- 16 - December 1989. Petitioners claim that by October 6, 1989, they had decided to purchase Pleasant Hill and Skyland. However, they rely solely on their own testimony in that regard. Apart from their testimony there is no evidence that they saw the Skyland property before October 12, 1989 or the Pleasant Hill property before January of 1990. Even if they had seen either property on the dates alleged, that would likely not be sufficient to meet the identification requirement. Although petitioners are not specifically educated in tax matters, they are sophisticated real estate investors. Petitioners repeatedly discussed the identification requirement with their advisers and were advised as to the adequate measures of identification. We find that petitioners understood the importance of timely identification. Indeed, they asked Ms. Love to identify Skyland to Mr. Clack when they made a verbal offer. Nevertheless, they never disclosed their alleged interest in the Pleasant Hill or Skyland properties during the identification period to anyone, not to Mr. Clack, their real estate agents, or the prior owners. Petitioners failed to mention either property to Mr. Van Voorhis in September 1989 when Mr. Van Voorhis prepared an identification letter to Mr. Clack. Moreover, petitioner husband did not indicate any prior interest in Pleasant Hill and acted as if he were unfamiliar with the property when Mr. Van Voorhis first approached him about it. AsPage: Previous 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 Next
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