Tax and Estate Trouble Spots: A Checklist for Seniors

November 2026

In short

These common, everyday arrangements, usually made for good reasons, can lead to tax reassessments, penalties, interest or family disputes. They are rarely discovered until a property is sold or someone dies, when they are hardest and most expensive to fix. If any of these describes you, speak with a lawyer, a tax advisor or both (depending on the situation) now, not later.

Read through the list and note each item that applies to you. A printable one-page version of this checklist is available to take to your appointment. Throughout the checklist, I refer to other articles on www.corkumfinancial.ca that explain these topics in more detail.

Your Home and Other Real Estate

☐ Your home is in joint names with someone other than your spouse, such as a child, and nothing is written down about who really owns it or what happens when it is sold or when you die.
☐ You put your home in a child’s name but still live there and make the decisions, with no proper legal documents. You may have created a trust, saved no probate, and, if the home is worth more than $250,000, triggered an annual trust return.
☐ Land or a rental property is in joint names with anyone other than your spouse, with nothing in writing about who really owns it. Unlike your home, it gets no special exemption, and if worth more than $50,000 it may need a trust return.
☐ A cottage or other property is in both spouses’ names, but only one of you inherited or paid for it, and nothing is written down. Tax on a future gain may belong to the spouse who inherited or paid, not to the names on the deed.
☐ Your home has been empty or rented out since you moved into care or elsewhere. Part of the gain may no longer be tax-free, and renting it can count as a sale for tax purposes.

For more detail, see Whose Property Is It, Really? Trusts, Joint Title and the Family Home and Life Interests and the Family Home.

Bank and Investment Accounts

☐ A child is on your bank account only to help pay your bills, but the money is all yours. A Power of Attorney is usually better. The account can be treated as a trust, and its balance may go to that child instead of your estate.
☐ An account in joint names with anyone other than your spouse, where the money is really yours, held more than $250,000 at any time in the year, even for one day (for example, after a house sale). A trust return is then due 90 days after December 31. If the other person is not a relative, the limit is only $50,000.
☐ You hold an “in trust for” account for a grandchild with nothing in writing. If it is an express trust (not bare) and owns mutual funds, a trust return may be required in years with dispositions or capital gain distributions.
☐ You helped a child buy a home or gave a large sum with no note saying whether it was a gift or a loan. This often causes disputes between siblings after a death, or a claim if the child’s marriage breaks down.

For more detail, see Whose Money Is It, Really? Joint Accounts, “In Trust For” Accounts and the New Trust Rules.

Past Tax Returns

☐ You put a property or account into joint names, and nobody determined, and recorded in writing, whether the transfer had to be reported for tax purposes. Adding a name can be a reportable gift or create a trust, depending on intent.
☐ You sold, gave away or transferred a home in 2016 or later, including adding someone to the title, and it was not reported on your tax return. The CRA can reassess at any time, but your deadline to fix a 2016 sale is December 31, 2026 (10 years).
☐ You gave real estate or investments to a family member and did not report it. A gift is taxed as if you had sold at full market value, even if no money changed hands. Check especially the past 10 years.

Your Will and Estate

☐ Your will leaves real estate to two or more children jointly. They must agree on every decision about use, upkeep and the sale. Without a written agreement, disagreements are common.
☐ You named more than one executor, an executor who lives outside Canada, or one who is a U.S. citizen. Co-executors must usually act together, which can cause delays. A non-resident executor can make the estate non-resident for tax purposes, at a serious tax cost, and a U.S. citizen executor may face U.S. reporting obligations.
☐ You own real estate outside Canada and have not had both legal and tax advice about what happens when it is sold or when you die. Foreign reporting and taxes, special probate requirements for foreign property, and Canadian taxes and reporting may all apply.
☐ Your RRIF, TFSA, pension or life insurance beneficiary designations have not been reviewed since a death, marriage or separation, or do not fit with your Will.

For more detail, see Joint Ownership: Understand the Risks and Benefits.

Before your appointment, write down what you intended for each property or account: who really owns it, who decides, and what should happen on sale or death. My Real Estate Ownership Worksheet can help.

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Blair Corkum, CPA, CA, R.F.P., CFP, CFDS, CLU, CHS holds his Chartered Professional Accountant, Chartered Accountant, Registered Financial Planner, Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist as well as several other financial planning related designations. Blair offers hourly based fee-only personal financial planning, holds no investment or insurance licenses, and receives no commissions or referral fees. This publication should not be construed as legal or investment advice. It is neither a definitive analysis of the law nor a substitute for professional advice which you should obtain before acting on information in this article. Information may change as a result of legislation or regulations issued after this article was written.©Blair Corkum