Estate Planning

Public Good IRA Rollover Act of 2009

Posted on April 25, 2009
This bill was recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, and is for the expansion of IRA charitable rollovers, which are currently limited to those who have reached 70 1/2, may be no more than $100,000, and must go to a 501(c)(3) organization...

NC Income and Sales Tax Changes Considered

Posted on April 24, 2009
The North Carolina Senate Finance Committee is reviewing a plan to cut income and sales taxes while instituting new sales taxes on certain services. For income taxes, the top rate would drop from 7.75% to 7.5%, while the lowest rate would decrease from 6% to 5...

Saying a Final Goodbye to a Friend

Posted on April 22, 2009
This posting is not about estate planning per se, but rather death, which everyone must contemplate in the course of planning his or her estate. Yesterday afternoon I stayed at the bedside of a friend of 30 years as he peacefully died in the last stages of Lymphoma...

Death Tax Debate Alive and Well

Posted on April 16, 2009
The debate over extending the $3.5 million estate tax exemption versus increasing the exemption to $5 million is discussed in this NY Times article.   Don't our legislators have better things to do than argue over reducing taxes for such a minute percentage of the U...

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Beware of these "Dirty Dozen" Tax Scams

Posted on April 14, 2009
From the IRS Newswire 2009-041: WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today issued its 2009 'dirty dozen' list of tax scams, including schemes involving phishing, hiding income offshore and false claims for refunds. 'Taxpayers should be wary of scams to avoid paying taxes that seem too good to be true, especially during these challenging economic times,' IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said...

Last Minute Tax Tips and Reminders from the IRS

Posted on April 13, 2009
From the IRS Newswire issue IR-2009-040: WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service offers last minute reminders to taxpayers who have not yet filed a tax return, paid what they owe or requested an extension of time to file as the April 15 tax filing and payment deadline approaches...

Obama's Budget Proposal - Automatic IRAs

Posted on April 10, 2009
From my CPA colleagues at Virchow, Krause & Company - a summary of the proposals to help expand retirement savings.

Yesterday's Senate Action on the Estate Tax

Posted on April 03, 2009
  Reuters Blogs Front Row Washington Tracking U.S. politics « Previous Post Next Post » April 2nd, 2009 U.S. Senate goes two ways on estate taxes The U.S. Senate went two different ways on the estate tax, which has been a contentious issue for years — a tax congressional Republicans have villified as the 'death tax'...

The Octomom - I bet she hasn't done proper estate planning

Posted on April 02, 2009
The other day I started thinking about Nadya Suleman (the Octomom), the California single mother of 14 who has been in the news so much lately.  A professional hazard, I guess, but I wondered - has she done any estate planning?  Does she have a Will?  If so, has she named a guardian or guardians for her 14 children (who would want that job!)?  Does she have a trust set up for the kids?  Who's the trustee? Does she have a general and durable power of attorney in case she becomes incapacitated? Does she have any (or enough) life insurance to at least partially provide for her children in the event of her death? My guess is that she doesn't have any of these things...

25th Anniversary of Triangle Community Foundation

Posted on April 02, 2009
The Triangle Community Foundation (TCF) is holding a celebration tonight of its 25th anniversary (I'm pleased to say that I will be attending).  The TCF is a tremendous asset to the greater Triangle area, providing millions of dollars annually in funding to local non-profits...

Wagering on your NCAA Tournament Bracket? What are the Tax Implications?

Posted on April 01, 2009
The Final Four is set for this weekend, and my beloved Tar Heels have a good shot at winning the title.  In North Carolina and across the country, countless Americans have entered into NCAA office pools, and the winners will be determined Monday night...

Another Reason to Avoid Probate in NC

Posted on April 01, 2009
The North Carolina Legislature is considering cuts of up to 24% in salaries of judicial system employees, which include Clerks of Court and their staff.  Obviously, this may lead to staff shortages and/or staff turnover, both of which may cause delays in processing probate documents, particularly Annual and Final Account...

What You Need to Know to Choose a Nursing Home

Posted on April 01, 2009
Listen to this Podcast on the ElderLawAnswers website.

