Tree damage

bamafan4 — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 05:25:04 GMT

I have 150 acres of forest land that sustained extensive tree damage and loss due to Hurricane Idalia. The trees were natural growth and came with the property when I bought it. The property is in a federally declared disaster area. I am not in the timber business. The downed trees are preventing me from maintaining the property and interfering with my use of the property. How can I place a value on the downed/damaged trees? The overall value of the property was not affected significantly as only a small fraction of the trees suffered damage, but those that were lost do have a value. Would the cost of cleanup to restore the property to its before the storm condition be the basis for casualty loss claim?

Re: Tree damage

AmyC — Tue, 26 Mar 2024 22:44:46 GMT

1. Your value of the trees can be any reasonable method.

2. The cost to restore the property value is a reasonable method. So, yes, that would be a good basis for your claim.

See Topic No. 515 Casualty, Disaster, and Theft Losses - Internal Revenue Service for full details. Which includes

If your property is personal-use property or isn't completely destroyed, the amount of your casualty loss is the lesser of:

The adjusted basis of your property, or
The decrease in fair market value of your property as a result of the casualty

topic Tree damage in Deductions & credits

Tree damage

Re: Tree damage