my sibling and I in the course of cleaning out our parent's home after death donated a great deal of clothing and household items to Goodwill that were left after the estate sale. We kept an inventory of all the items. Would that be a deduction on the parent's last return upcoming, or ours? Which sibling? Should/could we 'split' the inventory list and each claim half? Parent was elderly and no longer itemized deductions, but seems reasonable to split between us as we both did the work of packing/hauling.
sharing deduction for donation of parents possessions
Nov 18, 2017
1 Replies
My understanding is that whoever would inherit the stuff can claim the deduction; if the will is silent, you can probably split the deduction as you see fit. It must be included in the estate in the unlikely event there is a Federal estate tax, and in the less unlikely event there is a state estate tax.
It could not be claimed on the parent's final return, and could only be claimed on the estate's income tax return if the will specifies it be donated.
Note that the profit or loss on the estate sale must be claimed on the estate's income tax return. If a loss, and the executor elects a fiscal year for the estate so that it closes in one fiscal year, losses pass through to the beneficiaries.
-- Arthur Rubin, AFSP, CRTP Brea, CA
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