Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: Giving your property to a large institution in exchange for money

It sounds as if you are selling them the property, and maintaining a life estate. The words "give" and "exchange for a large sum of money" don't really go together.

Re: Giving your property to a large institution in exchange for money

It sounds like you may be referring to a charitable remainder trust, assuming the institution is a charity. Although there are several varieties, a common form of CRT has the donor give a piece of property to the organization, which then sells and invests the proceeds. The income is paid to the donor for life, with the principal going to the charity at the donor's death. The advantages to this are: (1) No capital gains tax to the donor if the property has appreciated; (2) An income tax deduction for the present value of the property, calculated based on life expectancy; (3) The property is out of the donor's estate for estate tax purposes; (4) The donor gets a nice income for life; (5) The charity gets a nice gift.

Re: Giving your property to a large institution in exchange for money

In my view, what you describe is not a charitable remainder trust, partly because you have not mentioned either 'charity' nor 'trust,' but also because charitable remainder trusts don't work the way your proposed transaction seems to.

Whatyou're describing seems to be a present sale of a future interest in the property. If it's real property, you are selling a remainder interest while retaining a life estate.

I tend to think the right term is 'sale,' with the added modifier, 'with life estate retained.'