgamated Transit Unions; California Nurses Association; California Professional Firefighters of California; State Federation of Labor; California NAACP State Conference; California Senior Advocates League; California Statewide Law Enforcement Association; Californians for Disability Rights; and the Congress of California Seniors; just to name a few.

Clearly, seniors, to name one of the larger demographic groups, initially bought into the rather deceptive and confusing messaging concocted by promoters of Proposition 19. And never stepped back to open the hood and examine the hidden data-points and details inside the actual tax measure itself… In other words, examining the steak – not the sizzle. The question is, are voters – seniors specifically – now struggling with buyers’ remorse?  A quick survey would answer that question. 

Only in California do you have property tax breaks for middle class property owners such as Proposition 58 and Proposition 13.  Only in California do you have tax benefits like the Prop 58 Exclusion that enables funding to irrevocable trusts; allowing beneficiaries to buyout co-beneficiaries’ shared inherited  property.  Plus, the ability to lock in a low property tax base, in line with Proposition 13, long-term. Ironically, in most other states,  domestic trusts are mainly used for the purpose of allowing affluent families to defer taxes, or to completely avoid paying certain taxes… frequently moving funds held in trust to overseas accounts. 

At any rate, basic California property tax relief still appears to be holding up, despite a few inconveniences imposed by Proposition 19… such as forcing beneficiaries inheriting a  home from a parent to move into that inherited property strictly as a primary residence, within 12-months – or lose the right to avoid property tax reassessment.

The only other option would be to sell the old home… Frequently at a loss. However, the property tax break is basically  the same as when Proposition 58 was passed by a large margin in 1986. A home and up to $1 million in assessed value of additional real property can be excluded from reassessment when transferred between parents and children. 

This keeps the property tax bill the same, with a few inconvenient additions thrown in to keep taxpayers from getting too happy, and we imagine to make realtors happier, if they are selling more properties, as a result of having more properties to sell.  Along with the CA Legislature, who undoubtedly will rake in more cash from property taxes, despite beneficiaries’ ability to take advantage of the Parent Child Exclusion or Parent to Child Exemption – despite some of the tricky new rules & regulations.  Some will not be able to partake of the Prop 58 Exclusion, and that will undoubtedly drive more cash into the state coffers…. which will make the tax assessors happier as well!

If certain beneficiaries inheriting their parents’ home and other property want to sell their shares, they would have to pay much higher property taxes over that average year and a half time-frame, from the date of death to the close of escrow – yet they can avoid owing on average $8,500 in extra property taxes if they are careful to utilize a trust fund loan in conjunction with the Prop 58 “Parent to Child Exclusion”.

These are invaluable options left to California homeowners and commercial property owners; which should be appreciated by residents of this state, as these property tax breaks are basically  unavailable anywhere else in this country. 

We suggest that Californians try to make the most of these gifts… and at the same time, as this is no longer business as usual due to continued efforts to take these property tax relief measures away from middle class property owners — do as much as possible to actively protect these tax breaks. 

As we have now seen, like democracy itself, there is a very thin line between maintaining property tax relief, and losing it forever.

 

Lowering Property Tax Rates for All Homeowners During the Pandemic

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Lowering Property Tax Rates

Lowering Property Tax Rates

In California, Governor Gavin Christopher Newsom signed an executive order on May 6th, 2020, to extend the deadline for homeowners who were scheduled to pay their property taxes on April 10th – and to extend business property owners’ deadline of May 7 to complete and file their business property statement. This was supposed to “provide relief for taxpayers suffering financial hardship due to COVID-19”.  Moreover, Governor Newsom referred to his offer to taxpayers as “property tax relief…”

To be clear, we neither support nor oppose the governor of California here at Property Tax Transfer.  But when we hear something this blatantly disingenuous coming from any politician, we simply must question it.  Property tax relief is property tax relief.  Property tax relief is Proposition 13 or Proposition 58… Genuine property tax relief in California is the lessening, or  lowering, or complete elimination of – property taxes.  What Governor Newsom is referring to is not property tax relief… It’s  property tax deferment.  Putting off payment for a few months.  We would appreciate it very much if political leaders in California would not use such an important term as “tax relief” falsely.

