USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference 2023

USC Gould Trust and Estate 2023 Conference

The 2023 USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference

The 49th Annual Trust and Estate Conference will take place on Friday, November 17, 2023, at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. Commercial Loan Corporation will once again be sponsoring the event. Two of our Senior Account Executives, Tanis Kluever and Thad Farrell will be attending the event and available to answer any questions you may have on California Proposition 19 and our Trust and Estate loan programs.

For 49 years, USC Gould’s Trust and Estate Conference has been delivering practical and real-life solutions from speakers with a proven track record of addressing unexpected problems in estate planning, probate, and trust administration. The Conference typically attracts over 500 participants for unrivaled networking and learning opportunities from both the speakers and your professional colleagues. The Conference is tailored for trust, estate planning, probate and elder law professionals including attorneys, paralegals, trust officers, accountants, financial institution executives, private professional fiduciaries, wealth management professionals, fiduciary officers, underwriters and insurance advisors. what’s included?

Registration includes all sessions, continental breakfast, networking breaks, luncheon presentation, continuing education credit, and print and downloadable copies of the practical Conference Syllabus, including the popular Resource Guide, a Trust and Estate Professional Directory covering Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties.

If you have any questions regarding a loan to a trust or estate or about qualifying for a California Proposition 19 Parent to Child Property Tax Transfer, please call us at (877) 464-1066 and we can answer any questions you have.

Inheriting a Home in California – Property Tax Guide. Keeping A Parents Low Property Tax Base.

Inheriting a home in California, Property Tax Guide

Inheriting a home in California, Property Tax Guide

Keep A Parents Low Property Tax Base

Many Californians that are seeking lower property taxes or to keep a parents low property tax base know by now that new property tax relief measures opened up new opportunities for you to take advantage of. If a parent is leaving property to you and your siblings and you’re looking to keep a low property tax base, a loan to an irrevocable trust may be needed to qualify for a California Proposition 19 Parent to Child Exclusion from Property Tax Reassessment.

Highly effective property tax breaks are now available to Californians. If you’re a beneficiary inheriting a home from a parent and the property is currently held in an irrevocable trust; a trust & estate loan to that irrevocable trust is likely required if the trust does not contain sufficient cash to make an equal distribution to all of the child beneficiaries. This is frequently taken advantage of by beneficiaries, perhaps like yourself, who intend to keep a home inherited from parents at the original low property tax base. A loan to an irrevocable trust makes it possible to buyout inherited property shares from co-beneficiaries and greatly speeds up the trust distribution process. A trust loan also saves a great deal of money when compared to selling the family home. Avoiding property reassessment is a property tax relief benefit available to all Californians.

Hands On Experience, Establishing a Low Property Tax Base

If your siblings were receiving their funds from the irrevocable trust by selling the home, they would likely receive far less money. The costs associated with preparing the home for sale, expensive realtor fees and potential closing costs associated with selling the home can be incredibly expensive. When a trust loan is used to facilitate a trust distribution, each beneficiary receives an average of an additional $15,000.00 in distribution when compared to selling the home. The person receiving the family home also benefits greatly. On average our clients save over $6,200.00 a year in property tax savings by avoiding property tax reassessment on an inherited home. Having a specialist to help guide you through some of the advantages of Proposition 19 ends up saving you a lot of money on property taxes.

Trust Loans & Estate Lending in Concert With New Property Tax Breaks

It may sound complicated, but when you speak to your Trust & Estate Attorney, Trust Lender or California Property Tax Consultant, the details become clearer. At Commercial Loan Corporation we specialize in loans to trusts and consistently help Californians inheriting a family home keep their parents low property tax rate. If you are inheriting a home and would like to learn more information on if a loan to an irrevocable trust or a bridge loan is right for you, please call us at 877-464-1066.

California Proposition 19 – Parent To Child Property Tax Transfer On An Inherited Home

California Property Tax Transfer

California Property Tax Transfer

As many Californians are aware, a home undergoes reassessment at “ current market value” if it’s transferred, inherited, sold or gifted from one party to another – and, in turn, taxes on the property often increase significantly providing additional revenue to the city and county they are located in. If the sale or transfer is between parent and child, in certain situations, the home won’t undergo reassessment once specific requirements are met and the application to avoid reassessment is filed properly. It is highly recommended that a trust and estate attorney or California property tax consultant are used to advise you in this situation.

