A recent and notably instructive article on estate administration delivers a kind of two-sided-coin message concerning key money matters for planners.
It notes on the one hand that legions of individuals and families fail to appreciate “just how big a bite taxes will take out of their estate” until they seriously turn to planning considerations.
When they do, though, there is often a silver lining, namely, the realization that there is much they can do to reduce their estate tax burden.
That unsurprisingly comes with a caveat, which the above-cited Business Journal duly notes. It stresses that it is vital for any person concerned with an estate-tax bite to “see an estate planning professional to learn how you can lower the tax burden.”
A seasoned estate administration attorney – especially one with combined and integrated acumen as a CPA – can often provide counsel that yields significant tax-linked savings. There are a number of steps that can be timely taken to slash estate taxes in a given case, including tried-and-tested strategies such as the following:
- Annual gifting to heirs, which up to a threshold amount does not trigger gift taxes and can reduce estate assets over a lifetime, conferring savings on loved ones in the future
- Charitable lead trust, which can reduce estate holdings during a grantor’s lifetime and, in the event trust assets are invested well, increase the estate pot for beneficiaries down the road
- Irrevocable trust, which again removes taxable assets from an estate during a creator’s lifetime
- Life insurance, which the aforementioned article notes “can provide liquidity so your heirs can pay estate taxes and other [relevant costs] after you die”
The above bullet points spotlight just a few tax-saving moves that can greatly benefit heirs and loved ones both currently and in the future. A proven estate planning lawyer can speak to specifics and work closely with a client to implement optimal strategies.