Estate Appraisal Services

Estate Appraisals & Date of Death Valuations

An estate appraisal with a date of death valuation is important when a property owner dies because:

1. An accurate property value is needed for estate/income taxes.
2. In order for heirs to receive a fair share of the properties worth, they need to know an accurate value.
3. If the deceased did not have a will, property will likely go through probate - and the courts will require a valuation of the real estate property.

This type of appraisal is not done to determine current market value of the property, but rather, the value for a date in the past. This is also commonly referred to as a Date of Death Appraisal, Historical Appraisal, or Retrospective Appraisal.

We understand that in this time of loss, getting an appraisal is the furthest thought from your mind. You can count on Master Appraisal Services to act quickly and with much compassion to the feelings of everyone left behind.

Probate Appraisal

If a property goes through probate after the death of the owner the probate court has to identify and inventory the items in the estate. It will likely require an appraisal to determine market value of any real estate. This is because the probate court determines what assets or percentage of the total estate goes to what person.

Estate Donation Appraisal

When a property is donated to a qualified charity or other organization the IRS recognizes for charitable donations you can often get a tax deduction for the fair market value of the property you are donating. However the IRS will not just take your word for what the fair market value is. You will need to get an appraisal from a qualified appraiser.

Estate Trust Appraisal

Appraisal are needed for several different trusts. They are often required when the trust is first set up, as of the date of death of the owner of the trust (retrospective), and some trusts will only require a current market value appraisal to ensure the executor of the trust liquidates the property for full value.

Why An Estate Appraisal Is Necessary

Often, people do not fully realize the importance of a detailed, professional estate appraisal. However, to satisfy the IRS and Arizona state agencies, it’s necessary to support the property value determination with appropriate documentation.

Lawyers and accountants also rely on our residential appraisals when calculating real property values for estates, divorces, or other disputes requiring a value being determined for real property.

An Estate Appraisal needs:

• Well-supported, expert appraisal
• Document that meet the requirements of courts and various agencies in Arizona
• Ability to do a retrospective appraisal with an effective date and Market Value opinion matching the exact date of death
• Professional courtesy, confidentiality, and discretion

A comprehensive report showing the appraiser's opinion of value is necessary to support the methods the appraiser used to come to his conclusions. This sort of report will certainly demonstrate your claim that the values within the report are well-founded and accurate.

Schedule Estate Appraisal Services

We welcome you to look through our website, review appraisal services, join our Facebook community, and learn more about our expert appraisers to see if we are a good fit for your needs.

Give us a call to schedule your appraisal.