Posts by Kristina Schneider
Estate Planning for Same-Sex Couples
By Alma Soongi Beck, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law After the historic rulings in United States v. Windsor and Rev. Ruling 2013-17, the playing field for same-sex couples has equalized dramatically. When married, same-sex couples are finally eligible for the same kinds of planning benefits that…
Read MoreSell More Life Insurance by Showing Prospects How to Avoid Income Tax
By Philip J. Kavesh, CFP®, ChFC, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation) The 2012 American Taxpayer Relief Act (“ATRA”) may have reduced the need for life insurance in estate tax planning, but it has opened numerous opportunities to utilize life insurance as an income tax planning tool. A big concern for taxpayers who may want to sell their home,…
Read MoreYear-End Roth Conversion Planning
By Robert S. Keebler, CPA, MST, AEP (Distinguished) Roth IRA conversions are an important part of bracket management and can be used to avoid the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT) and the higher income tax brackets. While some of the benefits of Roth IRA conversions may require a longer period of time to…
Read More8 Year-End Practice Building Tips to Implement RIGHT NOW
By Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law As your business winds down near year-end (unlike 2012, when everyone was doing last-minute wealth transfer planning because of anticipated changes in the estate tax laws), it’s a good time to work on your business –…
Read MoreIt’s Raining Cats and Dogs (and Llamas and Birds and Horses)
By Eden Rose Brown, Esq. The statistics are compelling: Over 90 million American households own companion animals – a total of more than 218 million pets of all shapes and sizes! These pet owners spend an average of $500 on each pet, totaling more than $12 billion annually, and that…
Read MoreThe Dynasty Trust: Jurisdictional Choices
By Steven J. Oshins, J.D., AEP (Distinguished) Most trusts are designed as Staggered Distribution Trusts which are trusts that make mandatory distributions to the beneficiaries upon reaching certain ages. For example, many trusts pay out one-third of the assets upon the beneficiary reaching age 25, one-half of the balance upon the beneficiary reaching age 30…
Read More7 Tips for Making More Appointments – – Right at a Seminar!
By Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law Many seminar speakers forget (or don’t realize) that the main goal of a seminar is not to educate, but to motivate the attendees to make appointments with you before they leave the seminar! Our…
Read MoreYear-End Gain Harvesting May Create Impressive Tax Savings, But Be Careful!
By Robert S. Keebler, CPA, MST, AEP (Distinguished) Bracket management has always been an important part of income tax planning. As we noted in our May newsletter, however, the 3.8% Medicare Surtax and higher tax rates make it even more important in 2013. We listed the following strategies that taxpayers can use to avoid the…
Read MoreNew Tax Haven: Puerto Rico
By Jeffrey M. Verdon, Esq., Travor Moses, Esq. & Fernando Goyco-Covas, Esq. Puerto Rico’s politicians have aimed to spur investment and economic activity in Puerto Rico by changing their tax code. These series of reforms, including the Individual Investors Act (Act 22-2012 and 138-2012), now mean that Puerto Rico offers the potential for exceptionally advantageous…
Read MoreNew Trustee Liability: Failure to Review Trust-Owned Life Insurance
By Richard Gilman, CFP® and Philip J. Kavesh, J.D., LL.M. (Taxation), CFP®, ChFC, California State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Trust & Probate Law The Uniform Prudent Investor Act (UPIA) requires trustees of Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts (ILIT) to evaluate the appropriateness of the Trust Owned Life Insurance (TOLI) and to manage ILIT assets…
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