- 8 -
Alexander and the trustee decided to sell Ripplestone as
soon as possible after decedent's personal property in
Ripplestone was distributed. Decedent's estate paid expenses to
maintain and preserve decedent's personal property and
Ripplestone. The Cleveland Museum of Art selected the items it
wanted, and the estate sold the remaining personal property in
February or March 1990.
F. Appraisals and The Estate Tax Return
Shortly after decedent died, the trustee of Trust B
commissioned an appraisal to estimate the fair market value of
Ripplestone as of July 19, 1989. On July 28, 1989, Ripplestone
was appraised at $3.7 million as of July 19, 1989. The appraiser
assumed that Ripplestone could be subdivided and that Ripplestone
was free of materials that would present an environmental risk.
Those assumptions were incorrect.
The estate filed its Federal estate tax return on March 16,
1990, and paid Federal and State taxes. Decedent's estate
reported on its Federal estate tax return that the value of
Ripplestone was $3.2 million. Decedent's estate deducted
$213,541.82 for maintenance and upkeep of Ripplestone and
$150,000 for costs it estimated it would incur to sell
Ripplestone. Ripplestone was listed for sale on March 20, 1990,
for $4,200,000.
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011