When real property becomes part of an estate or trust decision, the valuation date and intended use matter as much as the final opinion of value. The report may need to support an inventory, a distribution among beneficiaries, a tax filing, a sale decision, or a retrospective value as of a prior date.
Eagle Home Appraisal provides Non-Lending residential appraisal services for homeowners, attorneys, accountants, executors, and trustees in Las Vegas and surrounding Clark County communities. Each assignment begins with the property, the person who will use the report, the required valuation date, and the decision the appraisal is intended to support.
We do not use the standard 1004 lending form for this work. Estate and trust reports are formatted for legal and tax purposes, with the intended use, effective date, property interest, market evidence, and value conclusion stated for the people who must rely on them.
When someone searches for a trust appraiser, the first practical question is not a keyword. It is whether the appraiser can define and complete the required residential valuation assignment for the trust's actual purpose.
Estate and trust appraisal, defined: An independent opinion of a property's value developed for a stated effective date and intended use. The effective date may be current or retrospective, including the date of a property owner's passing.
For questions about whether an appraisal is required, which tax form applies, or what a court filing must contain, consult the estate's attorney or tax professional. The appraiser develops the real property valuation. Legal and tax advisers determine how that valuation should be used.
When an estate or trust may need a real property appraisal
An appraisal may be requested when:
- A personal representative is preparing an estate inventory or record of value.
- A trustee needs an independent value before a distribution or proposed sale.
- Heirs or beneficiaries need a common valuation reference.
- An attorney or tax professional requests a retrospective date-of-passing value.
- A federal estate or gift tax return requires support for the reported real property value.
- The property will be sold, retained, transferred, or divided and the parties need a documented value.
- A prior valuation date must be reconstructed using market evidence available for that period.
- A disagreement may require appraisal review, consultation, deposition, or testimony.
The assignment should not start with an assumed form or valuation date. Start with the decision that must be made and the instructions from the attorney, CPA, trustee, executor, or other intended user.
Four valuation questions to resolve before the appraisal begins
1. What is the effective date?
A current appraisal answers what the property is worth as of a present date. A retrospective appraisal answers what it was worth as of a prior date. Estate work often calls for the date of passing, but another date may apply when an authorized alternate valuation method or a different legal issue is involved.
Read: Date-of-passing appraisals in Las Vegas.
2. Who will rely on the report?
The intended users may include the client, a personal representative, trustee, attorney, CPA, beneficiary, or government agency. The report should be prepared for the people and purpose identified in the assignment. A report developed for one use should not automatically be repurposed for another without review.
3. What interest in the property is being valued?
Ownership can involve an entire property, a partial interest, a trust, community property, separate property, or another legal arrangement. The appraiser needs the vesting information and relevant documents. The attorney determines the legal rights associated with those interests.
4. What property condition and market evidence apply?
For a retrospective value, the appraiser considers the property and market as they existed on the effective date. Later repairs, remodeling, damage, or market changes may not belong in that historical analysis. Records, photographs, permits, prior listings, and interviews can help establish what was present at the relevant time.
Date-of-passing appraisals and basis records
A date-of-passing appraisal is a retrospective valuation. It develops an opinion of fair market value as of the property owner's passing rather than the inspection date or today's date.
This value may become part of an estate's records and may be relevant to basis reporting. Federal basis rules depend on the property, ownership, elections, and other facts. A tax adviser should decide how the value applies to a particular return or later sale.
Read: Step-up basis and why the appraisal date matters.
Appraisals connected to IRS Forms 706 and 709
IRS Form 706 concerns federal estate and generation-skipping transfer tax reporting. IRS Form 709 concerns federal gift and generation-skipping transfer tax reporting. The forms have different purposes, valuation dates, schedules, and attachment instructions.
An appraisal does not determine whether a return must be filed or what tax may be due. It supports the real property value requested by the client and the client's tax professional. Before ordering, confirm the applicable form, valuation date, property interest, and report recipient.
Read: Real property appraisals for IRS Forms 706 and 709.
When "qualified appraisal" is a defined IRS term
IRS Publication 561 (12/2025), Determining the Value of Donated Property, defines "qualified appraisal" and "qualified appraiser" for federal charitable contribution substantiation. Those terms carry specific requirements under the publication, Treasury Regulations section 1.170A-17, and Form 8283. They are not general labels for every estate, trust, probate, or gift-tax appraisal.
Eagle Home Appraisal provides Qualified Appraisals for IRS purposes. George "Chip" Holmes and Kristen N. Aste are qualified appraisers who deliver them. For a charitable contribution assignment, the donor and tax adviser should identify the filing year, contribution details, Form 8283 requirements, and intended use before the engagement begins. Eagle prepares the Qualified Appraisal to address the applicable appraisal requirements.
See IRS Publication 561 and the IRS overview of Publication 561.
