International Assets Advisory
International Assets Advisory Shuts Down Conservation Easement Deals After IRS Scrutiny
Last year International Assets Advisory raised more than $3 million for one syndicated conservation easement tax shelter and was ready to raise more.
After the IRS issued a notice about the deals, the firm essentially curtailed plans to raise more money for one deal and canceled plans for others, said the firm’s president Ed Cofrancesco.
“We were in the middle of the deal when the IRS notice came out in December,” said Mr. Cofrancesco. “That made it a much smaller deal. We probably won’t do anymore.”
The syndicated easement sold by International Assets Advisory and Land Investors were promoting a potential deduction of four-and-a-half times the investor’s initial investment, Mr. Cofrancesco said. The clients who bought the deal were properly informed of the IRS guidelines and went ahead with the investment, he added.
The IRS notice that said the federal government was concerned about valuations placed on such deals.
Promoters of the deals are currently using promotional materials suggesting to prospective investors which an investor is entitled to a share of a charitable contribution deduction that equals or exceeds an amount that is 2 1/2 times the amount of the investor’s investment.
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