Title and acquisition records, the sale agreement and statement of adjustments, the trust ledger and deposit records, tax filings on the gain, and evidence of each co-owner's entitlement.
Back to acquisition, forward to the enterprise
Hypothetical example: Source-of-funds evidence has two directions. Looking back, it shows how the asset itself was lawfully acquired, which for long-held farmland may require the original purchase documents and any transfers or inheritances since. Looking forward, it traces the sale proceeds through the lawyer's trust account, into the vendors' accounts, through any distribution among co-owners, and finally into the investment.
Tax filings corroborate both directions. Where the land was held by a partnership, a corporation or an estate, the entity's own records and the basis of the distribution have to be documented as well. A Cavan Monaghan family should collect this material while the transaction is closing, since trust ledgers, adjustment statements and bank confirmations are easy to obtain then and progressively harder later as files are archived and advisers change.