Now, it is entirely possible that the Governor actually wanted to forgive payment completely for certain taxpayers. And under the severe conditions imposed on all of us due to the Coronavirus health crisis and resulting job losses, and lower income suffered by millions of workers in the state – the governor could very possibly have been besieged by political colleagues, and talked out of tax relief – into  tax deferment…  However, why not hold out and insist on giving taxpayers a real break through enhanced Proposition 58 and Proposition 13  – or actually forgive most of these property taxes completely for one  year, or at least discount them considerably?  According to state economists, it would not even have amounted to one quarter of the tax cuts the federal government gave to the wealthiest Americans two years ago!

Many economists have asked, why is it that  a few hundred billionaires and multi-millionaires recently received hundreds of thousands of dollars in tax cuts as “tax-welfare” and “corporate-welfare”, so to speak.  Yet, in the midst of an unprecedented health crisis, resulting in the worst job loss disaster since the Great Depression – 160 million middle class and working class property owners received nothing even close to the trillion dollar tax cuts afforded to just a handful of mega-wealthy families only a couple of years ago.

Many financial analysts in California have pointed out that the folks in power in this state did not mind shelling out trillions then – yet now on a state level, when middle class taxpayers desperately need an obvious financial boost such as a property tax cut, or property tax break, the best our state government can do is come up with an essentially useless  tax deferment proposal, and no actual tax cut… or tax relief.  These analysts do have a point.

Local government apologists claim that the $140 billion in property taxes that California typically receives every year is urgently needed right now to pay for essential pandemic services – to cover the cost of public health departments in 58 counties; to cover public hospitals; and – to pay for the school system, which is always sort of tacked on, as if they can’t find that money anywhere else. Local California government agencies insist that they stay open only due to funding that is largely based on… property taxes.

State agencies wrote a letter to the Governor, stating, “Delaying such a large infusion of general funds for two to three months would have a serious impact on their ability to provide these services.” They did not even want to go along with the proposal for deferment that the governor suggested! 

Some folks in the press wisely asked – is not keeping millions of Californians (many whom are elderly, and living on a fixed income) from being evicted and completely losing their home not an “essential pandemic service”?

Gov. Newson has forced businesses to shut down, and most certainly will again, understandably and with good intentions – sending workers home to try to slow the spread of Covid 19. Admittedly, the pandemic is out of control in California, as it is in many red states. Folks in all these states want their “freedom”… and so it looks like they are therefore free to avoid wearing masks, free to contract Coronavirus, and free to infect others.

The Governor, ignoring this mass appeal for freedom, closed down businesses back in May anyway.  As a result,  many homeowners were not able to pay their property taxes. Companies all across California have closed to comply with Governor Newsom’s shutdown order to slow the spread of the Coronavirus that causes COVID-19 respiratory complications.   Yet if you’re going to close down those companies, hopefully temporarily, and send workers home at half or no pay – wouldn’t it make sense to then give those workers a significant financial break, as in increased property tax breaks… somewhere along the line, somehow? Such as Coronavirus Prop 58 and Proposition 13 property tax relief!

Certainly homeowners and beneficiaries inheriting property from parents can still get a trust loan to buyout co-beneficiaries, and lock down a low property tax base… but reinstating Proposition 58, in terms of the changes Prop 19 has brought about, and adding more teeth to existing property tax breaks that can save Californians significant amounts of cash every month… Would be so relevant during a pandemic, that it’s almost absurd to have to bring it up — when it’s not even in discussion in the Congress or  the Senate.  Not to mention the California Legislature.

So… when the governor calls a two or three month property tax deferment “property tax relief”… it’s no wonder that taxpayers reacted negatively.  Property tax relief refers to lowering the amount to be paid.  Not deferring the payment date!

Governor Newsom told us recently that more than 1.6 million Californians have filed unemployment insurance claims, which the state is struggling to organize and process, to get those checks out. It’s fine to send folks that are out of work unemployment checks – they have paid into that every working week.  But wouldn’t it make even more sense to give them all a property tax break, eliminating Proposition 19 restrictions in light of the Covid outcomes? Preferably forever… But at least as long as the Covid virus rages?

