Life Insurance Awareness Month

Posted on by in Estate Tax, Life Insurance.

Life insurance isn’t a big part of what we do here at Lange Financial, but it is an important part. As September is Life Insurance Awareness Month, we want to share some important life insurance facts with you all.

Did you know that depending on the size of your estate, your heirs could be hit with a large estate tax payment after you die. The proceeds of a life insurance policy are payable immediately, allowing heirs to take care of estate taxes, funeral costs, and other debts without having to hastily liquidate other assets. And life insurance proceeds are generally income tax free and can be arranged to avoid probate. Finally, if your insurance program is properly structured, the proceeds from your life insurance policy won’t add to your estate tax liability.

Think it over. If you are one of the 35 million American households that are uninsured, you might want to consider what a life insurance policy could mean for your heirs.

2011 Changes in Tax Law

Posted on by in Estate Tax, Income Tax, Lange’s Cascading Beneficiary Plan.

The recently enacted “Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010” (the “2010 Tax Act”), signed by President Barack Obama on December 17, 2010, makes important changes to the taxation of estates and gifts, which will affect many grandparents. This Act significantly increases the prior exemptions for estates and gifts. It will affect many existing wills and estate plans, so it would be wise for grandparents to review their estate-planning documents with their attorneys to determine if changes are appropriate.

The 2010 Tax Act reinstates the federal estate tax at rates of 35 percent (as opposed to 45 percent under prior law) and provides for a federal exemption of $5 million for individuals and $10 million for a husband and wife for 2011 and 2012. It also keeps the tax rate at 35 percent for gifts made in 2010 through 2012. The lifetime gift-tax exemption amount is reunified with the $5 million estate-tax exemption, providing for a unified gift and estate tax exemption of $5 million for decedents in 2011 and 2012. This makes lifetime gifts much more attractive as an estate-planning vehicle.

Keep in mind that even though federal estate taxes have been eliminated on estates of less than $5 million (or $10 million, in the case of a surviving spouse), there may still be significant state estate taxes on estates of less than $5 million. New York State, for example, has not changed its $1 million exemption to conform to increases in the federal estate-tax exemption, and thus, a decedent with a $5 million estate who dies in New York will be subject to state estate tax of approximately $400,000, even though there is no federal estate tax.

Last Minute Tax Strategies for IRAs & Other Retirement Accounts

Posted on by in Estate Tax, Income Tax, IRAs, Roth IRA, Roth IRA Conversions.

Make your 2010 IRA contribution as late as April 18, 2011: 

You can contribute up to $5,000 (or $6,000 if you are 50 or older) until the time you file your income tax return, but no later than April 18, 2011.  If you participate in a retirement plan at work, the IRA deduction phases out if you are married and your joint AGI is $89,000 or more, or if you are single and your adjusted gross income is $56,000 or more.  Filing an extension will not buy you additional time.  Non-deductible pay-ins to IRAs and Roth IRAs are also due by April 18, 2011.

Make a deductible contribution to a spousal IRA:

If you do not participate in a workplace-based retirement plan but your spouse does, you can deduct some or all of your IRA contributions on your 2010 income tax return as long as your adjusted gross income does not exceed $177,000.

Make a contribution to a Roth IRA: 

Contributions to Roth IRAs are not tax deductible, but the earnings on them may be withdrawn totally income tax-free in the future as long as the distributions are qualified.  A Roth IRA distribution is qualified if you’ve had the account for at least five years, the distribution is made after you’ve reached age 59½, you become totally and permanently disabled, in the event of your death, or for first-time homebuyer expenses.  Contribution limits are the same as traditional IRAs, except the maximum contribution for both Roth and traditional IRAs is still limited to $5,000 or $6,000 for persons age 50 or older.

To make a full Roth IRA contribution for 2010, your AGI cannot  exceed $177,000 if you are married or $120,000 if you are single.  You are subject to the same limitations for a non-working spouse.  Subject to some exceptions, I usually prefer Roth IRAs to traditional IRAs or even traditional 401(k)s.

Look into Roth IRA conversions:

The rules for contributions to Roth IRAs are different from the rules for Roth IRA conversions.  Prior to January 1, 2010, you could only convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA if your AGI was $100,000 or less (before the conversion).  However, this dollar cap is now removed starting January 1, 2010 and there is no limit to your earnings in order to qualify for a Roth IRA conversion.  Please remember that a conversion to a Roth IRA may place you in a higher tax bracket than you are in now and have other adverse consequences, such as subjecting more of your Social Security to be taxable due to the increase in your AGI.  Please also note that a Roth IRA conversion does not have to be all or nothing. You can elect to do a partial Roth IRA conversion and you can convert any dollar amount you decide is best for your situation.  Our most common set of recommendations after “running the numbers” is usually a series of Roth IRA conversions over a number of years.  Please remember that a Roth IRA conversion may not be appropriate for all investors.

