Estate Planning

Practical Estate Planning Tips That Are Often Overlooked

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  So you have gone through all of the work to get your estate planning documents finalized, you have had your signing meeting with your attorney, and now it is time to celebrate that you are done, right? In most cases, the answer is not quite yet. There are few items that are often overlooked that are essential to truly finishing your estate plan. I have listed two of the most important items below: Check Your Beneficiary Designations – Immediately … Continued

Asset Selling to Reduce Estate Tax Exposure

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  If you have an estate that may be subject to estate tax next year, particularly if the November election results in a greatly reduced federal estate tax exemption in 2021, now is the time to remove assets from your taxable estate if you can comfortably afford to do so. One of the most effective ways to do this is to sell assets in exchange for a very low interest promissory note.  We are currently experiencing historically low interest rates … Continued

Now’s The Time To Take Advantage Of Transferring Or Selling Assets

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  The clock’s ticking for wealthy clients looking to find tax advantages when transferring assets to the next generation or selling their business—especially considering the looming, potentially watershed election. “With a possible administration change and proposed changes to the capital gains rate, it might be wise to complete the transfer prior to year’s end,” said Julia Carlson, CEO and founder of Oregon-based Financial Freedom Wealth Management Group. Democratic candidate Joe Biden’s tax plans include bumps in the top tax rate … Continued

Plan Now for Reduction in Estate, Gift and GST Tax Exemptions

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  The federal government taxes the transfer of assets via three separate but interrelated taxes: the estate tax, which taxes the transfer of assets at death, the gift tax, which taxes gratuitous transfers during your lifetime, and the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax, which is an additional tax assessed when assets are transferred to grandchildren or more remote generations. All three taxes are linked via the federal estate, gift and GST tax exemptions. Plan Now for Reduction in Estate, Gift and … Continued

Making Better Use of Transfer Tax Exemptions

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Estate planning entails such rudimentary concepts as having documents in place, having family discussions about testamentary dispositions and bringing in the skill sets of advisors. There are still clients who may well have issues of actually incurring gift or estate tax. Transfers to grandchildren may also be an issue, but generation-skipping, the GST tax, is not our focus here. If transfer taxes are an issue, there is also the annual gifting concept – taking advantage of the $15,000 annual gift … Continued