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Financial Firms Help Californians Lower Property Taxes & Stabilize Financial Standing

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Keep a low property tax base on an inherited home

Keep a low property tax base on an inherited home

Help From Property Tax Specialists – Bridging the Wealth Gap

Important cities responsible for growing jobs and driving opportunities that generate revenue for consumers, such as Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Long Beach and Anaheim – have all experienced population shrinkage since 2020, due in part to shrinking real estate possibilities as well as unreliable employment, fluctuating sales conditions and unstable economic conditions overall.

Some financial services companies are looking to help reverse this trend and contribute to building a more positive economic and business environment for residents to thrive in, rather than struggle in.

Contributing time and effort towards helping beneficiaries that are inheriting property yet are in danger of falling prey to increased property taxes and limitations to property tax breaks – some financial services companies include middle class and upper middle class families in their suite of services, as opposed to just focusing on wealthy families as many investment, lending and wealth management firms do.

Examples of property tax professionals who are more open to helping middle class Californians are specialists like Advanced Tax & Estate Planning, Trust Administration attorney Rachelle Lee-Warner, at Cunningham Legal or Estate & Trust Lending firm Commercial Loan Corp – all who do in fact include middle and upper middle class families in their wide range of property tax services. 

These firms, and others, are now seeking broad, proactive ways to reach and assist middle class and upper middle class homeowners and beneficiaries expecting to inherit business property or a home from parents, yet find themselves to be victims of financial bias… unable to enlist the help of high-end property tax experts due to their middle class, or rather non-wealthy, financial status.

Free Property Tax Savings Estimate & Consultation

To help preserve net worth for middle class families, the trust lending firm mentioned above recently decided to offer a free consultation & estimate for property tax savings to California middle class and upper middle class homeowners and beneficiaries, as well as affluent residents, all who want to avoid property tax reassessment by keeping parent’s low property tax base… locking in the same low tax rate their parents enjoyed.

Property tax firms are looking to help residents work around obstacles associated with a Proposition 19 parent to child property tax transfer on an inherited home, and is well known for providing ways to save new homeowners and heirs of estates and trusts thousands of dollars in annual property taxes. They are also assisting beneficiaries with applications for trust loans to buyout siblings that are also inheriting property but wish to sell their shares.

This type of consultation helps residents to evaluate, in-depth, the benefit of a loan to an irrevocable trust, and various financial options associated with property tax transfers in California – plus buying out co-beneficiary siblings who are looking to sell their share of an inherited property. Moreover, going through a trust lender  you trust; keeping your parent’s low property tax base when inheriting a home. 

Firms like Commercial Loan Corp work with families to help them preserve their modest financial security; alongside their attorney, accountant or property tax consultant; and assist family members and beneficiaries by helping them avoid property tax reassessment at current market rates, and determine through in-depth consultation how much a family can expect to save on property taxes,

On average this saves more than $6,200 per year, per beneficiary; as well as weighing costs and benefits of a trust loan working alongside Proposition 58 – now for all intensive purposes having morphed into Proposition 19. This enables a simple buyout of inherited property from co-beneficiaries, providing them with more money than an outside buyer would furnish them with; while keeping parents’ low property tax base.

Thaddeus Farrell, Account Manager at Commercial Loan Corp, offers an Insider’s Viewpoint on Estate & Trust Lending

“We guide beneficiaries through a process that will maintain their parents’ low property tax base. Usually siblings that want to retain inherited property from parents come to us first, generally after being referred to us by a law firm. Middle class families that can’t afford to pay reassessed taxes on an inherited home… Which pretty much sums up most families these days…

… property reassessment can cripple a family financially. I look at it like this – expenses are a part of life, and when you inherit a family home, if the property is reassessed at current rates, those expenses will usually go sky high. Most middle class people can’t afford to pay that type of tax hike. They want to take advantage of Proposition 19 and a trust loan, transferring CA Property Taxes from a Parent to an Heir tax break, to avoid property tax reassessment, and move into an inherited home within a year as a principle residence, which was their parents’ principle residence formerly protected by Proposition 58 and Prop 13.

Siblings inheriting a home have two options. They can sell or keep their inherited property. In other words, your family has to make up their mind – what they want to do, sell or keep. Selling it is far more expensive. By keeping the home, each beneficiary receives approximately $15,000 extra in a cash trust distribution when compared to selling the home because they avoid costly realtor and real estate sale expenses. The child beneficiary keeping the inherited home winds up saving on average $6,200 in yearly property taxes.”

Where to get help from Property Tax Savings professionals

Families, beneficiaries, or their attorneys, who want to take advantage of Commercial Loan Corp’s Free Consultation for Property Tax Savings and/or speak to attorney Rachelle Lee-Warner about Proposition 19, at Cunningham Legal; or perhaps discuss the facts with Commercial Loan Corporation, in terms of keeping parent’s low property tax base; or to receive a trust loan to buyout co-beneficiaries’ property shares, and learn more about keeping parents’ low property tax base when inheriting family property – can call (877) 756-4454 and set up a free evaluation in person or over the phone.

Why Consulting With an Attorney, a Property Tax Specialist or Trust Lender is Crucial Now, When Inheriting a Home in California

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Inheriting a Home in California

Inheriting a Home in California

When inheriting a home from parents, one should always have a reliable estate attorney, if we’re looking to transfer a parent’s property taxes or we’re inheriting assets in trust or in a standard estate or probate; with an experienced eye on all  proceedings, especially the process of “equalizing trust loan distribution among beneficiaries” if a trust loan is a part of the process – a phrase often used by property tax specialists, and frequently misunderstood by heirs and beneficiaries.

