Low interest rates and looming potential tax changes make this a good time for high-net-worth clients to use a special tool to transfer wealth: the grantor-retained annuity trust (GRAT), a strategy to reduce future estate taxes, by transferring assets to beneficiaries without using the lifetime gift tax exclusion.
In a nutshell, an estate plan encompasses the accumulation, conservation and distribution of an estate. Done well, it will enhance and maintain the financial security of the next generation.
One of the biggest wealth transfers our nation has ever seen is about to take place. Over the next 25 years, as much as $68 trillion of wealth will be passed to succeeding generations.
Adding an adult child to your house deed, or giving them the home outright, might seem like a smart thing to do. It usually isn’t.
To ensure a lasting legacy, you need to get your documents in order and have a clear plan for how your wealth will transfer, avoiding taxes and inheritor pitfalls along the way.
We currently have the highest estate tax exemption and the lowest intra-family interest rates in history. That combination alone is significant, but when mixed with the potential for lower estate and gift tax exemptions and depressed business valuations, you have a potent catalyst for transitioning ownership.
The Covid-19 has produced a rise in estate planning…but not a large enough one. Most Americans still do not have a last will and testament.
If you have not already been inundated with invitations to webinars, articles and newsletters regarding estate planning, you should consider doing so before the end of the year, since you undoubtedly will receive these over the next few months.
Probate is a process to transfer the assets after someone dies. For example, when a homeowner passes, probate allows for the home to be sold or transferred, if necessary, even though the owner is no longer alive to sign a deed.
Second (or third or fourth) marriages often require careful balancing between the needs of the surviving spouse and the needs of the children from a previous marriage.
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