When the 2017 Tax Cuts and
Jobs Act (TCJA) was passed it changed the rules about deductions for charitable
giving. Under current law the only way to deduct charitable gifts is to itemize
on your tax return. Because of that, giving to charities has fallen
substantially.
In 2018 almost 32 million
Americans made charitable donations....
Estate planning. It’s such a noble phrase. It conjures up images of passing on to your loved ones a lifetime of hard work and success—leaving a legacy. But the road to distributing your estate is filled with potholes that may hijack your good intentions.
Pothole # 1. Probate Court.
If you...
The times they are a-changin’. It was true when Bob Dylan wrote those words more than 55 years ago, and it’s just as true today. The black-and-white analog world becomes a distant memory as we travel further into the digital portal. And just like Ozzy Osbourne, many of us...
The government giveth, and the government taketh away. And so it is with the Stretch IRA. For years, the stretch IRA has been a financial planning strategy used to extend the tax-deferred status of an IRA by passing it on to a non-spouse beneficiary, such as children or grandchildren,...
You spend a lifetime earning, saving, acquiring. But the old adage is true—you can’t take it with you. So, what do you do with your assets when you’re gone? How do you want them distributed? That’s where a good estate plan comes in. However, some estate plans are based...
You’ve done all the planning. Your trust is set up. You’re comfortable that your estate will be distributed exactly as you want. There’s just one more decision to make—an important one. Who should be the trustee?
James J. Ferraro, JD is vice president and legal counsel at Argent Trust Company....
Death tax, inheritance tax, estate tax—call it what you will, they all mean that some government entity wants to put its hand in your pocket or your heirs’ pockets, after your demise.
On the federal level, the estate tax issue is not as big a deal as it was back...
You just got the final draft of your estate plan. You’ve been thinking about this for a long time—how you want your estate distributed, who you want to take care of, who you want to benefit. As you scan the document, it includes your exact wishes for disposition of...