Estate Flashcards
Separated Assets of a Married Couple
- Income earned prior to marriage
- Gift received prior to marriage
- Inheritance received prior to marriage
- Interest earned in separate account owned by one spouse
If assets are comingled, they are no longer separate assets
JTWROS
- Property can be held by anyone together
- Control, ownership, enjoyment equally shared
- On death, the property is passed to the remaining owners
- Avoids probate, not subject to will
- Can disclaim assets (not take inheritance)
Non-Spouse
- first to die rule: first to die may have 100% go I to estate unless other joint owner can prove contributions
Tenancy by the Entirety
- Only for spouses
- Shared ownership
- Creditors for specific spouse CAN’T claim the other spouse’s portion of the asset
- Joint creditors CAN claim the tenancy by the entirety asset
- Both spouses need to consent to terminate
- Can’t disclaim assets (not take inheritance)
- avoids probate
Tenancy in Common
- Each owner has a share equal to their own ownership (doesn’t have to be equal)
- Income is distributed by ownership %
- Owners can transfer their ownership to anyone at any time
- Owner % goes through probate
Assets That Avoid Probate
Anything with a beneficiary or survivorship avoids probate.
- Assets with beneficiaries (IRAs, retirement plans, etc.)
- JTWROS
- Revocable Living Trusts
- Payable on Death Accounts (POD)
- Totten Trust
Assets Subject to Probate
- Sole ownership assets
- Tenancy in Common assets
- Estate is the named beneficiary
- Community Property not JTWROS
Gross Estate (Inclusions)
- Single Owned Assets
- Estate is Beneficiary
- Ownership % in JTWROS/Tenancy in Entirety/Tenancy in Common
- Assets the dead has general powers on
- Gift taxes paid within 3 years of death (GSTT taxes are not included)
- Life Insurance owed by the dead (on themselves, others)
- Life insurance benefits paid to the estate
- Life insurance gifted within 3 years of death
Life insurance is included based on the replacement cost of the life insurance if owned on someone else.
Gifting Valuation
- Use the basis of the donor
Gifting Cap Gains for Recipient
- If sold and price is higher than donor basis, its a gain (price - donor basis)
- If sold and price is lower than the FMV at date of gift, it’s a loss (price - FMV)
- If sold and price is between donor original basis and FMV at date of gift, there is no gain or loss
Non-Taxable Gifts (deductible gifts)
- gifts to spouse
- gifts to qualified charities
- payments made DIRECTLY to educational tuition, medical/dental provider
- gifts to politicians
Gifts: Estate Implications
- Gifts subject to $12,920,000 lifetime exemption
- Can always use the $17,000 annual exclusion in addition to the $12,920,000 lifetime exemption
- Gift taxes paid within 3 years of death are added back to the Gross Estate
- Taxable gifts (where gift taxes were not paid), are added back to the Taxable Estate
- Gift taxes paid/payable on the year of death are subtracted from / added to the Tentative Tax
Powers of Attorney
- Power of Attorney (traditional, non-durable): ends at incompetency
- Durable Power of Attorney: stays live through incompetency
- Springing Power of Attorney: starts when the incompetency begins
Trusts: Power of Appointment
Power: ability to determine who can enjoy, use, and possess the property subject to the power
General Power: person can do what they want
- exercise, lapse, release: both gift and estate tax
- 5 or 5 Power: no gift tax, estate tax: greater of 5% of FMV or $5,000
Ascertainable Standard: person can only do things related to health, education, maintenance and support (HEMS)
- no gift or estate tax
Special Power: person can only do things with the consent of the creator of the power having Substantial Adverse Interest
- no gift or estate tax
Lapse: don’t exercise the power over a period of time
Exercise: take action for the beneficiary
Release: relinquish control
Trust: Gift and Estate Tax (General Power)
Based on if the General Power was exercised, released or lapsed
- Gift Tax: taxed, lapsed with a 5 or 5 power: not taxed
- Estate Tax: taxed, exercised released or lapsed with a 5 or 5 power: greater of the 5 or 5 is taxed
Trust: General Power: 5 or 5 Power
- A 5 or 5 general power is a limited power where the beneficiary can take out $5,000 or 5% of the trust assets without the full trust being part of the beneficiaries full estate
- If 5 or 5 power is not used that year (lapsed), it is not taxed as a gift
- If beneficiary with 5 or 5 power dies, the estate is only subject to the greater of $5,000 or 5% of the trust assets
Trust: Grantor Trust
- Also called tainted or defective trust
- If the donor has any control or benefit of the trust, its a grantor trust
- Income from the grantor trust is paid by the grantor
- The grantor trust assets are added to the gross estate
Trust: Definitions
- Trust includes property (corpus, principal), grantor, trustee (legal title), beneficiary (equitable title)
- Grantor and trustee must be legally competent
Trust: Simple vs. Complex
Simple Trust
- Marital, QTIP, 2503(b) - bad boy
- Pass through income only to beneficiaries
Complex Trust
- separate tax entities
- 2503(c) is a complex trust
- can be irrevocable or revocable
- can pass through income or principal/assets
- grantor has no control
Trust: Crummey Trust
- Irrevocable Trust with Demand Rights
- minor (through their guardian) can demand a payout of the lessor of the gift contribution or the annual $17,000 exclusion
- a trust with Crummy provisions allows for gifts of present interest ($17,000 annual exclusion) even if the beneficiary doesn’t take anything out each year.
Bypass Trust (“B” Trust)
- Property transferred to trust at death
- Income only distributed to spouse or other individual
- Dead retains control after death (post-mortem control)
- Dead can name beneficiaries after original person paid from the trust dies
- uses the lifetime exception to shelter estate taxes of the first to die spouse
- assets bypass the surviving spouse’s estate and pass to the beneficiaries estate when second spouse dies
- also known as Family Trust, Credit Shelter, Unified Credit Shelter
Trusts: A, B, C
A Trust
- Martial Trust
B Trust
- Bybass Trust
C Trust
- QTIP Trust