858.792.5988

Serving San Diego for over 35 Years

Clients, Colleagues, and Friends,

I retired on Dec. 31, 2019, and officially closed my office, after 42 years of practicing law. I thank you all for your confidence in me and your friendship over the years. My colleague David Dufek who has shared the suite with me for the past two years is taking over my practice and will have all client files. Not only will David be taking over the practice, he remains in the suite and is taking over my fax and phone lines. You are free to leave your files with David or pick them up. David's practice like mine includes will, trusts, and probate, as well as personal injury work. He also does landlord - tenant work and debtor - creditor matters including bankruptcy.

I wish you all the best.

Alex

Do I Need to Worry about Estate Taxes?

You’re wise to research whether you need to be concerned about estate taxes because many taxes can be minimized or eliminated altogether.   There is no sense in paying more than you owe.  The big tax that makes the news is the federal estate tax; you may have also heard of the gift tax.

Federal Estate Tax

The current amount that you can pass without paying federal estate taxes is $5,400,00.  Husbands and wives may pass up to $10,800,000.

If your estate is likely to be close to that, it’s a good idea to consult with an estate planning attorney to consider tax planning.  When determining your asset base be sure to include real estate, retirement accounts, life insurance, investment accounts, bank accounts, any monies owed to you, and valuable personal property such as collections, art, jewelry, tools, and antiques.

Gift Tax

The gift tax also causes some concern when folks hear of the $14,000 gift tax “limit.”  In actuality, there is no gift tax limit; there is just a limit on the amount you can pass to each individual each year without using some of your life time gift and estate tax credit ($5,400,000, referred to above) or paying gift taxes.

You actually pass unlimited funds using the $14,000 calendar year exclusion; this figure jumps to $28,000, if you’re married.  And, you can pass $14,000/$28,000 to as many people as you would like.

You can also use that $5,400,000 per person exclusion during your lifetime if you’d like.  This is in addition to the $14,000/$28,000 annual gifts you can make.

Moreover, you can also pay unlimited tuition and medical expenses directly to the provider for as many people as you would like.

If you would like to minimize or if possible eliminate federal estate and gift taxes, call our office at (858) 792-5988 for a consultation.