Estate and date-of-death appraisals
Estate Appraisals for Inherited Riverside Homes
You've inherited a house in Riverside, or you're handling one for a family. We appraise what it was worth on the date that matters, usually the date of death, and write the report for the attorney, trustee or tax adviser who will rely on it.
For executors, trustees, estate attorneys and heirs.
When you need one
Two things look back to the same day when a Riverside homeowner dies. For property tax, the Riverside County Assessor treats the date of death as the date of transfer and, unless an exclusion applies, reassesses the home to its fair market value as of that day (change of ownership page). For federal income tax, an heir's starting basis is generally what the home was worth when the owner died (IRS Publication 551).
An estate appraisal answers one question: what was the house worth on a day that has already passed, in the condition it was in then. That figure can support an heir's basis records, a buyout between siblings, or a trust distribution. Each purpose can call for different reporting, so tell us the purpose and everyone who will read the report when you first call.
If the estate is in probate, the court inventory follows a different rule: a probate referee appraises the house unless the court waives the referee. Our probate appraisals page explains where an independent report can still help. For basis questions, see IRS step-up appraisals.
Which date we value
The date of death is the default. If the estate files a federal estate tax return, the executor may instead value the estate six months after death, but only when that lowers both the gross estate and the tax, and the choice can't be undone (26 U.S.C. section 2032). Your attorney or tax adviser tells us which date applies, and the report states it as the effective date.
Proposition 19 filings at the County Assessor also run on deadlines. If you're working toward one, tell us the date up front so we can plan around it, and confirm the filing itself with your attorney or the Assessor.
What to gather
- The date of death
- The recorded deed, or the trust documents if the home was held in trust
- The latest property tax bill
- Photos, listings, inspection reports or earlier appraisals from around the date of death
- Dates and descriptions of any work done since the death
- The name of the attorney, accountant or trustee who will read the report, and their instructions
- Access arrangements and any deadline, such as a sale or a Proposition 19 filing
The condition on the date of death is what we value, and it can differ sharply from what an heir sees today after a clean-out or repairs. About 76 percent of Riverside's housing was built before 1990, according to the City's 2022 Housing Element background report, so roofs, plumbing, kitchens and baths often matter.
Older neighborhoods make records especially useful. The City describes the Wood Streets as mostly low-density residential, with homes largely built before World War II. For a house there, anything that shows when an addition went in, when the roof was replaced, or what was renovated, and when, helps us separate the house as it stood on the date of death from the house as it looks now. Permits, contractor invoices and dated photos all work.
The comparison sales have to come from around the valuation date and resemble the home. The City's neighborhood profiles describe pre-war houses in the Wood Streets, tract homes in Mission Grove and large lots in Arlington Heights; a home in each of those settings calls for its own set of comparisons.
How an estate assignment goes
- Use and date. We confirm the valuation date, the purpose of the report, who will read it and your deadline, and you get our written scope and fee.
- Visit and paperwork. We visit the home and review what you have about its condition on the valuation date.
- Market research. The appraiser studies sales and conditions from the period around that date and explains how they apply to your home.
- Report. The report is prepared to USPAP and states the effective date, the use, the users and any assumptions about the earlier condition.
Delivery depends on availability, access, complexity and research, so we confirm a delivery estimate with you at the start rather than quoting one here.
What it costs
As a price guide, the VA's published appraisal fee for a single-family home in Riverside County is $750 (VA fee schedule, effective May 1, 2026). A private estate appraisal can cost more or less than that, depending on the property and the assignment. Historical research, access and your deadline can change both the fee and the schedule.
Call 951-877-4884 or send the details, and you'll get a written, property-specific scope and fee before any work begins.
The September 2026 sold-listing figures on our service area page describe one recent month across the whole city. They say nothing about the market on an earlier date of death, so a past-date appraisal works from the sales and conditions of the period being valued.
Next step
Call us, or send the address, the date of death, who the report is for and your deadline. Confirm dates, tax treatment and any Assessor filing with your attorney, tax adviser or the Riverside County Assessor.