California Proposition 58 is established in section 63.1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code and has been modified by California Proposition 19 in 2021. The below bullet points may untangle some of the confusion that has formed around some of the Prop 19 property tax breaks.  We need to take note that property tax relief limitations built into Proposition 19 are presently serving as a replacement to the pre-Feb 2021 Proposition 58  parent-to-child exclusion, also referred to as a “parent-child exemption” which protect the child inheriting a home from a parent from property tax reassessment.

• Proposition 19 was more or less rushed through the political and electoral process, passed by the CA Legislature and placed onto the November 2020 ballot. Homeowners’ ability to transfer parents property taxes, in other words the right to keep parents property taxes on any parental property tax transfer, inheriting property taxes from Dad or Mom and enabling heirs to keep parents property taxes are sill in place as valid tax breaks, allowing beneficiaries or heirs to avoid property tax reassessment – the process is just more limited than it was previously.

• Establishing a low property tax base along with the transfer of property between siblings, sibling-to-sibling property transfer – buying out a sibling’s share of inherited property through a trust loan, in conjunction with Prop 58, is still in place, however inheriting property taxes from a parent has been limited in some circumstances by Proposition 19. Still the majority of children can receive a full property tax transfer from a parent on an inherited home.

• Sections of the approved California Proposition 19 documentation and revisions to various sections are vague. To correct these issues, Santa Clara County Tax Assessor Larry Stone was appointed by the California Assessors’ Association (CAA), with four other tax Assessors, to a CAA “committee” to provide clarity to the new Proposition 19 implementation process. The CAA committee has enlisted specialists and tax lawyers throughout California, and is working with the Board of Equalization (BOE) to furnish guidance and where necessary recommend passage, on an urgency basis, towards implementing appropriate statutes.

• Only inherited properties used as primary homes or farms would be eligible for the property tax transfer. Those who are “severely disabled”, or whose homes were destroyed by wildfire or a “natural disaster” can now transfer their primary residence’s property tax base value to a replacement residence of any value, anywhere in the state.

• Eligible homeowners can now take advantage of “special rules” to move to a more expensive home. Their property tax bill would still go up but not by as much as it would be for home buyers that are “not eligible”.

A claim form must now, as of Feb 2021, be completed and signed by the transferors and transferee and filed with the Assessor. A claim has to be filed  within three years after the date of purchase or transfer, or prior to the transfer of the real estate to a third party, whichever is earlier.

If a claim form has not been filed by the date specified above it will be timely if filed within six months after the date of mailing of the notice of supplemental or escape assessment for this property. If a claim is not timely filed the exclusion will be granted beginning with the calendar year in which you file your claim.

If you have questions regarding California Proposition 19, Prop 58 and the benefit that you may be entitled to, please call us at 877-464-1066. We can help you determine if a loan to a trust is needed for you to receive your benefit and how much you might be able to save in property taxes by keeping a parents low property tax base on an inherited home.

Join Us at the 2020 USC Gould Trust & Estate Conference

USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference

USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference

Please join us this November 13th for the Virtual 46th Annual USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference. We are sponsoring the event again this year and will be available to answer any questions you have on Lending to an Irrevocable Trust or Probate Estate. Our loans assist clients in qualifying for the California Prop 58 Parent to Child Exclusion from Property Tax Reassessment on an inherited home.

Tanis Alonso, one of our Trust & Estate Loan Senior Account Executives will be available for Zoom meetings during the Conference or available by phone at (877) 464-1066 to assist you and provide you with more information on our specialized lending programs. Commercial Loan Corporations is one of the only lenders in California who will lend to an Irrevocable Trusts, allowing our clients to meet the California Board of Equalization requirements to qualify for their Exclusion from Reassessment.

If you are interested in attending this years USC Gould Trust and Estate Conference, please visit their website here for more details: Trust & Estate Conference – Los Angeles

This years USC Gould Trust & Estate Conference Features Information on the following

Keynote Presentation: Bending the Arc of History with Terrence Franklin
Practical Topics: Annual Updates, Trustee and Beneficiary Harmony, Anti-SLAPP, Divorce, Stretching Retirement Savings, and Sub-Trust Allocations
CE Credit: MCLE, CPE, CFP, PFB, and CTFA (Pending)

