Estate Planning

Beware, the IRS is eyeing your inherited money – MarketWatch

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  One of the perils of being well-off is the constant risk that the federal government and/or your friendly state and local tax collectors will figure out new and different ways to snatch more of your wealth. Especially wealth that you earned the old-fashioned way: by inheriting it. To raise your paranoia to the appropriate level, here are two new things to worry about.   Beware, the IRS is eyeing your inherited money – MarketWatch

Simple Move Can Boost Your Estate-Tax Exemption – Barron’s

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  Listen up, financial advisors: There’s a simple way to help wealthy clients shield more of their estates from taxes, yet it’s often overlooked. Newsletter Sign-up That’s according to InvestmentNews, which looks at what’s known as “portability” for married couples. This strategy allows a surviving spouse to inherit their deceased spouse’s estate-tax exemption, which – thanks to the 2017 tax law – currently stands at $11.4 million for individuals. That means the surviving spouse can pass down $22.8 million to … Continued

Eight Things You Need To Know About The Death Tax Before You Die

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  The federal estate tax (sometimes called the death tax) is a one-time tax that is imposed at death. If you die with a certain dollar amount of assets – currently, estates under $11.4 million are exempt, but this reverts back to $5 million in 2026 – a federal estate tax return is required and a tax will be due. If a return is required, it is due nine months after the date of death. Sometimes people confuse the estate … Continued

Less estate tax planning may be better for older rich clients: Tax Strategy Scan | Financial Planning

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  Less estate tax planning may be better for longer-living richThanks to longer retirement horizons, rich households may benefit from doing less tax-related estate planning, experts told Bloomberg. “People used to do a lot of wealth transfer planning when they were in their 60s, and I’m seeing people waiting longer to focus on transfers of wealth to the next generation or generations,” according to Jessica Galligan Goldsmith, co-managing partner of Kurzman Eisenberg Corbin & Lever. They’re not as willing to … Continued

Here’s why the rich hate the estate tax

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  Death and taxes may be unavoidable. Taken together, they become a firestorm. The federal estate tax has been a hot-button issue since it was first imposed under the Revenue Act of 1916, when 10 percent was levied on portions of an estate exceeding $5 million. The reason this one component of fiscal policy remains so hotly debated and highly politicized is because Americans are largely divided over its impact. Some believe it is a tool to prevent the concentration … Continued