“Equalizing trust loan distribution” simply means that each heir or beneficiary / sibling intent on selling their shares of inherited property  left to them by a parent, will receive an equal amount of money… settling expenses when there is little or no cash in the trust. 

Paying off a debt that a parent or grandparent has on a home can impact beneficiaries looking to borrow, as well as lenders. Having a competent attorney who knows how to structure a trust so that beneficiaries looking to keep inherited property at their parent’s low property tax base can retain that family property… while making sure that co-beneficiaries intent on selling their inherited property get an equal share of cash from a loan to an irrevocable trust.

This is where an experienced trust lender comes into play, preferably a lender that provides trust funding with their own capital, which ensures that interest charged will be as low as possible. Not using expensive money from investors, lenders with their own capital are free to charge as little as they wish, in terms of fees. In fact, a trust lender like this is free to exercise extreme flexibility with underwriting, maintaining particularly reasonable terms and conditions; as well as being able to implement trust loan transactions quickly, in seven to ten days.


“A private money lender that loans to irrevocable trusts, applies for and works in tandem with California Proposition 19… So all the beneficiaries [in the family] who are looking to sell their real property shares – for the purpose of facilitating “non pro-rata distribution”, in other words getting an equal share of the entire overall estate – however not necessarily of every asset.

If there is a family that goes to a conventional, pricey lender like Wells Fargo for instance – they will always require adult children, beneficiaries that want to sell an inherited property, to ‘go off-title’, and that always triggers present-day tax reassessment. And that spells an expensive 66.66% tax hike!

If the family in question uses the Commercial Loan Corp, a company we have been using for years… the loan they provide is to a trust, and not to beneficiaries; so there is no title, and no crippling 66.66% property tax reassessment. Their terms can be a lot more flexible than an institutional lender like Wells Fargo or Bank of America. Also, Commercial Loan Corp is self funded, and that’s basically why they can extend easier terms to clients.

Compliance for both commercial and residential property owners is far less strict. Commercial Loan Corp doesn’t charge any fees up-front, that’s another great benefit. Plus, they don’t require paying interest on their trust loan in advance. Not only that, there is never a “due-on-sale” clause… that requires the mortgage to be repaid in full when sold; or that all or some of the interest owed must be paid up-front to secure the mortgage. No “alienation clause”… in the event of a property transfer, stating that the borrower has to pay back the mortgage in full before the borrower can transfer the property to another person. There is none of that.”

Having access to private capital, along with seasoned advice, and expertise from a property tax consultant and a trust lender on how to transfer a parent’s property taxes,  becomes even more crucial in an inheritance scenario when a family is looking to keep a family home for a long period of time. 

California Proposition 19, which was (voted into law in 1986) formerly California Proposition 58, can enable a parent-to-child home transfer of a “principal residence” to be excluded from property tax reassessment even if associated with a “change in ownership”.  Which could trigger reassessment of property taxes, often by accident, resulting in  property tax reassessment – if not for experienced guidance from a trust lender and, frequently, from a property tax consultant or tax attorney as well, guiding the trust loan process and  property tax transfer; working in concert with Proposition 19 and parent-to-child exclusion (from high current  market rates).

Advice from property tax transfer specialists like this generally includes guidance for beneficiaries and new home owners within the process of being able to transfer a parent’s property taxes, plus showing inheritors what they need to do to keep parents property taxes when inheriting property and subsequently inheriting property taxes from a parent.

Contact Commercial Loan Corporation for all of your Trust Loan needs at https://cloanc.com/ or by phone at 877-464-1066.

 

PART ONE: The Home Protection for Seniors, Severely Disabled, Families & Victims of Wildfire or Natural Disasters Act

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California Proposition 19

California Proposition 19

Otherwise known as Proposition 19, the new tax measure, more or less replacing Proposition 58, implemented changes to the parent-to-child and grandparent-to-grandchild exclusion – with the base year value transfer measure going into effect April 1, 2021.

Although we’ve covered these rules and regulations previously in this blog it’s always worthwhile to hear what yet another California property tax specialist has to say, if only to verify what others have described as viable revisions to long standing property tax relief in California – so critically important to middle class and upper middle class residents.

Viewpoint From Los Angeles Tax Assessor Jeff Prang

So let’s take a quick look at what senior Los Angeles Tax Assessor Mr. Jeff Prang has to say about these changes to property tax relief in California, and see if his viewpoint is consistent with, or otherwise deviates from, other noted tax experts and property tax specialists in the state, some that we have reviewed or actually spoken to over the past tumultuous year.

Mr. Prang confirms that Proposition 19 tax base transfers allow seniors, age 55 and up, to transfer the taxable value of their existing home to a new “replacement home of any value” – anywhere in the state of California – up to 3-times, instead of only once, as previous property tax regulations allowed, prior to Feb 2021.

Interestingly enough, Mr. Prang mentions the former Proposition 50 and Proposition 171, and looks at the improvements brought about by Proposition 19 to those tax measures – concerning personal harm and property damage from natural disasters, or wildfire; and the subsequent transfer of base year value of a principal residence to any other county, which was much more limited before Proposition 19 took effect .

Mr. Prang also goes out of his way to point out that Proposition 19 allows homeowners to purchase a replacement home of greater value than their original home and transfer their tax base with an adjustment to account for the value difference in cases of homes destroyed or severely damaged by wildfire, which is ironically running rampant in 2021, or some other natural disaster such as flooding or an earthquake.

