I am a do-it-yourselfer. I love working around my house: Painting, building, and even stuccoing. But there are exceptions, like plumbing. I hate plumbing. One thing I have learned about my handyman hobby is that I should expect to buy twice the building materials that I should need to complete the project. Experience tells me that I will use all of those materials. My habit is to try to build the first time, fail, and then to try it again. Almost invariably, I will end up building or fixing up the same thing at least twice -- once or twice for practice, and then "for real." Some who would never consider fixing a garage door or stuccoing a wall would unthinkingly prepare a will or trust using many materials found in bookstores. Bookstores abound with quick-fix be-your-own-lawyer books and CDs, featuring forms and fill-the-blank forms and programs for wills, trusts, and powers of attorney for healthcare decisions. Some of these materials are even state specific, offering different provisions for residents of different states.
We will address some of the most prevalent and most common estate plan trusts myths so we can be better informed. Myth. The Federal Estate Tax was repealed. The passage of the 2001 EGTRRA provided valuable estate tax breaks. Because of the peculiar way in which the law was written, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act also gave some people a false sense of security by leading them to believe that the federal estate tax was repealed in 2001.
Your estate planning attorneys will help you determine, from the existing state of your financial affairs, including your investments, real estate holdings, and personal property, what your estate planning goals should be. They will help you get a realistic picture of the potential needs of your survivors, and elicit a clear understanding of your final health care desires.
With that information, estate planning attorneys can then explain to you the best alternatives for seeing that your estate is handled as you wish. They will not only discuss wills and trusts; they will present options which you can employ immediately to lessen the taxes and probate costs on your estate.
Concerning the issue of expense, in California the ordinary attorneys and personal representative fees are determined by statute, and are set out specifically in the Probate Code [California Probate Code 10800]. Extraordinary expenses may sometimes be charged, but the court must permit the added expense. Sometimes expenses may be saved if the personal representative waives his or her fee. If the executor or administrator is a family member, rather than an institution or professional, fees are often waived to save expense. In the final analysis, trusts are usually more expensive than wills to prepare, but wills administered through a court supervised probate are usually more expensive and time consuming than administering a trust. However, at least in California, there is another possible alternative: An expedited procedure for small estates (i.e., estates under $100,000, excluding exempted property) [California Probate Code 13100], which does not require opening and administering a probate estate. Therefore, in some cases opening a probate may not even be necessary.
From the past, we can predict the future. If history is any indication, we have not heard the last of the federal estate tax, not by a long shot. The federal estate tax dates back to 1797 and has been repealed four times (counting 2010) only to come back to life each time. We all know that historically estate tax has been used as a funding mechanism during times of war. Many well known and respected individuals, historic and contemporary are supporters of the federal estate tax; Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Paine, Andrew Carnegie, Bill Gates and Warren Buffet to name a few.
We will address some of the most prevalent and most common estate plan trusts myths so we can be better informed. Myth. The Federal Estate Tax was repealed. The passage of the 2001 EGTRRA provided valuable estate tax breaks. Because of the peculiar way in which the law was written, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act also gave some people a false sense of security by leading them to believe that the federal estate tax was repealed in 2001.
Your estate planning attorneys will help you determine, from the existing state of your financial affairs, including your investments, real estate holdings, and personal property, what your estate planning goals should be. They will help you get a realistic picture of the potential needs of your survivors, and elicit a clear understanding of your final health care desires.
With that information, estate planning attorneys can then explain to you the best alternatives for seeing that your estate is handled as you wish. They will not only discuss wills and trusts; they will present options which you can employ immediately to lessen the taxes and probate costs on your estate.
Concerning the issue of expense, in California the ordinary attorneys and personal representative fees are determined by statute, and are set out specifically in the Probate Code [California Probate Code 10800]. Extraordinary expenses may sometimes be charged, but the court must permit the added expense. Sometimes expenses may be saved if the personal representative waives his or her fee. If the executor or administrator is a family member, rather than an institution or professional, fees are often waived to save expense. In the final analysis, trusts are usually more expensive than wills to prepare, but wills administered through a court supervised probate are usually more expensive and time consuming than administering a trust. However, at least in California, there is another possible alternative: An expedited procedure for small estates (i.e., estates under $100,000, excluding exempted property) [California Probate Code 13100], which does not require opening and administering a probate estate. Therefore, in some cases opening a probate may not even be necessary.
From the past, we can predict the future. If history is any indication, we have not heard the last of the federal estate tax, not by a long shot. The federal estate tax dates back to 1797 and has been repealed four times (counting 2010) only to come back to life each time. We all know that historically estate tax has been used as a funding mechanism during times of war. Many well known and respected individuals, historic and contemporary are supporters of the federal estate tax; Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Paine, Andrew Carnegie, Bill Gates and Warren Buffet to name a few.
About the Author:
Frank Miller has a Debt Consolidation Blog & Finance, these are some of the articles: Details And Advice On Using Payday Loans In A Pinch You have full permission to reprint this article provided this box is kept unchanged.
No comments:
Post a Comment