@Opus 17 wrote:
With a life estate, even though you are considered a co-owner, you can’t sell or dispose of the property without the permission of the life estate holder as long as they are alive.
With a life estate, the remainder interest is freely alienable (for whomever wants to buy it or receive it as a gift); a remainderman does not need the permission of the life tenant.
@Opus 17 wrote:
That means that in the eyes of the IRS, you inherited the property when the previous owner died, even though you were technically a co-owner before that time.
A remainderman does not "inherit" the property when the life tenant dies; the interest passes to the remainderman by operation of law and is considered "acquired from a decedent" by the IRS.