Parent-to-Child and Grandparent-Grandchild Property Transfer

As of Feb 2021, most tax experts and property tax consultants agree  that in order to inherit a low assessment of a parent or grandparent’s property, under Prop 19, some new conditions must be met, and estate attorneys must get up to speed with these conditions – such as getting in the habit of informing clients that an inherited home has to be moved into within 12 months, retaining a parent’s low property tax base; as primary residence, plus to qualify for a base year value the inherited home must have been the primary residence of the parent or grandparent leaving the property to heirs.

In fact, there is now so much new information for estate and tax attorneys to get up to speed with – notably inheriting property while retaining a parent’s low property tax base, to avoid property tax reassessment – that many law firms more frequently,  lately, have  been sending clients who are inheriting real property from parents to a trust lender, as those particular lenders bridge the knowledge gap – and serve a purpose lawyers cannot serve, which is providing funding to irrevocable trusts if you as a beneficiary want to keep your parent’s home and, most importantly, retain their low property tax base – buying out sibling property shares while keeping your inherited home at a low Proposition 13 tax base… Basically, taking advantage of Proposition 19 (previously Proposition 58 benefits) in conjunction with an irrevocable trust to buyout one or more siblings’  property shares.  Sounds simple, however it isn’t.

General consensus of tax experts in California is that the CA State Board of Equalization stipulates a concrete set of property tax rules and regs, despite the fact that there are still areas concerning Proposition 19 that remain vague and oddly non-specific, which is still causing accountants and other tax professionals a good deal of distress; and for their business and high net worth clients even more concern – particularly when there is a great deal of money at stake.

 >> Click Here for Part Two…

Part One: Proposition 19 Forces Changes to Prop 58 While Proposition 13 Remains Intact

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California Proposition 19

California Proposition 19

What does the passage of Proposition 19 mean for the general housing market in California, one of the nation’s most expensive states to live in?  Although the state will run into an increase in revenue due to a property tax hike, some residents who reside in inherited properties might discover that living in California is becoming more and more difficult  and unaffordable.

Nick Solis, a well known real estate professional, and president of One80 Reality said recently in an interview, “California is a state where blue collar working class folks generally pass down their home to their children or other family members.”

Of course this is where trust lenders, for example like Commercial Loan Corp, are going to get busier, helping beneficiaries to get approved for Proposition 58 and California Proposition 19.  Naturally, Prop 58, Prop 19 & a trust loan lets us buyout siblings, or co-beneficiaries.  Trust lenders are going to become more popular as this type of transaction becomes even more in demand than it already is now.  Siblings who are looking to sell out, and often leave the state, will actually walk off with more money from a trust loan than they would if they sold out to a third party that is not a family member.

Mr. Solis explained, “Not everyone who inherits a home form their parents is wealthy.  Many blue collar workers and working class families bought property in previous decades when homes were affordable, and are passing them down to their kids…”

It took a quasi civil war to get property taxes to this point. The overzealous, fanatical opponents of property tax relief in California never gave up, despite 42 years of trying and failing to remove property tax relief from the California tax system. They gritted their teeth and attempted to push through proposition after tax measure after tax bill to accomplish that. For 42 years, Proposition 13, which successfully limited property tax increases, helping beneficiaries, homeowners and commercial property owners avoid property tax reassessment. Hence, Prop 13 remained untouchable. A political third rail.

Proposition 13 weathered and rebuffed numerous legislative and legal attacks… Even including one at the Supreme Court.  And nothing stuck. Prop 13, and subsequently the 1986 Amendment, Prop 58 & a trust loan lets us buyout siblings, with it’s sacrosanct Parent–to-Child Exclusion (or Parent-to-Child Exemption), this all seemed to be more or less indestructible. 

As far as Proposition 19  is concerned, the forces behind it steered clear of  disabling the right to transfer parents property taxes or inheriting property taxes from parents with the ability to keep parents property taxes. Beneficiaries still had confidence in the fact that Prop 58 & a trust loan lets us buyout siblings and lock in a low Proposition 13 tax base.  Property tax transfer, parent to child transfer, parent to child exclusion and  the transfer of property between siblings all remained safe…     

>> Click Here to Continue to Part Two…

Will California Prop 58 Tax Breaks Survive Proposition 19?

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Will CA Prop 58 Trust Loans and Tax Breaks Survive Proposition 19?

Will CA Prop 58 Trust Loans and Tax Breaks Survive Proposition 19?

California can thank her lucky stars that Proposition 15 was defeated by a thin margin of “No!” votes… But these motivated opponents of property tax relief in California managed to raise  and spend, thanks to the CA Realtor’s Association and others, $47,568,642.14 to push  through a certain cleverly worded, deceptive little tax measure called Proposition 19; as the state’s first serious property tax in 43 years. 

Opponents to the Prop 19 tax measure  managed to raise a paltry $238,521. Had they been able to raise equivalent amounts of cash for PR and promotional efforts, to properly inform voters as to what Proposition 19 was actually looking to accomplish — it is unlikely that the tax measure would have passed.  As it is, the winning margin was only a few hundred thousand votes. 

Proposition 19 was a Christmas present in 2020 for certain special interests  in California, supported by the CA Legislature – the  CA Association of Realtors PAC, the National Association of Realtors,  the California Democratic Party,  California Professional Firefighters Ballot Issues Committee, and others…  designed to be presented as a pro middle class, pro-senior, pro-firefighter, pro-education property tax relief package – when in fact no one really knows how much all of that anticipated extra property tax revenue is actually going to seniors and the California school system, and firefighters. 