Proposition 58’s Parent to Child Exclusion in 2021

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Proposition 58's Parent to Child Exclusion in 2021

Proposition 58’s Parent to Child Exclusion in 2021

It is both crucial and about time for homeowners and commercial property owners in California to step back and take little time to read up on property tax breaks available in all 58 counties in the state – to fully understand exactly how property tax relief works now; how it’s still possible to transfer your current tax-basis to children or grandchildren. With the Proposition 19 property tax measure having revised crucial Proposition 58 property tax relief protections; in place since 1986.

It’s critical for property owners, no matter what their total property value or net worth is, to:

a) take full advantage of property tax relief as it is in 2021 going forward;

b) make sure the changes to Prop 58 “Parent to Child Exclusion” are well understood… that property inherited from a parent is either moved into as a primary residence, within 12-months after the remaining parent passes;

c) make sure they plan on selling their inherited property at a  break-even price or at a profit, if they are not able to move in as a primary residence within 12-months;

d)  insure that, if selling out to an outside buyer is not a preferred option, they understand how to enlist the help of a seasoned trust lender, such as the Commercial Loan Corp in Newport Beach… to get approved for Proposition 58, and to be able to take full advantage of loan funding to an irrevocable trust – used in conjunction with Prop 58 – in order to buyout property ownership from a co-beneficiary, or several siblings, waiting to inherit the same inherited home.

All of this entails learning how to operate successfully under the auspices of CA Proposition 19, passed in Nov of 2020; affecting property tax relief benefits that have been taken for granted by Californians since 1986, and if you factor in key property tax breaks from Proposition 13, having the right to property tax transfer, to avoid property tax reassessment to attain and keep a low property tax  base – since 1978.

It is also important to acknowledge that the majority of “Parent to Child Property Transfers” occur after both parents are gone; and to fully understand how Proposition 58 helps regular middle class homeowners and business property owners in the state of California, and not fall prey to conspiracy theories that claim property tax relief is only for the wealthy. 

The date of passing of the last (surviving) parent is used as the date of transfer for beneficiaries (offspring, or “children”, typically grown children of decedents leaving property to their heirs or beneficiaries).

The average trust beneficiary takes roughly a year and a half to settle an estate after a lone surviving parent passes away, leaving liquid assets and/or real property to heirs or beneficiaries. It is also important to remember that during this time the children of decedents are responsible for continuing to pay the property taxes on their parent’s home and any other property in question. 

Under California law, Proposition 58, Proposition 193 and Proposition 13 (which may also be combined with Proposition 60 and Proposition 90) allows  a parent or grandparent to transfer their current tax-basis to their children or grandchildren. You can still transfer your current tax-basis to heirs in California, it’s just not as ‘free and easy’ as it has been. These benefits can still apply to a gift, a sale, an inheritance, or a hybrid of these property transfers.

More specifically, Proposition 58 and Proposition 193 allow a parent or grandparent to gift or sell their real property during their lifetime, or gift their property at death, to their child or grandchild, and concurrently transfer their Proposition 13 tax basis, and other Proposition 13 benefits, along with the property, thus saving the child or grandchild potentially thousands of dollars per year for as long as they own the property. So not only can you transfer your current tax-basis to beneficiaries,  your beneficiaries who are inheriting property  are also allowed to combine benefits provided by Proposition 58 with a loan to an irrevocable trust, to buyout inherited property shares from siblings who are co-beneficiaries.

Prop 19 was promoted as a way to: “Increase funds for firefighters and wildfire containment programs; to eliminate unfair tax loopholes used by East Coast investors, celebrities, wealthy non-California residents, and trust fund heirs…” again, citing conspiracy theories publicized by critics of property tax relief in California. 

Looking at this legislation in-depth reveals that it also eliminates property tax increase protections for many more California property owners. “East Coast Investors” is a thinly disguised euphemism suggesting that it’s not really about your right to transfer your current tax-basis — it’s about thousands of voracious outside investors “gobbling up properties” on the beach or wherever, and renting them out at egregious prices to rich visitors and vacationers.

Not so. In fact, these property tax measures would affect mostly local residents inheriting property from their parents, not families from nearby states – as critics of property tax relief are claiming – with no evidence whatsoever to back up their claims. No evidence and no proof… simply free-floating conjecture.

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Prop 58 Loans

Prop 58 Loans and Loans to Equalize Trusts

It has been an interesting piece of California history, concerning people who have been  involved in the struggle for, or against, Proposition 19 in 2009–2010 which was not voted into law… as well as the next version of Proposition 19 in 2020, which was voted into law, just barely.

