Stolk v. Commissioner

40 T.C. 345, 1963 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 120
CourtUnited States Tax Court
DecidedMay 17, 1963
DocketDocket No. 86839
StatusPublished
Cited by119 cases

This text of 40 T.C. 345 (Stolk v. Commissioner) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Tax Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stolk v. Commissioner, 40 T.C. 345, 1963 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 120 (tax 1963).

Opinions

Harron, Judge:

The Commissioner determined an income tax deficiency of $9,183.26 for 1955. The issues are (1) whether under section 1034(a), 1954 Code, gain from the sale of property is not to be recognized rather than recognized as long-term capital gain; (2) whether various expenses paid by petitioner, for which he did not claim reimbursement by the corporation of which he is an officer, are his ordinary and necessary business expenses under section 162(a).

FINDINGS OF FACT

Some facts have been stipulated; they are so found and incorporated herein by reference.

The petitioner, William C. Stolk, filed a joint return with his wife with the district director of internal revenue for the district of Upper Manhattan, N.Y.

Petitioner is the chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors of American Can Co. His office was and is in New York City. .

. Petitioner was the general manager of sales in 1941; vice president in 1942; executive vice president in 1949; president in April 1951; chief executive officer in 1952. He will be eligible to retire and plans retiring in August 1965.

Petitioner’s family consisted of his wife and three daughters in 1953. By the early part of 1953, all of his daughters had married and had their own homes.

On July 19, 1955, petitioner and his then wife, Fern G. Stolk, entered into a separation agreement. Petitioner established a statutory residence in Reno, Nev., in order to obtain a divorce which was duly granted under a decree dated September 15, 1955. Thereafter, in 1955, petitioner and his present wife, Eve Stolk, were married.

Issue 1. Beal Estate Transactions

Petitioner owned residential property, a house and surrounding 5 acres of land, in Chappaqua, Westchester County, N.Y., near Mt. Iiisco, a distant suburb of New York City. Pie bought the property in 1941 when the house was new. The cost of the entire property was $32,012. Petitioner added a screened porch which cost $250. The total cost basis of the property was $32,262.1 From the time of purchase until the fall of 1950, this home was petitioner’s only residence. Pie did not own any other residence until he purchased a substitute residence and a farm on September 1,1955.

In the fall of 1950, petitioner leased a small apartment at 40 Park Avenue, New York City, so as to live closer to his office. His duties and Avork as a corporate executive had increased and he found it inconvenient to commute during the week to his suburban home. At that time, only one daughter was still living at home. During the week, petitioner and his family occupied the apartment. They spent weekends and holidays at Chappaqua. The apartment comprised two bedrooms, living-dining room, and kitchen; it was unfurnished; the rent was $300 a month. Petitioner carpeted and furnished the apartment. He did not take such furnishings out of the Chappaqua house. Petitioner occupied this apartment until the early part of 1953.

In early 1953, a larger penthouse apartment at 40 Park Avenu« was available, consisting of living room, dining room, two bedrooms, and kitchen. The monthly rent was $600. Petitioner and his wife moved into this apartment in March or April 1953, and lived there until October 1955. At this time, petitioner decided to look for other residential property with, a farm where he could carry on farming operations, to which he could retire in 1965.

In April or May 1953, while furniture was still in the house, petitioner listed the Chappaqua house for sale, but not for rent, with local real estate brokers. Within 2 days thereafter, he received a very attractive offer of purchase which he did not accept.

In May or June 1953, petitioner moved out of the Chappaqua house all of the furnishings with the then definite intention of not living there again or making any further use of the property. He intended to sell the property and use the proceeds in the purchase of other property in the country. He moved all of the furniture to a warehouse in Mount Vernon, N.Y., except personal effects and furniture for one bedroom which were moved to the city apartment. Petitioner kept the house heated to preserve the walls and keep it in generally good condition, and paid taxes. After moving out, neither petitioner nor any member of his family made any use of any part of the property. It remained vacant until it was sold on July 29, 1955. The property was not offered for rent or rented at any time; it was not converted to any trade or business use, or held for the production of income.

The furniture in the Chappaqua house was insured for $60,000. Exclusive thereof, petitioner paid about $2,500 for the furnishings used in his rented apartment in the city.

On July 29,1955, petitioner sold the Chappaqua house and iy2 acres for the net amount, after expenses, of $51,940. On September 30, 1955, he sold the remaining Sy2 acres for the net amount of $6,864. He received the total net amount of $58,804. Eespondent agrees that the entire property constituted one unit of residential property and does not make any issue of the fact that the property was disposed of in two transactions.

In October 1955, petitioner moved from 40 Park Avenue to 521 Park Avenue, New York City. In his return for 1955, he gave 521 Park Avenue as his home address. This apartment consisted of living room, one bedroom and dressing room, and kitchenette.

In October 1961, petitioner moved to Manhattan House, 200 East 66th Street, New York City, where he and his wife have resided continuously since then. This apartment consists of a combination living room and dining room, one bedroom, and kitchen.

During 2 years, in his spare time, from the spring of 1953 until the summer of 1955, petitioner looked at farm properties in New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, and other nearby States. He looked at 64 properties and bought the 64th.

On September 1, 1955, petitioner purchased 446.25 acres of land with various improvements, called Hampstead Farm, located in Es-mont, Va., 20 miles from Charlottesville. It is 427 miles from New York City, one way; 854 miles round trip. He renamed the property Eden Farm. Of the entire property, 5 acres represent the residence area with a house having1 about eight rooms and two bathrooms, a two-room-and-bath guest cottage, a servant’s cottage, garage, and old icehouse. One-half of a pumphouse and horse bam are allocated to the residence. The remaining 441.25 acres include 300 acres of open farmland and 141.25 acres of woodland. The farm area improvements include a tenant dwelling, silo, cow and hay barn, horse barn, pumphouse, tool repair building, machine shed, utility structures, water lines, boundary and cross fences, and interior roads. Prior to petitioner’s purchase, the farm was a working farm where beef cattle, hay, and grain were raised.

In October 1955, petitioner moved his principal furniture from the warehouse in New York and some furniture from his city apartment to the Eden Farm residence, which was in habitable condition. However, he did some remodeling and improving of the main residence and guest cottage within 1 year after selling the Chappaqua property.

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Bluebook (online)
40 T.C. 345, 1963 U.S. Tax Ct. LEXIS 120, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stolk-v-commissioner-tax-1963.