Rich and Famous Planning: Lessons learned from Prince’s mistake
As most people by now know, the artist Prince died without a Will. The family is now set up for tens of thousands in legal costs and years of delay before the money gets distributed. When a person dies without a Will, regardless of the size of his estate, numerous problems come up....
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ABLE accounts
The newly enacted ABLE accounts permit people with disabilities to save money without jeopardizing their government benefits. Account holders can have up to $100,000 in these accounts without jeopardizing their SSI (Supplemental Security Income) benefits. Medicaid benefits do not get jeopardized regardless of the amount of money held in these accounts.These accounts enable...
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You may want to think twice before leaving an outright distribution and gift
There are many things that can go wrong with an outright distribution: Judgment creditor can seize a beneficiary’s inheritanceBankruptcy court can seize a beneficiary’s inheritanceAn incapacitated beneficiary can squander an inheritance before anyone can step in to help him.A divorce court can award some of the beneficiary’s inheritance to an ex-spouseIf...
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Rich and Famous Planning: B.B. King’s Estate – 15 children, a few million dollar and legal battles for many years to come
B.B. King acknowledged 15 children from 15 different women during his life. 11 of the children survived him. Yet the executor of B.B. King’s estate and the trustee of his Trust is not one of his children – it is his business manager LaVerne Toney, who had been consistently on his side for...
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Retitling Assets and Designating Proper Beneficiaries
You may have completed a Will and a Power of Attorney (all by yourself). You may think that your estate plan is in order and you can rest easily. However, you are likely less than half way done!In general, over half of all assets in the United States pass outside of probate. These...
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Estate and Income Tax Planning for non-US citizens. Part II – income and estate taxation of non-U.S. residents
Income Tax Planning: In general, non-U.S. residents are taxed only on U.S. sourced income. If the income is considered to be effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business (“effectively connected income” or “ECI”) then that income is taxed at graduated rates on a net income basis. If, instead, the income is “fixed,...
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Estate and Income Tax Planning for non-US citizens. Part I – determining U.S. residency
The very first question to determine during planning is whether a non-citizen individual is considered a U.S. resident for income tax purposes and for estate tax purposes. For income tax purposes, a non-citizen is considered a U.S. resident if the individual meets any one of these tests: (1) green card test or (2)...
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How to monetize an investment real estate property while minimizing taxes
There are many reasons why one would want to withdraw money from an investment real estate. Some of these reasons include: no longer willing to manage the property, no longer needing the income tax benefit, desiring liquidity or desiring diversification in one’s investments. 1. The easiest way of monetizing a real estate property...
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What are the current methods of maximizing one’s social security payments?
Now that the “file and suspend” loophole has been eliminated (effective April 30, 2016), what other strategies remain for maximizing one’s social security payments?1. The main strategy is, of course, to delay the receipt of social security. At full retirement age, a worker is entitled to receive 100% of his Social Security retirement...
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You Can Now Donate Your Lapsing Insurance Policy
Approximately 50% of life insurance policies owned by seniors are allowed to lapse without any benefits being paid out. There are many reasons for this lapse: some can no longer afford the premiums while others feel that they no longer need the proceeds in the event of death.A recent charitable organization called “Insuring...
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