Need Assistance with Trust Administration, Taxes
Our Mother recently died. Her property consisted of a small multi-family building in Berkeley which was rented out to support her care costs.
We hope to keep the property in the family. My sister and I are executors, DPA's and heirs. The property is in a Trust.
We hope to hold on to the property and continue to manage it ourselves. We also want to avoid additional tax liability and protect ourselves legally from any potential lawsuits associated with the property. The person who originally set up the Trust is no longer available.
We will need assistance with Trust administration, knowing what our rights and responsibilities are and tax prep.
Thanks in advance
Apr 27, 2025
Parent Replies
The conservative thing to do is create an LLC to hold the multi-family property. Then eventually wind down the trust after distributing all of its assets, starting with moving the building into the LLC. I would say you need a CPA and the Nolo Press book on forming LLCs.
My condolences on your loss. It's unfortunate that the person who set up the trust in the first place is not available, but you may be able to identify that person's professional partners, or another person or firm to whom their clients were referred when they ceased to practice. Or if either you or your sister have had a lawyer set up your own trust, consult that person. If you and your sister get along and there's no one else likely to make a claim on your mother's estate, your situation is not unusual or complicated, and either an attorney or a CPA who specializes in trusts and estates can help you. One who is also (or has a partner who is) a real estate specialist is preferable. Forming an LLC to own the rental property is likely to be a good strategy, but first, just make sure that the trust has sufficient liability insurance covering the property, and get the policy into the name of the successor trustee(s). In general, the first deadlines for various notices and filings you need to do are 90 days after the date of death, so you should have that long to find a professional to guide you.
Peggy Chang of Beckman, Feller and Chang in El Cerrito is one of the best- we highly recommend her. She helped us with a similar situation. https://www.bfc-legal.com/attorney/peggy-chang/