- 4 -
petitioner's circumstances might appear, we concur with
respondent.
Generally, any gain on the sale of a personal residence must
be recognized by the taxpayer. Sec. 1001(c). An exception to
this rule, allowing for nonrecognition of such gain, is provided
by section 1034. Section 1034(a) provides that if the taxpayer
sells his principal residence, and within a 24-month period
before or after the date of the sale, another property is
purchased and used by the taxpayer as a principal residence, gain
from the sale will be recognized only to the extent that the
taxpayer's adjusted sale's price of the old residence exceeds the
taxpayer's cost of purchasing the new residence. Sec. 1034(a).
When applying the time limitations to the provisions of
section 1034(a), the courts have long adopted a very strict
approach. The decisions consistently hold that the time limits
of section 1034 are uniformly applicable and that the courts are
without authority to waive or extend those statutory limitations
to take account of circumstances that may have caused delay in
purchasing a replacement residence. Henry v. Commissioner, T.C.
Memo. 1982-469; see Kern v. Granquist, 291 F.2d 29 (9th Cir.
1961); Elam v. Commissioner, 58 T.C. 238 (1972), affd. per curiam
477 F.2d 1333 (6th Cir. 1973); Chavez v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo.
1983-199. Extensions of the time limitations of section 1034(a)
are available only when a specific statutory provision so
provides. Moore v. Townsend, 577 F.2d 424, 428 n.7 (7th Cir.
Page: Previous 1 2 3 4 5 Next
Last modified: May 25, 2011