THE ACCIDENTAL ENTREPRENEUR PART IV
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference."- The Serenity Prayer- The first 100 days of President Trump’s administration have been...more
“Nowhere is wisdom more necessary than in the guidance of charitable impulses. Meaning well is only half our duty; thinking right is the other, and equally important, half.” — Samuel Gridley Howe...more
The April 2025 Section 7520 rate for use with estate planning techniques such as CRTs, CLTs, QPRTs and GRATs is 5.00%, which is 0.40% less than the March 2025 rate. The April applicable federal rate (“AFR”) for use with a...more
Typically, a parent wishes to treat their children equally in their estate plan and presumes they will achieve this goal by dividing all their assets into equal shares upon their death. Accordingly, they will designate their...more
On July 19, 2024, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) issued final regulations (“2024 regulations”) regarding the SECURE Act of 2019 and the SECURE Act 2.0 of 2022, which apply to 401(a) plans, 401(k) plans, traditional and...more
Recent changes implemented by Secure Act 2.0 provide a powerful retirement opportunity. Starting in 2024, Congress changed the way that 529 accounts work....more
Federal income tax law offers tax advantages to taxpayers that save money in specially designated accounts earmarked for future educational expenses (“529 Accounts”). In addition, federal income tax law also incentivizes...more
Earlier today I happened upon a really important article accenting the dangers of what often starts as an entirely innocent transaction. A site called the Street.com publishes a variety of articles about retirement and...more
A strong stock market and “soft landing” have generated significant wealth this year. The gift tax, estate tax and generation-skipping transfer tax are all imposed on the fair market value of assets at the time of transfer....more
Thanks to changes in the SECURE 2.0 Act, saving for education can now also help save for retirement. Beginning in 2024, the beneficiary of a 529 education savings plan account may roll certain excess account assets directly...more
Beneficiaries of qualified tuition programs under Section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code (“529 accounts”) will have a new opportunity starting January 1, 2024. Under SECURE Act 2.0 (the “Act”), 529 account beneficiaries...more
Estate planning in a digital world - Today, virtually everyone owns (or licenses) digital assets, from email and social media accounts to digital photos and videos to online banking and brokerage accounts. Unlike...more
The President signed the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which included SECURE Act 2.0, on December 29, 2022. SECURE Act 2.0 has over 90 provisions, some major and some minor; some mandatory and some optional; some...more
Section 529 college savings accounts are used for tax-free education investments. When considering whether to create a 529 account, there generally is some apprehension that the person you are saving for won’t pursue a...more
Historically, if one inherited an IRA, he or she was able to stretch the distributions over the beneficiary’s lifetime. However, under the SECURE Act, passed in 2019, those stretched out rules were changed for most...more
In this second blog post on the House Ways and Means Tax proposals, we address the proposed changes that will affect the taxation of trusts, estates, and retirement plans. As we discussed, on September 13, 2021, the...more
COVID-19 has created uncertainty in many aspects of our daily lives and caused an unprecedented disruption to the economy. Financial markets have been turned upside down, asset values have dropped, and interest rates have...more