Questions about transferring properties into LLC

[Kirby Vandivort]

I have a few questions I'm hoping someone (more experienced than I) can give me some guidance on.

My situation:

- I have several properties in my own name. Let's say the ones we want to look at for this post are without morts. So no Due on Sale Clause worries. I've had them for a few years and have, of course, been making the normal yearly depreciation items on my tax returns.

- I am a member of a multi-member LLC.

I'm wanting to move the properties into an LLC. Preferably with as little of a paper trail as possible. So, the general idea would be land trust with the LLC as the benefactor.

Now, my questions:

I want to do this with as much protection as possible. So, I'm assuming Warranty Deed and not a Quit Claim deed.

Do I do a Warranty Deed into a Land Trust, and then change the benefactor to the LLC later? Are these things that an attorney should really do, or is it a simple process?

Tax implications: I've read that what I'm wanting to do isn't a taxable event. I read somewhere an example of a guy who had a house purchases for 100k with a 80k mort, appreciated to 135k with 75k left on the mort and transferred it into a LLC at that point. The basis for the home in the LLC was suggested to be 100k, with a mort of 75k and an equity contribution of 35k.

So, for my properties without a mort, I would say that the LLC got a property with a basis of 100k and an equity contribution from me to the LLC of 35k? How do I report this on my personal tax returns? For the last X years I've been doing the depreciation items on my own tax returns. Do all of these yearly depreciation items 'transfer' to the LLC and the LLC starts tracking all of these various things with different deprecation schedules, or do I consider the personal tax return doing a 'sale' of the property into the LLC? [that makes it seem like this would be a taxable event, though]

Basically, I'm trying to figure out how to make all of this work, and I'll admit that the more I read the less I seem to understand. Your help is appreciated.