Nolo's Plain-English Law Dictionary

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Incidents Of Ownership: Any control over property. If you give away property but keep an incident of ownership -- for example, you give away an apartment building but retain the right to receive rent -- then legally, no gift has been made. This distinction can be important if you're making large gifts to reduce your eventual estate tax.

LA-WS2:DRU.1.4.1.130427.19500