Certainly, the folks behind Prop 19, the California Legislature will  throw a few dollars at the Firefighters’ Union… and make things, at least on the surface, appear to be easier for homeowners over 55, for awhile…. and the schools system will receive some of that revenue no doubt.  However, according to well connected real estate lawyers,  as well as the folks at the Jarvis Taxpayer’s Association,  most of the extra revenue will be used to pay for massive, unfunded government employee pensions and related items.  How this unfolds remains to be seen.

What also remains to be seen is the next Proposition 15 type of anti property tax relief tax measure, that will be looking to strip away certain established Proposition 13 tax breaks.  And no doubt with a more clever and convincing marketing effort next time around.  And   having learned a thing or two from their success with Proposition 19, how to sell new property taxes to residential and commercial property owners in California. The Howard Jarvis Taxpayer’s Association and others will simply have to learn how to debunk and expose new property tax hikes, of any kind, more rapidly and more convincingly.  

In the meantime, California still has some effective property tax relief options left, thanks to Proposition 13 still being in one piece.  If we’re about to inherit property, from a trust or an estate, we can still look at getting a trust loan while establishing a low Proposition 13 property tax base… even without all of the property tax transfer options that heirs and beneficiaries are accustomed to passing on to their children as well… allowing their children to benefit from standard Proposition 13 tax breaks for California trust beneficiaries  to avoid property tax reassessment.

Families inheriting real property can still transfer parents property taxes upon inheriting property taxes; plus utilize their ability to safely keep parents property taxes during a parent to child transfer, or Parent to Child Exclusion; as well as during the transfer of property between siblings,  during a co-beneficiary buyout of inherited property shares through a loan to an irrevocable trust in conjunction with Proposition 58, and the help of a reliable trust lender who knows how to make full use of the  now-revised Parent to Child Exclusion… now restricted to a 12-month time-frame after a parent passes away; as opposed to no restrictive  time-frame, such as prior to Proposition 19.  
If California can’t take advantage of property tax relief one way – they’ll have to go down another avenue to get it done!  Inheriting parents property taxes, maintaining the right to avoid property tax reassessment, is still in place; it’s just not as simple as it once was. Thankfully, Proposition 13 still protects our right to avoid property tax reassessment, due to the fact that Proposition 13 is still intact, for the most part. But for how long? That’s the big question… before those tricky folks who gave us Proposition 15 and Prop 19 decide to try again, having learned from their “mistakes”, and come back in the near future with even more deceptive marketing capabilities.

Of course, in the bulk of the states in America, most tax breaks of any kind go the wealthiest residents who actually need tax reduction the least. However, in California the middle class, nor just the one-percenters, continues to enjoy these unique Proposition 13 and Proposition 58 or Prop 193 tax breaks.  Even after Proposition 19 imposed limitations on the right to avoid property tax reassessment. 

The longer middle class homeowners in California have lived in their house – factoring in their neighborhood, in terms of appreciation in value – the larger the tax break from Proposition 13 still is, as it always has been. And Proposition 58 remains about the same, allowing beneficiaries to get a large six or seven-figure loan to an irrevocable trust… establish a permanent low property tax base, plus buyout co-beneficiaries who have inherited the same property.

Despite Proposition 19, all property owners are protected from property tax increases, regardless of when their buildings were built or whether the owner even lives in them. Unfortunately for renters, rent control in Los Angeles and other urban areas only applies to multi-family apt. buildings that were constructed prior to 1979 — the rest of renters cannot partake, however can usually find reasonable rentals, where say in many other cities in the US this is often not possible. But it is in California.

Now, if we could get other taxation down, and make living easier for Californians in general, and stop companies from leaving the state due to high corporate tax… keeping jobs here in the state – California would be in better shape all around.  But that’s something we’ll need to take up with the Legislature!

With Prop 19, Can we Still Inherit A Home And Retain the Property Tax Base?

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With Prop 19, Can we Still Inherit A Home And Retain the Property Tax Base?

With Prop 19, Can we Still Inherit A Home And Retain the Property Tax Base?

In opposition to what some California newspaper editorial writers,  ill-informed politicos, or ambitious realtors might tell you, California Proposition 13 is not broken.  In fact it’s doing exactly what it’s supposed to be doing.  As they say, “If it ain’t broke – don’t fix it!”

Voters in California, in 2020,  fell victim to a great deal of deceptive public relations and marketing, painting Proposition 19  as a “friendly” property tax… versus “unfriendly” property tax relief.  Always avoiding property tax reassessment  was framed as mainly benefiting wealthy families so they could rent out secondary, non-primary, properties to supposedly get even wealthier by renting these properties out – “starving” the state of much-needed revenue for schools, firefighters, and the Legislature in general.

The fact that Proposition  58 and Prop 13 property tax breaks have been allowing middle class homeowners to basically survive, saving Californians from losing their home; or being able to keep inherited property without going broke… apparently was not  important to the politicos in the capital.

Avoiding property tax reassessment at high current rates, and enabling beneficiaries to avoid having to sell their inherited property, plus being able to lock down a low Prop 13 property tax base and buyout siblings who urgently needed to sell their inherited property shares, through a trust loan working in concert with Prop 58’s Parent to Child Exclusion or Parent to Child Exemption – didn’t seem to matter at all to the folks running the state.  Tax relief like this for the middle class, as opposed to being available only to wealthy Californians, didn’t, and doesn’t, seem to be a priority, interestingly enough.

