There were a lot of tax law changes (as well as a lot of things that were kept the exact same) when President Obama signed into law the Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation of Act of 2011, but there was one change that simply put, shocked me. It was the brand new idea that…
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In a vote closer than I expected the house passed, an Estate Tax Bill! For all intents and purposes the bill freezes the Federal Estate Tax (Remember State Estate tax is different) so that every U.S. Citizen has a $3,500,000 exemption and anything above that amount is effectively taxed at 45%. The Bill passed 225 to…
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Almost every single day, I have to explain the Federal Estate Tax. The people I have to explain the federal estate tax to are not tax professionals, they are either financial advisors, other attorneys, or successful business owners. So, needless to say, I better explain estate taxes from 30,000 feet above. The details do not…
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The question I hear the most when I am teaching classes are, where do you think the Estate Taxes are going? I always respond, they aren’t disappearing. Period. The current administration (along with the last one) is running through money like it was beer at a keg party! So is it likely that we are going…
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I was reading my fav. magazine today, Trusts and Estates and came across an amazing article. Trusts and Estates Magazine has been around since the early 1900s and is read by most of the Trust and Estates world – it costs $35 an issue, but luckily work picks it up! The article titled, “The Audit…
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On a daily basis I have to turn complicated tax issues into a simple discussion. A discussion that I have to discuss/teach very often is the Federal Estate Tax. Before we discuss the easy way to determine your Federal Estate Tax bill some caveats: The calculations below are commonly referred to as “Napkin Math.” Meaning,…
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