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Estate Planning

North Carolina Estate Planning Blog

Consumer-oriented blog on estate planning, probate, tax law, with a focus on North Carolina.
By Gregory Herman-Giddens

Post Frequency: 3.5/day

Last Entry: April 01, 2011 at 09:52:45

Presidential Candidates' Tax Proposals

Posted on September 03, 2008
The following is from the latest GiftLaw eNewsletter's Washington Hotline: Presidential Candidate Barack Obama's Proposals Middle Class Tax Cuts - The general goal of the Obama plan is to cut taxes for the middle class and raise taxes for higher-income persons...

Just for Laughs - an Estate Planning Joke!

Posted on August 25, 2008
I've seen this joke around a couple of times, and thought I would bring a little levity to the site by publishing it - don't know who came up with it. My apologies if anyone is offended.Dan was a single guy living at home with his father and working in the family business...

Chatham County Clerk Now Requires Approval of Attorneys Fees in Probate

Posted on August 20, 2008
When I started practicing 20 years ago, Clerks of Court generally required approval of attorneys fees paid in probate proceedings. This required the attorney to spend extra time preparing a Petition and Order for Approval of Attorneys Fees, which of course resulted in an increase in the total fees...

IRS Publishes Report on 2005 Gifts

Posted on August 19, 2008
The IRS recently published a report on lifetime wealth transfers in 2005 as disclosed to the IRS on federal gift tax returns. The statistics are interesting to review - for tax and estate planning nerds, anyway. The report also contains a history of the federal gift tax...

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Burke County, NC One of America's Fastest-Aging Counties

Posted on August 17, 2008
Burke County, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, is one of the fastest-aging counties in the country, according a recent article in Forbes. Morganton, Burke County's largest city, is a pleasant enough place, but apparently young people are moving out, and few are moving in, as the general population grew only ...

Change to NC Estate Tax for Out--of-State Property

Posted on August 14, 2008
I'm back from vacation, furiously trying to catch up on things (as if!), but thought I would quickly add this tidbit from the NC Department of Revenue. It only applies to returns of NC residents who owned real estate in one or more other states, and generally results in a reduced amount of tax...

For Tithing or Other Gifts to Church - Get Valid Receipt

Posted on August 01, 2008
If you regularly give to your church, make sure you get an acknowledgment letter that complies with IRS regulations - otherwise you are not entitled to deduct the gifts. Furthermore, tax preparers should not include deductions for gifts unless the taxpayer can produce the proper receipts...

Phishing for Probate

Posted on July 28, 2008
Today I received an email message that reads as follows: Good Day, My name is Sarah Brown. I work as an executive partner for the firm Mayer Brown Watford consulting,U.K. We are conducting an inquiry on behalf of Deutsche Bank, the German conglomerate...

Schiavo, Rivera, Who's Next?

Posted on July 28, 2008
I read in the paper this morning about the case of Janet Rivera, a comatose 46 year old California woman. A heart attack two years ago caused the condition. The Fresno County Public Guardian's office, who is serving as her guardian, had life support withdrawn on July 11, but Rivera's family was able to get the court to order temporary support until a hearing a hearing schedule for tomorrow...

Two Federal Estate Tax Bills Introduced

Posted on July 25, 2008
This news is courtesy of Roger Brooks and the Association for Advanced Life Underwriting. The introduction of two estate tax bills - one in the Senate (S. 3284) and the other in the House (H.R. 6499) - enhances the likelihood of ultimate (more probable in 2009 than 2008) estate tax reform...

Tired of Your CRT? Sell It!

Posted on July 24, 2008
If you set up a Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) in the past but now wish you could get a lump sum back from the trust, it may be possible to sell your interest in the trust. In a 2001 Private Letter Ruling (200127023), the IRS ruled that the sale of an income interest in a trust is a sale of a capital asset...

SSA Has New Retirement Calculator

Posted on July 24, 2008
The Social Security Administration has a new calculator on its website called the Retirement Estimator. It allows one to estimate benefits based on different earnings estimates and expected retirement ages. I tried it out and it's quick and easy...

Parents - Don't Forget This Important Aspect of Parenting

Posted on July 19, 2008
This afternoon I'm sitting in Koury Natatorium on the UNC Campus watching my son and hundreds of other kids compete in the Chapel Hill Summer Swim League Championship meet. This is my 15th year of doing this, so I have spent many, many hours watching my kids swim, volunteering, etc...

NC Gift Tax Repealed After All

Posted on July 17, 2008
In what comes as a surprise to me, based on the last news as reported in my postings in the last week or so, yesterday Governor Easley signed HB2436, which includes (page 201) a complete repeal of the North Carolina Gift Tax (Article 6 of Chapter 105 of General Statutes), effective January 1, 2009...

FDIC Insurance Coverage for Trust Accounts

Posted on July 16, 2008
With the recent failure of IndyMac Bank and even large banks like Wachovia reporting astounding losses, some folks are becoming increasingly concerned about the safety of their money. As most everyone knows, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) covers cash deposit accounts up to $100,000 per person...