8:30 AM – 8:35 AM (PST)
Welcome and Introductions
8:35 AM – 10:05 AM (PST)
Annual Update: Recent Developments in Probate and Trust and their Practical Applications
10:05 AM – 10:20 AM (PST)
Break Sponsored by Professional Fiduciary Association of California
10:20 AM – 11:20 AM (PST)
Love in the Time of COVID-19: Trustee and Beneficiary Harmony in Years Like 2020
11:30 AM – 12:30 PM (PST)
No-Contest Clauses and the Anti-SLAPP Statute: Traps for the Unwary
12:40 PM – 1:20 PM (PST)
Keynote Presentation Sponsored by Signature Resolution: Bending the Arc of History Towards Justice in the Probate Court
1:20 PM – 1:40 PM (PST)
Break Sponsored by Jack Barcal, Esq.
1:40 PM – 2:40 PM (PST)
Tales from the Dark Side: HELP, My Client Is Getting Divorced (or Married, or Remarried). What Do I Do?
2:50 PM – 3:50 PM (PST)
How to Stretch Retirement Savings with a CRUT
4:00 PM – 5:00 PM (PST)
Better Late Than Never? The Looming Implications of Late Allocations to Sub-Trusts

For more information on our loans to irrevocable trusts and probate estates, please call us at 877-464-1066. We can provide you or your client with a free cost benefit analysis and let them know exactly how much property saving can be attained by taking advantage of a parent to child property transfer and exclusion from property tax reassessment.

Trust and Estates Terms and Definitions

Common Trust and Estate Terms

Common Trust and Estate Terms

Matters pertaining to Trusts and Estates can be complicated, especially if you are unfamiliar with the terminology. The following is a glossary of terms that are commonly used in Trusts and Estates and loans made to trusts.

Administration:
Trust administration refers to the trustees management of trust property according to the terms of the trust after the settlor’s passing.

Beneficiary:
A beneficiary is the person who derives advantage or benefits from something. There can be multiple beneficiaries in a trust. Beneficiaries are names in a trust or will to receive something.

California Proposition 13:
Prop 13 is a California Constitutional amendment enacted in 1978. California Proposition 13 limits the tax rate increase that can be charged annually on real estate. The proposition decreased property taxes by assessing property values at their 1975 value and restricted annual increases of assessed value of real property to an inflation factor, not to exceed 2% per year. Prop 13 also prohibited reassessment of a new real estate property tax base year value except for in cases of either change in ownership, or completion of new construction. 

California Proposition 58:
Prop 58 became effective in November of 1986.  With certain limitations, California Proposition 58 allows for the exclusion for reassessment of property taxes on transfers between parents and children. Prop 58 is codified by section 63.1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code. In the State of California, real estate or real property is reassessed at market value if it is sold or transferred. Property taxes can sometimes increase dramatically as a result. If the sale or transfer is between a parent and their child, under limited circumstances, the property will not be reassessed if certain conditions are met and the proper application is filed in a appropriate amount of time. Prop 58 allows a child inheriting a home to avoid property tax reassessment when acquiring property from a parent.

California Proposition 193:
Effective March of 1996, California Prop 193 is a constitutional amendment approved by the voters of California which excludes from reassessment transfers of real property from grandparents to grandchildren. Prop 193 requires that all the parents of the grandchildren who qualify as children of the grandparents are deceased as of the date of transfer. Prop 193 is also codified by section 63.1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.

Change in Ownership:
Ownership of real property transferred from one person or entity to another.

Conventional Lender:
A conventional lender is a lender that provides loans that meet the lending criteria of the Federal National Mortgage Association (FNMA “Fannie Mae”) or Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (FHLMC “Freddie Mac”). When it comes to lending to a property held in a trust, a conventional lender will not provide a loan to a trust.  They require that the property first be removed from the trust and placed in the name of an eligible borrower. Commercial Loan Corporation is one of the only California lenders that will lend directly to a trust.

Co-Tenants:
Co-Tenants or tenants in common share a specified proportion of ownership rights of real property.

Disproportional Distribution:
A disproportional distribution is a trust or estate distribution where one or more heirs or beneficiaries receives a larger portion of the distribution of an estate / trust.

Encumber:
To create a claim, limitation on, or liability against real property.

Equal Distribution:
An equal distribution is a trust or estate distribution where all heirs or beneficiaries receive an equal portion of assets in the trust or estate.

Equity:
The difference between the value of real property and anything owed against the real property.

Estate:
All the assets owned by a particular person (less debt) at death.

Executor:
A person or institution appointed by a testator to carry out the terms of their will.

First Right of Refusal:
A contractual right that gives its holder the option to buy real property.

Guarantor:
One that guarantees the repayment of a loan.

Irrevocable Trust:
Type of trust where its terms cannot be modified, amended or terminated without the permission of the grantor’s named beneficiary(ies).

Letter to Assessors:
Board of Equalization’s summaries of court rulings, legal opinions, highlights of enacted legislation, Property Tax Rules and technical bulletins for assessment problems.

