Our regularly updated blog discusses a variety of issues related to business, tax, and estate planning in California. Learn why an estate plan is necessary regardless of age or income, what steps you can take to reduce your tax liability and protect your assets, how to ensure your business remains on a solid legal foundation, and much more.
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Consider a GRAT to Transfer a BusinessSuccession planning for your real estate business can be daunting. Along with selecting the right family member or other individual to carry on the business, you must weigh a variety of tax and financial planning issues. Some closely held business owners have found it pays to use a grantor retained...
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Estate Planning Tips for Blended FamiliesBlended families are continuously becoming more common in the United States. This creates special considerations that must be taken into account during estate planning because not planning properly for blended families is a good way to ensure that there will be family feuds over an estate. One of the more...
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S Corps and Partnerships: Beware of Failure-to-File PenaltiesThe S corporation is a popular business structure that's available only to privately held businesses. In fact, approximately 44 percent of small employer firms -- generally defined as companies with fewer than 500 employees -- have elected to operate as S corporations, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration's Office...
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Small Business Reprieve on Health Premium Reimbursement PlansHistorically, companies that wanted their employees to be protected with health coverage, but didn't want the hassle of having a company health plan, could simply give employees an amount of money sufficient to reimburse them for the cost of buying that coverage or some portion of it. As long as...
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11 Potential Mistakes to Avoid in Estate PlanningSometimes people attempt to make an estate plan without consulting legal and financial professionals. Mostly this is because they may have a general understanding of estate planning and believe they can do it themselves without paying for professional services. This may be valid to a point, but it often fails...
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Tax Savings on the Sale or Transfer of Personal GoodwillIf you're planning on selling/buying a business or transferring a business to a related party, then you need to be aware of the existence of goodwill and the tax effects. The ownership of the goodwill, by either the business entity or a key employee, may affect the tax treatment from...
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IRS Aims to Ground More Offshore AccountsDespite reduced resources due to recent budget cuts, the IRS is continuing its efforts to deter illegal tax evasion schemes. Instead of announcing its annual list of the "Dirty Dozen" tax scams for 2015 in one fell swoop, the agency is issuing a press release for each one spanning twelve...
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Estate Planning to Minimize Federal Income TaxesThe traditional estate planning approach, aimed at reducing estate tax values, is less relevant for the vast majority of individuals today than it was in the past. The American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) provides relatively generous estate tax rates, limits and rules for estates. Older estate plans should...
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Special Needs Trust Fairness Act Reintroduced in the HouseReps. Glenn “GT” Thompson (R-PA) and Frank Pallone (D-NJ) reintroduced the Special Needs Trust Fairness Act (H.R. 670) today to allow individuals with disabilities, who have the mental capacity, to create their own special needs trusts. NAELA, the National Association of Elder Law Attorneys, expects reintroduction in the Senate shortly....
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Repealing the Estate TaxThe state tax is always controversial. Some people believe strongly in it while others see it as unfair. The current exemption for estate purposes is $5.43 Million. Fewer than 1% of US taxpayers are subject to the estate tax. A new bill in Congress seeks to repeal it completely. It...
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Succession Planning for Retirement Accounts/IRA Inheritance Trust WebinarSuccession Planning for Retirement Accounts typically involves two (2) goals or concerns. First, deferral of income tax. The key is for the retirement account to remain income tax deferred for the longest period of time. This is accomplished when your children or other beneficiaries are able to keep the retirement...
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Creditor Protection for Retirement AccountsQualified plans such as 401(k)s, profit sharing plans and traditional defined benefit plans are protected under federal law under Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Protection continues for all qualified plan assets as long as the assets remain inside the plan and there are non-owner employees participating in the plan....