Thank you for replying, but let me ask further. Pub 551 states: Real estate taxes. If you pay real estate taxes the seller owed on real property you bought, and the seller did not reimburse you, treat those taxes as part of your basis. My particular case is that the house has been in a trust since the owner's death, with named beneficiaries, but with annual real estate taxes paid by the trustee from personal (not trust) money. In this situation, can those paid taxes apply to the basis? Or does this become just a matter for beneficiaries to work out on a personal basis (no IRS involvement) with the trustee (also once of the beneficiaries) to make things fair to him? It seems the "trust" is the seller and owed real estate taxes annually that were paid and not reimbursed by an eventual beneficiary. Complicated?