Non-Pro Rata:
Each heir / beneficiary receives an equal portion of the entire estate / trust, but not necessarily of each asset.

Option to Purchase:
Opportunity to purchase a piece of real property.

Per Stirpes:
An estate / trust is distributed “per stirpes” if each heir / beneficiary is to receive an equal share of the estate / trust.

Pro Rata:
Each heir / beneficiary receives an equal portion of each asset in an estate / trust.

Probate:
The official proving of a will.

Promissory Note:
A signed document containing a written promise by one party to repay a stated sum to another party.

Proportional Interest:
The interest of one heir / beneficiary divided by the total number of heirs / beneficiaries.

Revocable Trust:
Type of trust where its terms can be modified, amended or terminated dependent on the grantor.

Security Interest:
Enforceable legal claim or lien on real property.

Settlor:
The settlor is the entity that established the trust.  The settlor goes by several other names in matters related to trusts; you may also see them described as the grantor, or trustor. The settlor’s role is to legally transfer control of an asset to a trustee. The trustee then manages it for one or more beneficiaries.

Share / Share Alike:
Each heir / beneficiary receives an equal portion of the estate / trust.

Statutory Powers:
Legal powers given by a statute.

Testator:
The person who made a will.

Trust:
An arrangement whereby a person or entity (trustee) holds assets as its nominal owner for the good of one or more beneficiaries.

Trust Distribution Worksheet:
The final accounting of the assets & liabilities for the distribution of a trust.

Trust Residue:
All of the property that is left after specific gifts are distributed from a trust.

Trustee:
An individual or entity given control or powers of administration of assets in a trust.

Trustor:
The person(s) that created a trust (aka “settlor” or “grantor”).

If you have any questions, please call us at 877-464-1066 and we will do our best to assist you.

Trust and Estate Terms found here.

What is Proposition 58?

What is Proposition 58?

What is Proposition 58?

California Proposition 58

In the State of California, real estate is typically reassessed at market value when it is sold or transferred. As a result, property taxes may increase dramatically due to the new higher assessment value. Prop 58 or Proposition 58 is a California Proposition that with limitations, grants the ability to avoid property reassessment on real estate inherited from a parent in California. With the passage of Proposition 58 in 1986, if the sale or transfer of real estate is between a parent and their child, under some circumstances, the property will not be reassessed if all Board of Equalization conditions are met and the application for exclusion is filed in a appropriate amount of time.

Proposition 58 allows the child who is inheriting the home to avoid property tax reassessment when acquiring property from their parents. The child’s taxes are instead calculated on the parents established Proposition 13 factored base year value, instead of the current market value when the property is acquired.

In some cases in order to qualify for California Proposition 58, when the home is being inherited via a trust or an estate and multiple child beneficiaries are involved, an equal distribution of assets must be made. That is where Commercial Loan Corporation comes in. Commercial Loan Corporation provides third party mortgages to trusts and estates with no personal guarantee required from the acquiring beneficiary or heir. Our trust loan or probate loan provides cash to the beneficiaries who are not inheriting the home and allows the child who is inheriting the home to keep the property and meet one of the key Proposition 58 qualification requirements.  On average we help our clients save over six thousand dollars a year in property taxes in addition to eliminating the need to sell the home. This speeds up the distribution process and saves on costly realtor fees.

If you or a client needs a distribution loan to take advantage of California Proposition 58, please call 877-464-1066. We can provide you with a free cost benefit analysis and let you know how much you may be able to save by taking advantage of your Prop 58 property tax benefits.

Apply Online for a Proposition 58 loan: Click Here

California Proposition 58 information found at californiaproposition58.org

Avoid Property Tax Reassessment On An Inherited Home

Avoid Property Tax Reassessment With California Proposition 58

Avoid Property Tax Reassessment On A Home Your Inherit From Your Parents

How to avoid property tax reassessment on a home you inherit from your mother or father in California

One of the biggest mistakes that most Californians make when inheriting real estate from a parent is not taking advantage of California Prop 58. In fact even some Estate Planners, Attorneys and Fiduciaries do not fully understand the full benefits and how to navigate Proposition 58. California Proposition 58 provides Californians with the ability to avoid property reassessment when inheriting a home from a parent.

Why is Proposition 58 and the ability to avoid property tax reassessment so important?

Avoiding property reassessment means you assume the existing property tax valuation that your parent had. With how rapidly property values have appreciated in California over the last 50 years, avoiding reassessment can mean an enormous tax savings. For instance, lets say that your parents purchased their home in 1980 for $180,000. Because of California Proposition 13, the county can not reassess a home more than 2% per year while held by the same owner. For this example we will estimate the county has the home you are inheriting assessed at $250,000. If the County property tax rate is 1.2%, that means the yearly property taxes on the home are just $3,000.

