Estates and Gifts

Estate & Gift Planning is a very personal process. Each family and their situations are unique. Effective planning should involve your CPA, your attorney, and in some cases, your insurance agent and a trust officer. Call us to schedule a FREE initial office conference. We'll help you assess your need for Estate & Gift Planning. 662-329-4444

A LITTLE CAN SAVE THOUSANDS!!

With proper planning, certain life insurance policies can be kept out of your estate.

Part of the Plan

• Current tax law allows you to give away a specific amount per year per recipient. Your spouse may join in the gift even if he or she is not an owner in the transferred asset. This means that you could transfer up to two times the specific amount per year to each of your heirs. To double the annual exclusion yet again, you may want to include spouses of your children. The person receiving the gift does not need to be related to you. These annual gifts do not reduce your once-in-a-lifetime exclusion.
• Property not needed for retirement is a candidate for transferring during your lifetime. If it is a large income producer, the future income will be taxed to the new owner and not to you, plus the property will be out of your estate.
• Unlimited transfers to your spouse can be made during your lifetime or through your estate. There are no taxes on spousal transfers, regardless of size. But, leaving everything to your spouse may not be a good idea since doing so fails to utilize the lifetime exclusion amount in the estate of the first spouse to pass away. Planning will allow you to use the exclusion in both estates, and you’ll be able to transfer twice as much to your heirs free of estate tax.