Nobody wants incapacity, not for yourself and not for your loved ones. But planning for that possibility can avoid complications and increase options. The article discusses the elements of incapacity planning and the need for flexibility to do Medicaid planning. It discusses how a trust with Medicaid triggers can allow that. Incapacity Planning … [Read more...]
Special Accounts for People with Special Needs
ABLE accounts provide tax benefits and flexibility to disabled people. ABLE accounts are available to those disabled before age 26. Read on to learn more about ABLE accounts and how they can be used with a Special Needs Trust for maximum advantage. Special Accounts for People with Special Needs … [Read more...]
How Are Trusts Taxed?
Trusts are useful vehicles both during life and after death. This article examines how trusts are income taxed. Grantor trusts are taxed to the grantor, regardless of whether the income is distributed to them. Nongrantor trusts are separate taxpaying entities but get a deduction for distributions to beneficiaries. Read the article to learn more. How Are Trusts Taxed? … [Read more...]
Being Thankful and Sharing Your Blessings
Thanksgiving is a time for sharing. This article examines ways for giving effectively, both to loved ones or to charity. It examines the use of 529 plans and ABLE accounts for loved ones. It examines gifting of appreciated assets to charity and bunching charitable deductions for the most bang for the buck. Read on to learn more. Being Thankful and Sharing Your Blessings … [Read more...]
Giving Back
Giving back provides many benefits, whether in life or at death. The article explores ways of giving back and some of the tax benefits available, both during life and at death. The article provides a couple strategies to maximize the tax benefits, such as grouping deductions and doing a charitable IRA rollover. Giving Back … [Read more...]
Estate Planning is for You, Not Just Your Parents or Grandparents
If you’re young and unmarried, do you really need an estate plan? The answer is “yes,” if you care what happens to you and your stuff. Read on to find out how an estate plan can help someone who is young and unmarried. Estate Planning is for You, Not Just Your Parents or Grandparents … [Read more...]
Estate Planning: It’s Not Just About the Estate Taxes
When we plan our lives and our estates, it’s not all about the estate taxes. Of course, estate taxes should be taken into consideration, but there are many more important factors. That’s why the temporary doubling (until the end of 2025) of the amount which can be passed free of estate tax (to $11.18 million in 2018) does not remove the need for estate planning. Whether the exclusion amount is $5.59 million or $11.18 million is irrelevant to the vast majority of people. Here are some … [Read more...]
Planning for the Unexpected
Charlotte Fox was an adventurous woman. She was a serious mountain climber and reached the summit of some of the world’s tallest mountains. She became the first American woman to climb three peaks above 8,000 meters, including the world’s tallest peak. She was a member of a climbing party on Mount Everest in 1996 which encountered disaster on their descent. Several members of the party died. It’s the basis of Jon Krakauer’s “Into Thin Air.” Everyone understands there are risks climbing the … [Read more...]
Estate Planning is Too Important to Procrastinate
Most of us recognize that estate planning is the loving and responsible thing to do. Yet, only 44% of adult Americans even have so much as a simple Will, according to a Gallup poll. Our world is increasingly complex. It seems our lives are busier than ever. Interestingly, this may not be what leads us to procrastinate. According to Psychology Today, there are three reasons we might procrastinate: Things Get Done. We procrastinate until we are faced with a deadline and the deadline … [Read more...]
6 Important Estate Planning Considerations – Part 5: Retirement Assets
People work much of their lives to accumulate assets, often in tax-favored vehicles such as IRAs, Roth IRAs, 401(k)s, and other retirement plans. It’s often desirable to stretch-out withdrawals from these assets, not just during the “Participant’s” life, but long after their death. (The Participant is the person who contributed to it during their lifetime.) These types of assets may be the bulk of the assets in the estate, other than the home. So, handling these assets properly is … [Read more...]
