by Christine | Nov 12, 2012 | 2012, Capital Gains, Obamacare |
Many business owners—mostly founders who could gain a lot from a sale—are looking to close deals before next year, when the maximum tax on investment income is scheduled to rise from 15% currently to at least 23.8% on most capital gains, at least for higher-income...
by Christine | Nov 9, 2012 | Estate Planning, LIfe Insurance, SLAT |
Couples with assets valued between $20 million and as high as $50 million typically are reluctant to give away $5 million or $10 million, in case they someday need the gifted assets. A spousal lifetime access trust (SLAT), coupled with the purchase by the SLAT...
by Christine | Nov 8, 2012 | Annual Gift Exclusion, Charitable Giving, Estate Planning |
Individuals can generally receive up to $13,000 a year as a gift without getting hit by a federal gift tax. In 2013, as a result of cumulative indexing, this amount is projected to increase to $14,000 per person. Sometimes it’s the little things, and in this case the...
by Christine | Nov 7, 2012 | 2012, Estate Planning |
Much of what is being written on the prospect of the expiration of the Bush-Era tax cuts focuses on its income tax implications. Yet, I believe that there is a greater likelihood that the estate and gift taxation aspects of this looming expiration are both less likely...
by Christine | Nov 6, 2012 | 2012, Charitable Giving, Estate Planning |
Hurry up and wait – that's what some financial advisers are telling their clients as an uncertain tax environment makes it tough to plan charitable giving in 2012. With 2013 almost upon us and only two short months of 2012 to go, now is the time to act. For...
by Christine | Nov 5, 2012 | Elder Law, Estate Planning |
Six months south and six months north could be a great lifestyle in retirement but one place will need to be your legal domicile, your legal residence. And it’s the laws of that state which will dictate your estate planning. You will need to decide which state would...
by Christine | Nov 2, 2012 | Estate Law, Estate Planning, Trusts |
Defective grantor trust is a really stupid name for something that, in the right circumstances, can be a very good idea. Somewhere along the line somebody realized that people might be disturbed by hearing that their trust was defective so the term became...
by Christine | Nov 1, 2012 | Elder Law, Medicare |
Tens of thousands of people with chronic conditions and disabilities may find it easier to qualify for Medicare coverage of potentially costly home health care, skilled nursing home stays and outpatient therapy under policy changes planned by the Obama administration....
by Christine | Oct 31, 2012 | Digital Assets, Estate Planning |
If you inadvertently lock out your executor or the very person who has power of attorney over your finances, you can create a huge hassle for your family just trying to pay your bills. Since we now live in a paperless world, they need something important – your...
by Christine | Oct 30, 2012 | Estate Planning, Executor, Inheritance, Wills |
The chief risk is always that the money will impact a kids’ motivation and self-reliance. “Ideally one would set aside enough funds to allow our family members to do anything they could do, but not so much that they could do nothing.” You give an inheritance to your...