Opponents to property tax breaks for middle income residents  loaded up their promotional advertising with deceptive language and confusing explanations… Avoiding property tax reassessment was characterized as something you shouldn’t want to do; and voters were convinced they were not harming  themselves financially, as homeowners, or as trust beneficiaries and heirs to estates; and should be delighted that they were now helping seniors and firemen and schools.

In fact, they were actually helping the Legislature pay for unfunded government pensions with a rather vague financial support system for the firefighter’s union and educational system throughout the state.  The benefits were left open as to the “how” and “how much”, and written that way intentionally.

However it worked.  Proposition 19 passed… but just barely.  If it had been presented clearly,  in a straight-forward fashion – it would never have passed.  Many people voted for Proposition 19 without realizing its full implications.  In fact there  is a 160-plus page Assessor’s Handbook “AH401” that has literally been deleted from the Board of Equalization’s website because of changes brought about by Proposition 19; hence California property laws are being rewritten as we speak.

If you look at all this in depth, you can clearly see that if  Prop 19,  had been allowed to go all the way, in terms of completely stripping out homeowners’ and beneficiaries’  right to be always avoiding property tax reassessment…  this would have crippled the  middle class in California.  And it certainly will present some economic challenges to the middle class… however it stops short at being a complete disaster.

Property owners can still take the right steps for avoiding property tax reassessment, can still buyout co-beneficiaries, can still establish and maintain a low property tax base. With a few limitations.  Let’s just say it could have been a lot worse for middle class families.   And that is where these critics of property tax relief are probably heading – so Californians have to keep their eyes open.  But at least now, as many California homeowners and even renters  nurse their buyer’s remorse – they will be prepared if these incessant opponents to property tax relief come back around again to “finish the job”.

A lot of Californians don’t understand how complicated property tax relief is going to be going forward.  Every homeowner is going to need a Proposition 13, Proposition 58 and Proposition 193  expert to address these changes – to take full advantage of the Parent to Child Transfer, or Parent to Child Exclusion, and to analyze their property tax situation realistically;  with the help of a property tax expert.  To see if they are going to have to move into an inherited property within 12-months, and use it only as a primary residence,  to evaluate if that’s even going to be possible after the parent leaving them a home passes away.

All these property tax relief matters that were once so simple, that were implemented simply by habit before Proposition 19 came about, are now going to need expert input from well known property tax specialists like Prop 13 / Prop 58 Consultant or trust loan and Parent to Child Transfer experts at a firm like  Commercial Loan Corp who fully understand how to make use of the exclusion for reassessment of property taxes on transfers between parents and children.

Professionals like that will be needed to side-step  mistakes and not miss out on always avoiding property tax reassessment – ending up paying property taxes at current high rates;  hopefully inheriting property taxes form parents.

Beneficiaries and homeowners are going to have to be incredibly careful when looking to  transfer parents property taxes, with the goal being  to keep parents property taxes on a property tax transfer, using the time honored Parent to Child Transfer,  or Parent to Child Exclusion.  The same applies to going to a trust lender, for example, to get a loan to an irrevocable trust to be able to get approved for Proposition 58 for the transfer of property between siblings – commonly known as buying out a siblings’ share of house – buying out siblings’ property shares,   Or the buyout of co-beneficiaries’ property shares.  Now not as simple as it once was.  But still do-able, working with the right firm who will lead you in the right direction and evaluate your property correctly.

For instance, without expert assistance it’s very easy to accidentally trigger a property reassessment under Proposition 13 that might very well increase your property taxes 10 or 20 times, for yourself or for your heirs or beneficiaries.  It’s so easy to handle a transfer of property incorrectly, without a specialist helping you, meaning a property tax consultant, or trust lender if you want to buyout annoying or dishonest siblings…Or a real estate attorney familiar with Prop 13 and Proposition 58.  It is easy to make an error in a Trust that kills your tax cap that would have saved you thousands of dollars.  Doing these things on your own is terribly risky.

When Prop 19 does into affect  on Feb. 16, 2021, California Prop 19 will change a parent’s ability to leave their children or grandchildren their Proposition 13 protected tax base.  Property will be reassessed at its current fair market value, unless you get expert help to identify a work-around or property tax reduction solution.  Challenges will exist where there were none before… so finding some experts you can trust will become an essential step going forward.   

Proposition 19 and the Impact on Prop 58 & Property Taxes in California

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Proposition 19 and the Impact on Proposition 58

Proposition 19’s Impact on Proposition 58

On Election Day in November of 2020, a tiny margin of votes in California swayed the outcome to pass the California Association of Realtors’ effort to convince California voters that Proposition 19 was a marvelous new property tax break to help older homeowners and families inheriting real estate from parents and grandparents.

Also, there was an extremely clever sentimental component built into the Proposition 19  marketing campaign; that was designed to sway voters with a promise to use a good deal of the projected increase in property tax revenue to beef up budgets for fire-fighters… and the educational system. So who on earth would object to revenue going in those directions?  Obviously, no one.  When in fact, from what we hear, very little revenue will actually be going in that direction, and instead will reportedly be used to pay for unfunded state government pensions “and/or related needs…”

All those opposing this property tax measure wanted homeowners over 55 and those who are “severely disabled” (and naturally this will affect a certain number of  older residents) to continue to keep the same number of times they can transfer their tax assessments.

