There are taxes that can come into play when money is changing hands. There is a federal estate tax that is applicable in all 50 states. Most people never pay the tax, because there is a relatively high credit or exclusion. For the rest of 2014, the exact amount of the federal estate tax exclusion is $5.34 million. Each year there are adjustments to account for inflation, so the figure may rise a bit in 2015. You can transfer up to $5.34 million tax-free. If the value of your estate exceeds … [Read more...] about Do I Pay Taxes When Someone Leaves Me Money?
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How Much Can You Transfer Estate-Tax Free?
There are taxes on asset transfers in the United States, and you must take steps to gain tax efficiency if you are exposed. We have a federal estate tax, a federal gift tax, and a generation-skipping transfer tax. Federal Estate Tax The federal estate tax looms large for high net worth individuals. The maximum rate of this tax is 40 percent. Everyone does not pay the federal estate tax because there is a credit or exclusion. For the rest of 2014, the exact amount of the federal estate tax … [Read more...] about How Much Can You Transfer Estate-Tax Free?
Two Tips to Help You Better Understand Living Trusts
Today, many people who create an estate plan include a revocable living trust as a foundational piece. The great benefit of a revocable living trust lies in its ability to allow your estate to avoid, or at least minimize, the effect probate will play in transferring estate property. Unfortunately, most people have little experience dealing with trust, and don’t really understand how they operate. To help you better grasp the concept of what a living trust is and how it works, we’ve come up with … [Read more...] about Two Tips to Help You Better Understand Living Trusts
Estate Planning Rules to Help You Stay on Track
If you have begun, or are considering beginning, the estate planning process, there are some simple rules you can use to help keep you focused. When people begin estate planning they often do so from a position of having little to no experience with the process or the tools involved. Estate planning can be complicated, and it can be easy for inexperienced people to get overwhelmed by all the details and new information. If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, allow yourself to take a step back … [Read more...] about Estate Planning Rules to Help You Stay on Track
What You Should Know About Payable-on-Death Accounts and Your Estate
As more and more people focus their estate planning efforts away from estate tax prevention and more towards probate avoidance, payable-on-death accounts have drawn renewed attention. These accounts have specific probate avoidance properties that make them appealing to a lot of people worried about the time and expense associated with the probate process. While you should only choose to use a specific estate planning tool after carefully consulting with an experienced and qualified estate … [Read more...] about What You Should Know About Payable-on-Death Accounts and Your Estate
Will My Heirs Be Forced to Pay an Inheritance Tax?
There can be some confusion about taxes that could be applicable when assets are changing hands. In this post we will look at transfer taxes and provide some explanations. Inheritance Tax Many people think that an inheritance tax and an estate tax are one and the same thing. In fact, this is not the case at all. An inheritance tax would be levied on transfers to each individual nonexempt inheritor. It would not be levied on the whole before the assets are transferred to the heirs to the … [Read more...] about Will My Heirs Be Forced to Pay an Inheritance Tax?
What Is the Medi-Cal Look-Back?
Medicaid is a government run health insurance program. It is jointly administered by the federal government along with each state government. We practice law in the state of California. In our state, the Medicaid program is called Medi-Cal. This is a program that is only available to people who are financially needy. You must stay within very modest income and asset limits if you want to qualify for Medicaid or Medi-Cal. Medicare is also a government health insurance program. People become … [Read more...] about What Is the Medi-Cal Look-Back?
Students, Estates, Loans, Probate, and Life Insurance
If there is one group of people that pays almost no attention to estate planning, it's college students and other young adults. When you are young, you have almost no concept of what issues you will have to worry about when you reach old age. Even if you understand them on an intellectual level, worrying about them something that doesn't even enter your mind. Unfortunately, college students and other young adults often carry a lot of debt. That debt, apart from the financial impacts it can have … [Read more...] about Students, Estates, Loans, Probate, and Life Insurance
Your Estate Plan Will Include These 4 Important Tools
Regardless of where you are in life or what you want to accomplish with your estate plan, everyone who creates a plan in California will likely rely on at least four important tools. These tools will protect most of your important interests, and allow you to achieve most of your estate planning goals. Even if you and your attorney decide that you need additional tools to help you, understanding what these four important tools do and how they work can give you a much better understanding of why … [Read more...] about Your Estate Plan Will Include These 4 Important Tools
Why Estate Planning Attorneys Like What They Do
Some people are surprised to find out that a lot of estate planning attorneys love going to work every day. This fact can strike people as, at best, counterintuitive, and at worst, downright strange. After all, don’t estate planning lawyers routinely deal with issues like incapacitation, sickness, aging, and death? What’s so rewarding about spending all day thinking about some of the most morbid and depressing topics a person can face? While it might not initially appear so to those looking in … [Read more...] about Why Estate Planning Attorneys Like What They Do