Tax Extenders Bill Still in Limbo

Posted on July 14, 2008
Democrat and Republican Senate leaders continue to clash over the tax extenders bill, which contains an extension of the $100,00 IRA charitable rollover and other income tax benefits. Stay tuned...

BB&T Wealth Management Ranked #1

Posted on July 14, 2008
North Carolina's own BB&T Wealth Management was rated as the most prestigious regional bank wealth manager by high net-worth consumers, according to the 2008 Luxury Brand Status Index survey. The survey is conducted by the Luxury Institute in New York, but the results report must be purchased...

Separate Retirement Plan Trust is the Best Choice

Posted on July 11, 2008
I generally recommend that persons with IRA or qualified plan assets of at least $200,000 should consider a Standalone IRA/Retirement Plan Trust. There are many reasons that justify creation of a separate trust just to receive retirement plan assets...

Assignment of IRA by Estate to Charity is Not a Transfer

Posted on July 08, 2008
These are the facts from a recent Private Letter Ruling from the IRS: The Decedent had a "pour-over" will requiring that his probate estate be added to his living trust. The trust provided that upon Decedent's death distributions are to be made to certain beneficiaries with the remainder going to four charitable organizations...

Easley Wins - Gift Tax Here Until at least 2010

Posted on July 04, 2008
Yesterday the North Carolina General Assembly reached an agreement on the budget, but it did not include a repeal of the gift tax in 2009. Instead, the repeal was put off until 2010. However, given the state of the economy and continuing budget woes, I for one won't count on repeal until it actually takes place...

Easley Wants the Gift Tax to Stay

Posted on July 03, 2008
My last entry was about SB1756, which includes a complete repeal of the North Carolina gift tax. However, Governor Easley and others have been strongly urging the General Assembly to delete the repeal provisions. If you would like to see the gift tax repealed, please email or call the office of your legislators and ask them to support repeal of the gift tax, effective 1/1/09...

Extension Period Shortened for Forms 1065, 1041and 8804

Posted on July 02, 2008
Today the IRS issued temporary and proposed regulations that reduce the extension of time to file tax returns for certain businesses that generate Schedules K-1 and other similar statements to five months. (The current period is six months.) This change will be effective for extension requests for tax returns due on or after January 1, 2009, and applies to entities that file the following returns and forms that have a tax year ending on or after September 30, 2008: • Form 1065, U...

NC Gift Tax to be Repealed?

Posted on June 27, 2008
Budget negotiators for the North Carolina House and Senate agreed on tax breaks in the 2008-09 spending plan, which include, most notably for me and many of my clients, a repeal of the state gift tax. North Carolina is one of only four states with a gift tax...

Life Insurance Premium Financing

Posted on June 26, 2008
Many of us could use more insurance for estate planning purposes, such as financial security for loved ones or payment of estate taxes. Most of us also have an unused asset, our insurance capacity. That is the amount of insurance for which we could qualify and is based on the projected value of our assets at life expectancy...

IRS Mileage Rates to Increase July 1, 2008

Posted on June 24, 2008
As a result of the ever-rising gas prices, the IRS has increased the optional standard mileage rates for July 1 through December 31, 2008. For business, the rate is now 58.5 cents per mile, and 27 cents per mile for medical and moving. The charitable rate remains unchanged at 14 cents a mile...

Asset Protection Mistakes - A Baker's Dozen

Posted on June 23, 2008
These days, just about everyone should take care to protect their assets from possible lawsuits or other problems. Here are 10 things to watch out for: Don't keep money in a joint account, even with a spouse. Don't own the car of an adult child, or keep him or her on your policy...

Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008 Fails

Posted on June 14, 2008
The Renewable Energy and Job Creation Act of 2008, the latest version of legislation featuring several tax extenders, alternative minimum tax relief and energy provisions failed to pass the Senate. Championed by Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus, the bill faced stiff opposition from Republicans who objected to the tax offsets, most notably taxing offshore deferred compensation of hedge fund managers and delaying a business tax interest deduction until 2019...

Summary Judgment Improper in Contract Case where Undue Influence and Lack of Consideration Alleged

Posted on June 12, 2008
Bruce and Kathryn Barbee, an elderly North Carolina couple, owned a $450,000 vacation home. Since Bruce was legally blind, he relied on his wife to sign documents for him. After Kathryn went into a nursing home, their long time friends (the defendants) came to visit bearing a contract to rent the vacation property for $300 a month, with an option to purchase it for $150,000...

Attention Professors - Watch Out for Deferred Compensation Tax Law Change

Posted on June 10, 2008
With all of the universities in this area, this recent change in the law dealing with deferred compensation (IRC Section 409A) may be of interest to many local readers. The new law may affect faculty who have a 10 month teaching contract but elect to be paid over a 12 month period...

Estate Planning for Parents

Posted on June 03, 2008
Parents of minor children would be well-served to view this video, Estate Planning for Parents, which features my WealthCounsel colleague Alexis Martin Neely on the Today show. Neely is a California lawyer and author of a new book for parents about planning for the care of their kids...

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