Moreover, Proposition 19, 2020 was promoted in a rather deceptive and  confusing manner, along with a measure called Proposition 15, which did not pass or, as you know – commercial property owners in California would no longer be able to avoid property tax reassessment.

As you also probably know, Proposition 19, 2020 managed to revise certain property tax breaks within Proposition 58, such as the “Parent to Child Exclusion, or, as tax attorneys like to call it, the “Parent to Child Exemption”.

At any rate, there was far too much focus on the recreational use of marijuana surfacing during the 2009–2010 version of CA Proposition 19. This battle descended into a petty conflict involving decade-old personal bias and social prejudice characterizing marijuana as a “socially destructive, addictive drug” (which it apparently is not, according to pharmacological experts) and placed in the same class as crack cocaine or meth-amphetamine, which are indeed socially and personally destructive drugs.

It does seem that the real purpose of Proposition 19 in the 2010 version, away from the grey area of “recreational use of marijuana” which the debate became mired in – was to try to generate $1.5 billion or more for state violent crime fighting needs.  Due to a great deal of personal bias, this never happened. Which is unfortunate, as the state could have used the extra money for legitimately battling violent crime associated with genuinely harmful drugs; as opposed to rather benign couch-potato pot smoking. 

Everyone who owns property in California regarded Proposition 58, voted into law Nov 4 of 1986, as untouchable, sacrosanct, a political third rail not to be touched. It has served to protect homeowners whose debt is at or exceeds $8,500 in additional property taxes, while settling financial affairs after a parent, who has left property to heirs, has passed away.  Proposition 58 also protects a property tax benefit called a “Parent to Child Exclusion” or Exemption, as we have mentioned… allowing beneficiaries inheriting property to avoid property tax reassessment at current market rates.

Moreover, Proposition 58 allows beneficiaries who wish to keep inherited property in their family to buyout co-beneficiaries’ property shares, through a trust loan, and helps those looking to keep their inherited home also retain a Proposition 13 protected low property tax base that their parents paid.

With the advent of Proposition 19, after a long rather disingenuous marketing campaign, middle class families woke up to realize that some of the benefits they thought were fully protected have been watered down; that you will need to move into the house you inherit from parents within a year, as a primary residence, or lose your Parent-to-Child Exclusion.  So it’s still there… but you have to keep an eye on the calendar to avoid losing the tax break altogether. 

So all of a sudden, after both Prop 15 and Prop 19 were proposed… California property owners began to worry, for the first time in decades, about possibly losing the right to keep parents property taxes for themselves, at a nice low rate…It is unthinkable, as expensive as California is, with income tax and other taxes as high as they are – to even consider that we might ever lose our right to a property tax transfer from parents, at low Prop 13 rates; or transfer of property between siblings.  Fortunately for California, this did not occur.

After Proposition 19 was passed, Californians were extremely relieved to see that they would be still have the right to get a loan to an irrevocable trust, in conjunction with Proposition 58; to be able to buyout property shares from co-beneficiaries, as the same simple transfer of property between siblings – known as “buying out siblings’ property shares” or a “sibling to sibling property transfer”, when co-beneficiaries decide to sell their inherited property to an outside buyer.

It was most likely due to notable professionals who supported property tax relief and Prop 58, that Proposition 19 was prevented from going too far. This can be verified at fact-based property tax  blogs like this one, Property Tax Transfer,  and the new Op-Ed oriented micro-site, Loan To A Trust, specifically addressing issues, opinions and fact-based information on Proposition 13 and Prop 58 at Websites belonging to real estate attorneys supporting CA property tax relief, such as property tax specialists. And certainly thanks to Prop 58 experts and trust lenders with applications for a trust loan, for transfer of property between siblings… that look something like this: https://cloanc.com/apply-online
 
It goes to show us that with some stiff opposition to unreasonable tax measures looking to squash property tax relief in California – even with millions of dollars from the California Legislature and organizations supporting special interests like realtors, such as the CA Association of Realtors (C.A.R.), conspiring tax measure that  attempt to unravel Proposition 58 and/or Proposition 13 can be stopped.  Perhaps not completely; yet at least to a good degree.