Proposition 19 marketing language dances around this “severely disabled” issue… avoiding specific guidelines for Californians as to what marks the difference between “normally” or “moderately” disabled, let’s say… and “severely” disabled!  And instead, allows homeowners who are  over 55, and reportedly “severely disabled”, or whose homes were destroyed by wildfire or some other “natural disaster” – to transfer their primary residence’s property tax base value to a replacement residence of any value, anywhere in the state.

Jon Coupal, President of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, summed it up pretty well when he said, “Proposition 19 is an attempt by Sacramento politicians to raise property taxes by removing two voter-approved taxpayer protections from the State Constitution. This measure would require reassessment to market value of property transferred from parents to children, and from grandparents to grandchildren.”

The small print, and in fact in this case micro-print, continues to give folks inheriting property from parents the ability to avoid property tax reassessment… but only if they use the property as a primary residence, and only if they move in within 12-months after the parent passes away. 

As long as this deadline is met, Prop 19 apparently does not violate the Proposition 13 transfer of property,  or property tax transfer in general… And for beneficiaries looking to sell their property shares, there are trust fund solutions to help avoid beneficiary conflicts tied into Proposition 58 and Prop 13 tax breaks, for California property owners, or to work around the new Proposition 19 property tax obstacle that forces homeowners to move into inherited property within one year or lose the “Parent to Child Exclusion”. 

Californians will still be able to transfer parents property taxes when inheriting property, and inheriting property taxes from parents –  beneficiaries can keep parents property taxes, there is no other assessment or reappraisal imposed on the Proposition 58 Transfers Between Parent and Child; Grandparent and Grandchild as discussed on the BOE site in the section regarding the Proposition 58 Parent to Child Exclusion or Parent to Child Transfer; or on any other transfer of property between siblings, such as a buyout of co-beneficiary property shares.         

“Severely disabled” is pretty vague language however.  How can you actually define that, with parameters that California trust beneficiaries, estate heirs, and homeowners can follow? Clearly, you cannot.  

Proposition 19 waters down the Proposition 58 Parent to Child Exclusion or Exemption to some degree, although we can still work with it, but it limits property tax breaks, as they say, for “certain transfers of real property between family members”. Proposition 19 limits the exclusion from reassessment for transfers from a parent to a child of $1 million of fair market value. If the property value exceeds $1 million, it will be partially reassessed but not to full market value (i.e., FMV less $1 million). If the child/beneficiary does not use the home as a primary residence, it is reassessed at full market value (FMV).  Naturally, Proposition 19 is not retroactive and will not apply to any property until it is transferred (or deemed transferred) after Feb. 15, 2021.

So far, Proposition 19 is mainly impacting the Proposition 58 Parent to Child Exclusion From Property Tax Reassessment; and the limits they reference refer only to the 12-month deadline plus beneficiaries using a property tax transfer when inheriting property taxes only for a primary residence – not for an investment property that can be rented out. They claim to be expanding tax benefits for transfers of family farms as well, although we don’t know precisely what this entails.

Children or grandchildren who inherit their parents’ or grandparents’ primary residence but do not move in as their own primary residence will be re-assessed at current market value. This will affect many families, like established family farms. For example, if a family farm that was purchased for $300,000 (600 acres at $500 per acre) a generation ago with a tax bill of $3,500 – this could be reassessed by the tax assessor to be $6,000,000 (600 acres at $10,000 per acre; price per acre could vary depending on market area) resulting in a tax of approximately $72,000.

How are families supposed to deal with this sort of tax hike? Could the California Legislature be this greedy for extra tax revenue (i.e., that they were doing perfectly well without for decades) as to completely ignore the ability for families to survive under these sort of extreme property tax conditions? In the long run, how does thousands of family farm businesses going bankrupt possibly help California?

This significant property tax increase could affect many family farms that were once profitable in terms of basic survival going forward under these tax conditions. So you understand all this and can make sense of all these details? No? Well get in line because short of attorneys and CPAs, no one else understands all the fine points either!

Why Californians Need Proposition 58 and Enhanced Property Tax Breaks

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Why Californians Need Proposition 58 and Enhanced Property Tax Breaks

Why Californians Need Proposition 58 and Enhanced Property Tax Breaks

As we all know, Proposition 58 has been tampered with, in the form of Proposition 19; finally giving the CA Legislature the opportunity they have been waiting for, for decades, to water down property tax relief in California.  However, despite this, the state still has property tax relief options that are materially sound. They certainly should not be taking payment plans seriously, that are  offered up by California Governor Gavin Newsom as a realistic  way to “help” homeowners that owe the state on past due property taxes.

Sure, why not allow property owners to pay off what they owe more slowly. But the Governor and his team should also be looking at far more robust options, where homeowners can actually spend less, and save more.  So middle class residents can access the type of tax cuts and property tax breaks that rich folks have enjoyed for decades.

For once, we’re talking about tax cuts for middle class residents, the type that upscale beneficiaries receive through high-end tax attorneys and expensive CPAs; with a trust loan, in concert with tax benefits from Proposition 58… which enables them to buyout siblings who own a share of the house their family has inherited. So they can own an inherited home by themselves, with a low Proposition 13 property tax base.

For many middle class heirs, it’s a perfect package.  Although you still have to use Proposition 58 within year one after mom or dad passes… to utilize the CA Parent to Child Exemption – if you want to continue inheriting your parents’ property taxes.  To avoid paying property taxes at present market value, in order to keep parents’  low property taxes, completely avoiding property tax reassessment. 