Probate appraisals in Clark County
Nevada probate law addresses estate inventories and appraisements. Under NRS Chapter 144, a personal representative may engage a qualified and disinterested appraiser to determine the fair market value of an asset as of the property owner's passing when its value is subject to reasonable doubt. The statute also addresses when a verified record of value may be used instead.
The Nevada probate phrase "qualified and disinterested appraiser" and the federal charitable-contribution term "qualified appraiser" come from different authorities. The attorney or tax professional should identify which standard applies to the assignment.
The attorney and personal representative decide what the estate must file. The appraiser should receive the effective date, property information, ownership documents, and any case-specific instructions early enough to complete a credible analysis.
Read: Clark County probate appraisal timeline and expectations and Probate appraisal services.
Our estate and trust appraisal process
Our working process has four phases: consultation, research, market analysis, and delivery. The assignment steps below show how those phases apply to estate and trust work.
Step 1: Define the assignment
We confirm the property, client, intended users, intended use, effective date, ownership interest, report format, and known deadline. If an attorney or CPA is involved, written instructions can prevent a valuation-date error.
Step 2: Collect relevant records
Useful records may include:
- The property owner's date of passing.
- The trust, deed, vesting, or probate information relevant to the assignment.
- Prior listings, photographs, repair records, permits, or insurance documents.
- Information about additions, remodeling, deferred maintenance, or damage.
- Access instructions and a knowledgeable property contact.
- Written direction from counsel or the tax professional.
Step 3: Inspect the property when the scope calls for it
Inspection scope fits the assignment. Most estate work is seen. The scope may call for a full interior inspection, an exterior-only inspection, or in some cases a records-and-photos analysis when reliable current photos exist, such as a recent listing. Current observations must still be separated from the property's condition on the historical effective date.
Step 4: Research the appropriate market period
Comparable sales and other market evidence are selected for relevance to the property and effective date. The analysis considers differences that market participants would recognize.
Step 5: Deliver the report and answer appraisal questions
The completed report states the value opinion, effective date, intended use, assumptions, limiting conditions, and supporting analysis. We can address questions about the appraisal methodology or report. Questions about filing decisions, tax treatment, or legal consequences belong with the appropriate adviser.
What affects cost and timing?
The fee and delivery schedule depend on the property, effective date, available records, access, report complexity, number of interests or dates, and whether consultation or testimony is expected. A retrospective assignment can require additional research, especially when the property changed after the valuation date.
The published Estate & Trust Appraisal price is $500. Probate work is typically $500 to $800, with complex probate assignments starting at $1,500. The actual engagement terms depend on the assignment scope.
Call (702) 920-4500 with the property address, effective date, intended use, and deadline. Eagle Home Appraisal can then define the scope and provide assignment-specific terms.
Why the named reviewer matters
Professional appraisal content on this page is reviewed by George "Chip" Holmes, State Licensed Residential Appraiser, Nevada license #A.0006387-RES. He has been licensed since December 2005 and appears in the ASC registry under 718720. He has also been recognized by courts as an expert witness. A case list is available on the About Us page.
Kristen N. Aste is a Nevada Certified Residential Appraiser, license #A.0007406-CR.
Eagle Home Appraisal focuses on Non-Lending assignments and prepares competent, credible, and reliable appraisal work in compliance with USPAP. The office is located at 304 S Jones Blvd STE 4200, Las Vegas, NV 89107.
Frequently asked questions
Is a date-of-passing appraisal the same as a current appraisal?
No. A date-of-passing appraisal develops a retrospective value as of the property owner's passing. A current appraisal addresses a present effective date. Market conditions and property condition may differ between those dates.
Can an online estimate be used for probate or tax reporting?
An automated estimate does not define the intended use, effective date, property interest, assumptions, or supporting analysis in the way an appraisal report does. Ask the attorney or tax professional what level of valuation support the matter requires.
Do you decide whether Form 706 or Form 709 must be filed?
No. That is a legal or tax determination. We can prepare the real property appraisal after the client and adviser identify the applicable form, valuation date, and reporting need.
What if the property was remodeled after the owner passed?
Tell the appraiser what changed and provide records if available. A retrospective analysis separates later changes from the property characteristics relevant to the historical effective date.
Can beneficiaries order the appraisal together?
The parties can discuss a shared assignment, but the client, intended users, access, communication rules, and report distribution should be agreed upon before work begins. When a dispute exists, counsel should help define those terms.
Can the appraiser testify if the value is challenged?
Expert services are a separate scope. If testimony may be needed, disclose that possibility at the beginning so the intended use, report development, records, and engagement terms can be considered.
Learn more about expert witness testimony.
Request an estate or trust appraisal
Call Eagle Home Appraisal at (702) 920-4500 or send the property details. Please include the property address, effective date, intended use, requested report recipient, access contact, and known deadline.