Legal Question in Wills and Trusts in New York
Estate Values
I am executor for my daughter�s estate. How can I properly assign the values to her personal property (clothing, shoes, furniture, jewelry, books, old TV set, etc)? All these items are used for a number of years and actually have no resale value. Since I reside in a different state it will cost more to do something like yard sale than actual money such sale could bring in. What could be considered as a good proof for the Probate Court that the values I assigned are fair? Would �It�s deductible� software from TurboTax, used to determine the values for charitable contributions, be a good source to get these values?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Estate Values
That is one source, or you could see if there is a local charitable resale/thrift shop in your area, and use their values. In most instances, assigning a "reasonable" value using a generic description like "personal property" with some description, will suffice. This is a response to an Internet question and the reply is not to be considered as legal advice or as creating an attorney-client relationship.
Re: Estate Values
If the value is truly small, you are permitted to give this a small value, and explain the reason for this value. There are also appraisal services that can be located in your local area.
You can also take pictures to support the claim that a certain group of items are worth little or no value.
As stated earlier, you can call a charitable group, and suggest that you would give them the items in exchange for a valuation of the iterms.
If you have any other questions, you can contact me.
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