This was a great Thanksgiving, but who will host Thanksgiving next year? Based on calls we receive from clients in the weeks following Thanksgiving, we know that home and cabin ownership planning is a common discussion topic during Thanksgiving. In this month’s update, I provide a brief overview of a Qualified Personal Residence Trust (“QPRT), […]
The IRS announced last month that it plans to increase audits of wealthy individuals and partnerships, with a special focus on the seventy-five largest partnerships. According to the IRS announcement, the purpose of the audits will be to, “identify sophisticated schemes intended to avoid taxes.” In response to this IRS announcement, in this month’s update […]
“Our kids are wealthier than we are!” Some of my clients emphasize the wealth of their children as we customize their multi-generational estate plan. “How can we help our grandchildren instead?” As noted in a recent Wall Street Journal article, many wealthy families are implementing plans to lock in current federal exemption amounts to save […]
Each of my three middle-school children recently came to my wife and me with two “first-world” problems. Ahead of various upcoming trips away from home this summer, each of them asked for more portable pillows and more portable electronic devises. These portability problems remind me of certain planning discussions about the portability of one’s estate […]
“The correct lesson to learn from surprises is that the world is surprising. Not that we should use past surprises as a guide to future boundaries; that we should use past surprises as an admission that we have no idea what might happen next.”[1] Since life is indeed full of surprises, it is advantageous to […]
If you recently attended a party with a White Elephant gift game, or if your child has ever received a gift of a musical instrument, you understand and appreciate the fine art of re-gifting. In our family, certain family members have been known to repay the kindness of a Christmas gift by inconspicuously re-gifting the […]
“They made us an offer we could not refuse.” One of our neighbors recently sold their residence after receiving an unsolicited offer. This neighbor took advantage of the significant increase in residential property values not just in our neighborhood, but across the country. Relatedly, our law firm is corresponding with numerous clients seeking advice on […]
“Nothing is for Free, Cory,” a physician once explained to me. “If we take steps to address this particular health problem, it will have adverse consequences on other organs.” Just as there is often a “cost” for a particular medical treatment option, there are certain tax and control tradeoffs in estate planning decisions. Tax-deferred retirement […]
“Hey honey, you can’t use the microwave now– I have to start a zoom call.” Throughout much of the stay-at-home period in 2020 and into early 2021, my wife and I “suffered” (in a very first-world sense of the word, of course) from a few technology-related issues in our home. Until about six months ago, […]