Religion, Medicine and Death

Posted on April 01, 2009
In this blog, mostly I write about taxes.  Sometimes I write about death or politics.  Often somber topics, but ones that will always be current.  Here's an article from The Economist dealing with death, end-of-life decision making, and religion, so I now I'm adding that subject into the mix.

Baucus Comments on Income Tax Charitable Deduction and Estate Tax

Posted on March 31, 2009
Click "Continue Reading" to view the statements of Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) (chairman of the Senate Finance Committee) made on the floor of the Senate last week.  He opposed an amendment proposed by Senator John Thune (R-SD) to President Obama's budget...

10 Ways to Wreck Your Retirement

Posted on March 30, 2009
Here's a great, to the point article on what NOT to do to ensure you have sufficient retirement savings - from the National Center for Policy Analysis.

Baucus Bill Keeps $3.5 Million Estate Tax Exemption

Posted on March 28, 2009
From the GiftLaw eNewsletter: Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus (D-MT) introduced the Taxpayer Certainty and Relief Act of 2009 on March 26, 2009. The tax bill includes a $2.3 trillion middle class tax cut package and also creates a freeze on estate tax rates and major estate planning modifications...

What do I do with my Health Care Power of Attorney and Living Will?

Posted on March 27, 2009
So, you've been a responsible adult and have recently completed your estate plan.  As part of your plan, you have a Health Care Power of Attorney, Living Will, and HIPAA Authorization.  Now what? Here's what I recommend with regard to those documents: Keep the originals at home in a place that your Health Care Agent knows about...

Changes to NC's 529 College Savings Plan

Posted on March 21, 2009
Here are some recent favorable changes to North Carolina's National Collge Savings Program (529 Plan): For 2009, a participant may reallocate the account assets twice during the year, rather than just once. Included as Qualified High Education Expenses for 2009 and 2010 are expenditures for computer technology, computer equipment and Internet access for the beneficiary or his or her family (provided the beneficiary is enrolled at an Eligible Institution)...

Summary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

Posted on March 20, 2009
Here's a nice, easy to read Summary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which includes comparisons to prior law.

Alphabet Soup - the ABCs of Estate Planning

Posted on March 18, 2009
Here's another piece from my recent newsletter:      Putting Together   The Pieces It all boils down to the fear of mortality...

Tax Credit Options for First-Time Homebuyers

Posted on March 18, 2009
  First-Time Homebuyers Have Several Options to Maximize New Tax Credit   WASHINGTON — As part of the Treasury Department's consumer outreach effort and with the April 15 individual tax filing deadline approaching, the Internal Revenue Service today began a concerted effort to educate taxpayers about additional options at their disposal to claim the new $8,000 first-time homebuyer credit for 2009 home purchases...

New Stimulus Tax Breaks

Posted on March 17, 2009
The following is from my e-newsletter that went out this morning: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was signed into law on February 17th, includes a multitude of federal income tax changes. This article summarizes some of the personal tax changes:  One-Year AMT Patch Has Two PartsIf Congress had not taken action, millions more individuals would have been forced to pay the alternative Want to Buy a New Vehicle?     Uncle Sam is giving some help to eligible taxpayers who buy qualified vehicles between February 17 and December 31, 2009...

Don't Delay Reviewing Estate Plans

Posted on March 14, 2009
Yes, these are times of financial uncertainty and difficulty for many of us, and federal estate law is likely to change sometime later this year, but not reviewing and possibly revising one's estate plan now can be a big mistake.  Check out this NY Times article...

Reverse Mortgage Limit Increased to $625,000

Posted on March 12, 2009
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 increased the allowable amount of federally insured reverse mortgages to $625,000, up from $417,000.  The increase is effective for the remainder of the year.

SECU Strikes Back on Living Trusts and Real Estate

Posted on March 05, 2009

Nursing Homes for Veterans

Posted on February 28, 2009

How Obama's Budget May Affect Charitable Gifts

Posted on February 27, 2009

New IRS Withholding Tables

Posted on February 25, 2009
Available here on the IRS website.  Hopefully most us will see a little more money in our paychecks soon. Click here for the text of the full announcement.

A Bit of Rare Living Will Humor

Posted on February 25, 2009
MY LIVING WILL   Last night, my friend and I were sitting in the living room and I said to her, 'I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine   and fluids from a bottle...

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