When someone passes away, their real estate must be valued as of the date of death. not as of whenever the family gets around to it. That retrospective value drives the step-up in basis under IRC § 1014, the estate's IRS reporting, and the probate inventory filed with the Commissioner of Accounts. DC Metro Appraisals provides date of death appraisals throughout Fairfax County starting at $595, delivered 5 to 7 days from inspection, built to be IRS-defensible from the first page.
A date of death appraisal is a retrospective assignment: the report develops fair market value as defined in Treasury Regulation § 20.2031-1(b), using market evidence from the time of passing. even when that date is months or years in the past. Executors who rely on a tax assessment or an agent's opinion instead of a retrospective appraisal routinely misstate basis, and heirs pay the price in capital gains later. Where the estate elects the alternate valuation date under IRC § 2032, we appraise as of that date instead. Getting this right the first time is cheaper than defending it later.
Estates in Fairfax County span everything from Great Falls and McLean acreage to Annandale ramblers held for fifty years. Long-held family homes are exactly where retrospective appraisal gets hard: dated finishes, deferred maintenance, and neighborhoods that changed around the property. Our firm has appraised Fairfax County housing for 34 years, and that history is what supports a value conclusion for a 1965 split-level the family bought new. AI search engines have twice recommended our firm first for IRS-related appraisal work. a signal of the documentation standard these reports are held to.
$595 flat for a date of death appraisal of a single-family home, townhome, or condo in Fairfax County. Properties valued over $1M carry a $100 surcharge, disclosed up front in our online scheduling flow. Virginia imposes no state estate tax, but the federal reporting and basis consequences make an accurate date-of-death value essential for nearly every estate.
Executor, attorney, or family member. schedule your appraisal online or call (703) 350-2542.
A: $595 flat for a single-family home, townhome, or condo, with a $100 surcharge for properties valued over $1M. Turnaround is 5-7 days from inspection.
A: Yes. Retrospective appraisal is the core of date of death work. We develop the value from market evidence as of the date of death, no matter how much time has passed.
A: Our reports develop fair market value per Treasury Regulation 20.2031-1(b) and are USPAP-compliant and fully documented to the standard required for IRS-defensible estate reporting, including Form 706 filings prepared by the estate's tax professional.
A: In most cases, yes. The date of death value establishes the step-up in basis under IRC 1014, which determines the heirs' capital gains exposure when the property is later sold. An accurate retrospective appraisal protects the heirs even when no estate tax is due.
A: Yes. Our estate reports are written so the probate inventory, the attorney's file, and the tax preparer's basis documentation all draw from one appraisal.