EO Tax Journal Editor Proposes Elimination Of All Charitable Deductions
Much of giving by the wealthy redounds to their benefit. One, their benefit is compounded if they give appreciated property such as stock. Two, their benefit is further compounded if they give property that requires an appraisal, since appraisals are notoriously high. I’m not saying the wealthy should not give, but why should they be subsidized by the tax code, especially when most others are not?
Should You Invest In A Syndicated Conservation Easement ?
The value of an easement is the fair market value of property before the easement less the value of the property as encumbered by the easement. The industry argues that the procedure for determining the before FMV is different in the case of the easement. It is not. Given that the market for undeveloped land, imperfect as it may be, is not populated with idiots, promoters cannot routinely acquire properties and have them in relatively short order be worth a multiple of what they acquired them for.. That’s why I think the industry is based on nonsense.
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Over and over again courts have said that there is nothing sinister in so arranging one’s affairs as to keep taxes as low as possible. Everybody does so, rich or poor; and all do right, for nobody owes any public duty to pay more than the law demands: taxes are enforced exactions, not voluntary contributions. To demand more in the name of morals is mere cant.