Blog

CONSIDER ALL THE ANGLES OF JOINT OWNERSHIP

Estate planners generally tout the virtues of owning property jointly — and with good reason. Joint ownership offers several advantages for surviving family members. But this shouldn’t be viewed as a panacea for every estate planning woe. You must also be aware of all the...

TO FILE OR NOT TO FILE?

A gift tax return doesn’t always have to be filed.........

Now that fewer people are subject to federal gift taxes, because of a generous $11.58 million lifetime gift tax exemption for 2020, a question many are asking is: do I need to file a gift tax...

HOW DOES THE SECURE ACT AFFECT ESTATE PLANNING

The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act is the biggest retirement planning law in decades. However, when all is said and done, the new law may have just as significant an impact on estate planning, especially if younger individuals are in...

HSAs

Understanding the health savings and estate planning benefits

In addition to being a viable option to reduce health care costs, a Health Savings Account (HSA) can positively affect your estate plan because its funds grow on a tax-deferred basis. An HSA is similar to a traditional IRA or 401(k) plan in...

7 Deadly Estate Planning Sins

According to literature, the "seven deadly sins” are lust, gluttony, greed, laziness, wrath, envy and pride. Although individuals may be guilty of these from time to time, other types of “sins” can be fatal to an estate plan if you’re not careful. Here are seven transgressions to...

Beware of the Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax

Thanks to recent tax law changes, most families can avoid liability for federal estate and gift taxes. However, there’s a lesser-known tax whammy that can hit wealthy individuals without warning: the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax. As its name implies, the GST tax generally applies to transfers...

Letter of Instructions

Make your thoughts crystal clear to your family

Generally, every estate plan requires a will, but this main attraction may be complemented by other documents, like a letter of instructions. The letter, unlike a valid will, isn’t legally binding, but can be...

IDGT: THIS TRUST IS SUPPOSED TO "FAIL"

Trusts come in all shapes and sizes. However, from an income tax perspective, there are basically two types of trusts that are funded with assets: grantor trusts and nongrantor trusts. As the name implies, the earnings of a grantor trust are taxed directly to the...

Thinking about a Roth IRA Conversion?

Now may be the Ideal Time

Roth IRAs offer significant financial and estate planning benefits. If you have a substantial balance in a traditional IRA and are considering converting it to a Roth IRA, there may be no better time than now. The Tax Cuts and...

DIGITAL ASSETS AND YOUR ESTATE PLAN

This asset type requires special planning.....

The digital revolution has touched virtually every aspect of our lives. The result is that you likely have at least a handful of “digital assets.”

These assets may include personal assets such as online bank and brokerage accounts, and business assets, such as...