estate taxes, you better start planning now

[rob10858]

since i've had to deal with this lately, let me give all of you you, young and old, some advice. according to fed estate tax laws, when you die, your spouse inherits all of your assets tax free. sounds great does'nt it? but dont let that fool you into thinking your family is in the clear as far as taxes go. when your spouse dies, your kids will bear the brunt of the taxes, both federal and state. a marital family trust, also known as an ab trust can save your family a bundle, if properly set up. talk to your lawyer or cpa about this . if you dont have a lawyer or cpa, get one. before my dad died, he pulled a large amount of money out of his trust, in the form of a teacher's annuity that he had accumlated for 40 years. , for my mom to live on. unfortunately, she died soon after, and that money became taxable. when i say taxable i mean from 40 to 60 percent. even though my parents had sep trusts, the irs is going to still get well over half of our inheritance. this means that dad and moms life ins policies, iras and other assets will be liquidated , simply to pay the estate taxes. i dont think that's what dad had in mind when he paid into these policies for all of these years. here's the kicker, after the irs gets their 2\3rd's of our estate, we will the be taxed again on the proceeds in the form of income taxes. double taxation my friends, don't think it doesnt happen. even if you think that trusts are only for the wealthy, they can benefit everyone. just imagine how painful it would be for your kids to have to sell your house, cars, boat, etc. simply to pay the taxes due. that's not much of a legacy to leave them. i've always thought that when i die, what will i care where my assets go. well i care now. plan ahead.

 

[Briar Hopper]

Thanks for the heads-up, packman, and my sympathies for your troubles. Definitely something I need to check out, make sure my kid is provided for without the government stealing any of it.

 

[LarryB]

It's way beyond criminal. Taxes don't stop there. Now when you spend what little you have left you most likely have to pay sales tax. It's a system way,way, WAY out of wack! Of course, thats the only way this system can support all the people who produce nothing.



Now I think i"ll go puke from disgust.

 

[rob10858]

look at it this way. you're folks buy and pay taxes on everthing they accumulate in a lifetime. when they die, the estate is taxed again. when the heirs receive what's left, it's taxed again. wasn't our country founded because of the problems of double taxation? well, what we have here is triple taxation, because the feds get your parents money while they are alive, after they die, and again when they are passed on down to the inheritors. the estate sales and auctions that you see usually arent for the heirs to turn their families' things into liquid cash, but to pay the estate taxes. to me , this ain't exactly what our forefathers had in mind. what would thomas jefferson think now, if he were to find out that 60 percent or more of his property and holdings would go into the huge govt piggybank, while his heirs were left only with the mules? that's the way i feel right now. the thing is, my dad and mom were actually more prepared than most folks on this matter, and still, have technically lost half of their estate. pitiful, there oughta be a law against it.