If you inherit the property from your parents, and you or your legal representation do not submit a request for an exclusion from reassessment and the home is currently valued at $1,250,000, your annual property taxes will jump to $15,000! That is a difference of $13,000 per year in property taxes that you could potentially be avoided. To compound the issue, property assessment values can be reassessed upwards by 2% annually. So the following year if that occurs, your property taxes will increase by another $300 as opposed to just $60 if you had received your exclusion from reassessment. Over 10 years that can really add up.

How can Commercial Loan Corporation help with Proposition 58 and an exclusion from Property Tax Reassessment?

California Proposition 58  has eligibility requirements. A process needs to be done correctly and proper documentation needs to be filed in order to receive and exclusion from property reassessment on a parent to child transfer of real estate. One of the stipulations is that when a parents home is held in a trust, an equal distribution of the trust assets must be made to qualify for Proposition 58. An important side note is that the beneficiary receiving the property can not use their own funds to create an equal distribution. If this is done, the assessors office views it as a property transfer between beneficiaries as opposed to a parent to child transfer, making it ineligible for a Proposition 58 exclusion from reassessment. Instead, the California Board of Equalization requires that a third party loan be used to provide the trust with sufficient cash for an equal distribution to be made. This information can be found on the California Board of Equalizations website at the following link that addresses questions and answers regarding California Proposition 58.

California Board of Equalization Website Information on Prop 58: BOE website document link

“When a trustee or estate administrator has the power to distribute trust assets on a pro rata or non-pro rata basis, the distribution of real property to one child  qualifies for the parent-child exclusion if the value of the property does not exceed that child’s interest in the total trust estate. A trustee who elects to make a non-pro rata distribution may equalize the value of the other beneficiaries’ interests in the trust assets by encumbering the real property with a loan and distributing the loan proceeds to the other beneficiaries. However, a loan cannot be made by any of the beneficiaries of the real property to the trust in order to equalize the trust interests. Such loan would be considered payment for the other beneficiaries’ interests in the real property resulting in a transfer between beneficiaries rather than a transfer from parent to child, which would disqualify the transfer from the parent-child exclusion.”

Commercial Loan Corporation is one of the only lenders in California that provides loans to trusts with out the requirement of a personal guarantee. This unique mortgage product allows an illiquid trust to become liquid and for the inheriting beneficiary to qualify for the benefits of Proposition 58 by meeting the parent to child transfer requirement. Unlike other lenders, we specialize in Proposition 58 loans. Our trust loan enables a beneficiary to encumber the inherited home and infuse the trust with the cash needed so that an equal distribution can be made and they can qualify for the parent-child exclusion and avoid a property tax reassessment with Proposition 58.

Call Us Today For Assistance

If you have any questions on the process of obtaining a loan for a property held in an irrevocable trust, please call us at 877-464-1066. One of our Proposition 58 loan specialists can answer any questions you may have. We can also provide you with a no cost trust loan benefit proposal. The proposal will show you how much you could save by optimizing your trust distribution. On average we save our clients over $6,000 per year in property taxes and $40,000 in additional distributions to beneficiaries. Let us help you avoid property tax reassessment!

Call 877-464-1066 or Click Here to request additional information.

Free Continuing Legal Education for Attorneys & Fiduciaries

Free Online Continuing Legal Education

Free Online Continuing Legal Education

Free Continuing Legal Education Online

Commercial Loan Corporation has partnered with a California Property Tax Consultant to provide continuing legal education to Attorneys and Fiduciaries. Commercial Loan Corporation is a California Lender that specializes in lending to Trusts and Estates. We are the leading provider of Mortgages to Real Estate held in a Trust to help clients retain a parents low property tax rate on an inherited home.

We are a licensed provider of continuing legal education for the state of California. Our course covers the pitfalls in change of ownership as well as third party loans to trusts and estates to facilitate an equal distribution and transfer of property tax base from a parent to child via an exclusion from property value reassessment. Even better, the course can be performed online and scheduled at a convenient time of your choice during the business hours of Mon-Fri 9am-4pm.

Presentation Name: A Jet Tour through the Mine Fields and Pitfalls of Change of Ownership for Trusts, Legal Entities, Estates and Probates
Credits:1 Hour MCLE

Please contact Tanis Alonso at 714-442-8995 or via email at talonso@cloanc.com and get signed up today!