The Best Response to the New Estate Laws

Posted on by in Educational Resources, Estate Tax, Income Tax, IRAs, Lange’s Cascading Beneficiary Plan, QTIP Trusts.

The top estate planners in the country warn IRA and retirement plan owners to develop an appropriate response to the new estate tax laws just passed this December. We are now in a completely different tax environment ripe for the cruelest trap of all: where the standard language of traditional wills and trusts forces too much money (now up to $5,000,000) into a trust limiting the surviving spouse to income and the right to invade principal for health, maintenance and support.  If the trust is overfunded, which is likely under the new law, less discretionary income is available for the surviving spouse.  Furthermore, if this common trust is the beneficiary of an IRA or retirement plan, massive income taxes are also triggered – all this can be avoided with appropriate language in wills and trusts and appropriate beneficiary designations of IRAs, Roth IRAs and retirement plans.

Under the new estate tax laws, older traditional estate plans are not helpful, but harmful, because of the severe restrictions they place on the surviving spouse, something most couples do not want.  Many IRA and retirement plan owners have this detrimental language in their existing wills and trusts and don’t even know it. IRA and retirement plan owners with assets between $600,000 and $5,000,000 are particularly vulnerable. Both spouses have likely become quite accustomed to making expenditure decisions based on desire in addition to need. To lose that control would be devastating. Without a review of their older traditional estate plan they could be  thinking they have left everything under the control of their spouse, but in reality, they have not.

I encourage you to have your will reviewed and updated to comply with the estate planning law.  In Pittsburgh?  Please join us for one of our FREE workshops entitled, “How to Avoid the Cruelest Trap of All:  Don’t Unknowingly Restrict Your Surviving Spouse’s Independence or Access to the Family Money After the Tax Relief Act of 2010.”   See our location and times on www.paytaxeslater.com.  Not in Pittsburgh, you can purchase this workshop to view in the comfort of your own home for just $97 – to order call our office at 412.521.2732.

5 Things Taxpayers Can Proactively Do To Best Take Advantage of the New Income and Estate Tax Law

Posted on by in 401(k), 403(b), Estate Tax, IRAs.

There are some BIG changes for taxpayers in the creation of the new 2010 Tax Relief/Job Creation Act.  How can you best respond to this law?  Take a look at these 5 things all taxpayers can proactively do to best take advantage of the changes:

1.  With the money you save on the reduction of your social security tax, you should contribute at least that much additional money to your retirement plan.

2.  Contribute to your retirement plan in the following order:

  • Contribute whatever an employer is willing to match or even partially match
  • Contribute to your Roth IRA and if married to your spouses Roth IRA, even if your spouse isn’t working
  • Maximize your contribution to your Roth 401(k) or Roth 403(b) if available
  • If not available, maximize your contribution to your traditional 401(k) or 403(b)
  • If your income is too high to qualify for a Roth IRA, contribute to a nondeductible 401(k).

3.  Since we have two more years of low tax rates, make Roth IRA conversions.  Consider multiple conversions since you can “recharacterize” or undo them.  If you do multiple conversions, you can keep the ones that do well and undo the ones that don’t.

4.  Review your wills and trusts.  Many, if not most of the wills done for taxpayers with estates of $1 million are now outdated.  Not only will you not get optimal results, but your existing wills and trusts might be a huge restriction on the surviving spouse.

5.  Now that you can either leave or gift $5,000,000 or $10,000,000 if you are married, you should rethink potential gifts to children and grandchildren without tax laws that would otherwise restrict gifts you would like to make.

An Indecisive Congress on Federal Estate Tax

Posted on by in Educational Resources, Estate Tax and tagged , , .
As the old adage goes, there are two things for certain, you will die and you will pay taxes. For decades this statement has remained true, but in 2010, one of these is far from conclusive. Why the uncertainty swirling around paying estate taxes?

Most advisors thought that Congress would extend the estate tax law before it was due to expire at the end of last year. But while the House did act, the Senate did not. So… what few predicted would happen, did…the tax is gone for a year but is expected to be revised in 2011 at a higher rate and a lower exemption.

At this point many suggestions have been made from keeping it the same and making it retroactive to changing it completely. No one knows what Congress will eventually do, but as we wait patiently, we must be smart and continue to plan for our futures.

As Benjamin Franklin said, “Time is Money”. Time is of the essence when talking estate planning even under this kind of uncertainty. Regardless of your estate’s size, it would be wise to seek the advice of an experienced estate planning attorney who can help you sort through your options.