Almost every week I receive an email from a tax or financial advisor about how my clients should take advantage of the current gift tax exemption. The exemption of $5.12 million allows an individual to give away just over five million dollars before paying any federal gift tax (side note: MN does not have a […]
Almost every week I receive an email from a tax or financial advisor about how my clients should take advantage of the current gift tax exemption. The exemption of $5.12 million allows an individual to give away just over five million dollars before paying any federal gift tax (side note: MN does not have a […]
May 2012 was a big month for Facebook co-founder, Mark Zuckerberg, with his company going public and his surprise wedding to longtime girlfriend, Priscilla Chan. Zuckerberg and Chan were able to pull off a very private and intimate celebration but what followed was a flurry of news reports speculating about the financial planning that had […]
We previously discussed the options available to a surviving spouse inheriting a qualified retirement account. This article will address the options available to a non-spouse beneficiary inheriting a qualified retirement account. Just for a brief reminder, for purposes of this article, the term “retirement account” will be used to encompass all qualified retirement accounts, meaning […]
There is often confusion about what to do when a beneficiary inherits a retirement account. The answer is… it depends. There are different factors to determine the best course of action, such as the beneficiary and the age of the decedent. For purposes of this article, the term “retirement account” will be used to encompass […]
Although most of us would consider our estate planning attorney to be superhuman, the fact of the matter is that sometimes they are unable to perform their duties. In a recent case, the district court found that the physical and mental ailments of an estate planning attorney did not provide reasonable cause for the estate […]
I previously wrote on how to disclaim property under federal law to avoid or minimize estate taxes. While estates may fall short of the federal estate tax exemption limit, currently set at $5 million, individuals may still need to disclaim property to avoid Minnesota estate tax. Many individuals think their estates also fall short of […]
One of the consequences of a prolonged economic downturn is a decrease in the size of institutional endowments, just at the time when reliance on those funds may increase in order to offset a simultaneous reduction in other (e.g. contribution) income. Because stock market performance does not directly coincide with economic health, particularly in a […]
Jamie Held explained that the benefit of disclaimer planning is to utilize “…both spouses’ estate tax exemption amounts in order to minimize or eliminate estate tax on a couple’s accumulated wealth.” As we have mentioned often, the current federal estate tax exemption limit is $5 million. However, this exemption limit is set only until the […]
Everyone should have an estate plan. Estate planning attorneys say that a lot, and we mean it! But this is even more critical for farming families. There are many unique issues and problems that play an important role when planning for families with farms, among them: estate taxes, complicated probates, business succession, emotional ties and […]
I recently wrote about portability, specifically, what it is and how to elect it. This post takes it one step further, discussing how portability and gifting interact.