Estate Planning for Same Sex Couples

Estate Planning for Same Sex Couples The first question asked by many same sex couples in the wake of Windsor is “Should We Get Married?” Putting aside the emotional reasons for marriage, what are the estate planning benefits? While you can acheive a lot of the same things through estate planning, there are benefits to … Read more

D.O.M.A. IS DEAD

D.O.M.A. IS DEAD By a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court ruled yesterday that Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional insofar as it purports to limit the terms “marriage” and “spouse” to opposite-sex couples for all purposes of federal law. This means that couples who are married in states that … Read more

Prepaid Funeral Plans

Prepaid Funeral Plans Funerals are expensive. According to the National Funeral Directors Association, average funeral costs in 2012 were nearly $8,000, excluding cemetery costs. To relieve their families of the bur-den of planning a funeral, many people plan their own and pay for them in advance. Unfortunately, prepaid funeral plans are or may be fraught … Read more

Estate Tax Exemption “Portability”: Is it right for you?

Estate Tax Exemption “Portability”: Is it right for you? One of the significant changes under the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) enacted in January, was to make estate tax exemption “portability” permanent. What is “portability”? When one spouse dies, portability allows the surviving spouse to use the deceased spouse’s unused exemption amount. This … Read more

Same Sex Estate Planning

Same Sex Estate Planning A marriage bestows certain legal and tax benefits to both husband and wife. However, Federal laws generally do not recognize the same rights and privileges for same-sex couples. Since gay or lesbian couples lack the same certain tax, inheritance and employment benefits that marriage bestows, these benefits must be created through … Read more

Why Do I Need To Plan My Estate When The Estate Tax Exclusion Is Up To $5,000,000!?

Why Do I Need To Plan My Estate When The Estate Tax Exclusion Is Up To $5,000,000!? I talk to a lot of people who stopped worrying about planning their estates when the 2011 threat of the $1,000,000 limit of assets that could transfer to their heirs without estate tax jumped to an unbelievable $5,000,000 … Read more

Tax Considerations of Joint Ownership

Tax Considerations of Joint Ownership Every transfer of an asset has a potential tax consideration that must be considered. Many people approach estate planning with a simple solution. They place the name of a trusted adult child on their bank accounts or on the title to their homes. They do this to avoid probate or … Read more

Estate Tax Update: It is 2010: NOW WHAT??

Estate Tax Update: It is 2010: NOW WHAT?? I. BRIEF HISTORICAL REVIEW OF HOW WE GOT INTO THIS MESS The 2001 Economic Growth and Taxpayer Relief Reconciliation Act(EGTRRA), was adopted as a ten-year tax relief bill. The duration of the effectiveness of the bill was limited because proponents of the changes did not have enough … Read more