In order to prevent a cleverly disguised Proposition 19 or Proposition 15 type of tax measure to come along and weaken, or even remove, property tax breaks for middle class residents – California needs to strengthen the state’s property tax laws, and cement measures that,    despite Proposition 19, still  can guarantee the right to a property tax transfer with a parent to child exemption, or parent to child exclusion; as long as you have a reliable trust lender you can depend on, for example like the Commercial Loan Corp. in Newport Beach, who can be reached at 877-464-1066.  They apparently have the resources to not only provide the money to equalize co-beneficiary funding, establishing a sibling-to-sibling property buyout,  with a low property tax base to avoid property tax reassessment. 

All of the details that make up the foundation of this process are  verified on blogs like this  one, Property Tax Transfer, or the micro-site that furnishes a deep dive into Proposition 13 and Proposition 58  details and narratives: Trust and Estate Loans.   And for those that prefer the hard cold facts and only the facts, there is the respected  state government Website, the California State Board of Equalization, that provides arguably the most  objective property tax relief overview available anywhere, concerning

Despite the inconveniences imposed by Proposition 19, California still has an intact, robust Proposition 13, and fairly intact Proposition 58 as long as one doesn’t exceed that first 12 month deadline period after the death of a surviving parent, or decedent… and one is sure to move into an inherited home as a primary resident, not renting it out, since this is sole bone critics of Proposition 13, Proposition 58, and the CA Parent to Child Exemption have been gnawing at incessantly for decades – using the Bridges family as their one and only example, over the past 40 years, believe it or not.

The problem with Proposition 19 forcing you, after inheriting property from your parents, to move into your parent’s home as a primary residence, or lose your ability to avoid property tax reassessment… on top of being forced to sell your own home, is the fact that your parent’s house may be too small to suit your family. Or the school district may not be suitable, or may be too far away. Or the commute to your job, after moving, may add an hour or more each way, causing another problem.  No one in the Legislature asked those questions; or even considered these issues as potential problems.

Moreover, the question has arisen among critics of Proposition 19 – is this simply a step to get us to the point where they lower the boom on us – and completely remove the parent to child exclusion, effectively wiping out this critical tax break altogether?  The question has come up… however, no one really knows the answer.

These days, post Proposition 19… California homeowners trust the State Legislature less than ever.  Once it sank in how they had been misled  by Prop 19, and had actually been duped into voting for it.   Luckily, there was enough push-back on this to prevent the CA Legislature from going too far. There is enough property tax relief in the system to be useful to the middle class… to help families that really need this kind of tax break. 

Even if Proposition 19, in terms of property tax relief and it’s front-runner tax break, the CA Parent to Child Exclusion or  Exemption, is like walking around with a sprained ankle… Californians, unlike middle class homeowners in 48 other states, will still have property tax relief to turn to. Even if it does create an inconvenience for homeowners and inheritors of real property, and does need to be repealed in the near future.  It won’t be so easy for the California Legislature communications team, and the Realtors Association press release copywriters, to spin the issues with a deceptive branding campaign and confusing marketing language mis-characterizing the CA Parent to Child Exemption… On the next go ’round it will be a very different story.

What We Need

For one, California needs property tax relief with iron-clad protection, to remain safe from any Proposition 19 or Proposition 15 type of tax obstruction or property tax hike that may come along in the near future to water down or even remove crucial property tax breaks.  Not property tax deferment, as the Governor of California has proposed… Or a payment plan to give folks owing property taxes a little more time to payoff what they owe, as proposed in San Diego by two County supervisors.  To be frank, these suggestions are stingy, and are half-way measures at best. 

Proposition 19 has made the Parent to Child Exclusion challenging enough. So why not propose enhanced property tax relief options now, in the midst of a seemingly endless pandemic.  Where most  Californians are struggling… even impacting the upper middle classes now – upscale homeowners, high-end business property owners, commercial property owning landlords with office or residential tenants, or beneficiaries inheriting property from parents…

Payment plans or deferred tax payments are not what homeowners need. They need help in terms of being able to spend less… as making more is very difficult right now.  So at least let’s help them to spend less! Significant property tax breaks will help accomplish that. Gov. Newsom must be able to see this.  He is not so dense as to miss that point.  We are sure he and his team can come up with some enhancements to what we already have. Roll back Prop 19 for one. Repeal it immediately, as unemployment continues to follow the Covid health disaster like an evil twin!

Then add components to Prop 58, instead of watering it down.  That will help middle class homeowners and commercial property owners to spend less on property taxes.  Tax breaks exactly like the billionaires have – at the disposal of the middle class.  Why should only they and not the middle class and upper middle class have authentic tax cuts?  And plan, then launch, a generous STATE Stimulus Package that will create jobs and heal the sick, as well as preventing any new infections with preventative vaccines that are reliable. This is a good start.

California Proposition 19 Lenders and Irrevocable Trusts

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California Proposition 19 Trust Loans

California Proposition 19 Trust Loans

Post Proposition 19 Californians must face certain  changes to the Proposition 58 “Parent to Child Transfer” tax break, the “Parent to Child Exclusion”. 

Property owning Californians now have to grapple with specific challenges, where property tax relief is concerned. It has to be said that, with all due respect, that the realtor community  in California is straining credibility.  They backed Proposition 19, so anything they propose going forward, concerning property taxes or property tax relief, we can assume is only going to benefit the California realtor community.  Not the buyers, or renters…  or owners.  This is fairly obvious. 

Frequently being the wealthiest of the wealthy, we find it ironic that many realtors in California bleat and moan about one family – the Bridges family in Los Angeles – using the one often repeated example to advance the shaky case that everyone in California benefiting from Proposition 13 and Proposition 58 are fabulously wealthy, are elderly, and are intent on buying up all the multi-million dollar beachfront properties in the state, simply to rent out to other fabulously wealthy people from other states, vacationing in Malibu or Santa Cruz or Santa Barbara, having a grand old time – while the besotted realtor community suffers terribly from the lack of homes available to them to go to market. These claims basically debunk themselves.

Moreover, as the claim goes, all because of Proposition 13… and all those rich movie stars buying up all those luxury properties so they can make a few extra dollars every month, reportedly $10,0000 to $15,000, renting out an inherited investment property, like the Bridges do, or did. Again, Bridges being the only name ever used as an example, repeatedly in articles and editorials. Or are the Bridges the only family ever to be involved in this peculiar practice?

We simply cannot figure out why these rabid critics of property tax relief, practically foaming at the mouth, cannot locate another wealthy show business family to bring up when discussing this supposedly “out of control” practice of renting out inherited beachfront properties to vacationers at fairly egregious prices.

Apparently, according to critics of Prop 13 and Prop 58, it’s all because of the families  taking advantage of the “Parent to Child Exclusion” that the real estate market has shrunk a few percentage points over the past few years.  Utilized only, they tell us, by wealthy elderly homeowners and their offspring. No one else. No middle class families, no veterans, no retired folks living on a fixed income.  

And this argument, involving the Bridges family as the sole example of a family of multi-millionaires using an inherited home as an investment property to make a few extra dollars on the side has literally remained unchanged for going on 35 years now.   A lot of people think something is awry with this picture.  So let us take a quick look at the history behind all of this…

So what does the realtor community all across the state of California do, after putting up with supposed armies of rich elderly homeowners and their grown children, renting out inherited luxury homes on the beach for decades – along with having the nerve to actually reside in their own home for decades, simply to take advantage of Proposition 13 or Prop 58, so they can avoid property tax reassessment and rent out luxury homes to upscale tourists?

Apparently also further enraging the realtor community AND the Legislature by also taking advantage of a certain Proposition 58 transfer of property – these wealthy homeowners also take terrible advantage of the California tax system by using these Prop 58 tax breaks to buyout property shares inherited by co-beneficiaries as a transfer of property between siblings – combined with the transfer of parents’ property taxes when they are in fact inheriting property taxes from a parent.

Actually “having the gall” as many critics of property tax relief would put it in the Los Angeles Times or San Fran Chronicle, to basically save a small fortune on a property tax transfer, by exercising their right to keep parents property taxes rather than pay full freight with full up-to-date market rates – paying “their fair share” without “taking advantage” of Proposition 58’s Parent to Child Transfer, or Parent to Child Exclusion.

Apparently, the Legislature and the realtor community are so hard-up for cash that all the property owners in California should be expected to pay reassessed property tax rates, adding thousands, often tens of thousands to ones’ tax bill… and not take advantage of Proposition 13 & 58. Eventually, the Legislature and their friends at the California Association of Realtors  decided something had to be done about this perpetual injustice!

So the California Association of Realtors and other supporters of  a tax measure they called Proposition 19, in 2020, raised $63.8 million ($58.6 million from CAR) and $4.9 million from the National Association of Realtors.  Opponents raised less than $50,000 to wage a political-social campaign, and finally these critics of property tax breaks took down the dreaded Parent to Child Transfer tax break – protected by the triple-dreaded Proposition 58 tax measure since 1986. They weren’t actually able to completely remove this tax break… However, they came awfully close.

Yet as residential or commercial property owners found out, after all the hysteria died down across the state, and property owners finally realize that they had in fact been bamboozled into voting for this tax measure that was turned out after all to be a hungry tax wolf disguised as a charming sheep who just wanted to help seniors and school children. BUT – they still had plenty of property tax relief options left… they were just a bit more challenging to access. Yet that really would be a political third rail. Especially after voters in California finally saw they had been deceived. 

Therefore, despite all the worrying about this, all these property tax relief options remain intact. If we inherit parents’ property from a trust or an estate we can still take advantage of Proposition 13 & 58 to access a large 6 or 7-figure loan to an irrevocable trust to buyout co-beneficiaries so we can own it solo, and keep parents low tax base… frequently without a credit report, without up-front charges, with low interest, no hidden fees, usually in just a few days, and always with very simple terms – unlike your typical bank or credit union.

As long as we have a Prop 58 friendly trust lender, for example like the Commercial Loan Corp. who can reached at 877-464-1066 so you don’t have to hunt for the number… Plus there are a few Websites besides this blog that explore the often misunderstood process of  taking full advantages of Proposition 58 Parent to Child Transfer, or Prop 193 Grandparent to Grandchild Exemption carefully covering Transfers Between Parent and Child or  Grandparent and Grandchild.

And of course there is the often used research Website, with up to date news and  information on Proposition 13 at the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association  or for a formal cutting edge look at updated information exclusively vetted and imparted for California property owners, regarding property tax relief for those impacted by Covid-19, at Andersen.com… Moreover, to take advantage of Proposition 13 & 58 whenever and wherever possible!  There is no point in ignoring any property tax assistance you can receive, one way or the other!

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.