2023 Tax Update
IRA Owners Get More Tax Relief and Other “Fixes” If your head is spinning from all the changes to IRA rules in the last few years, you’re not alone. On December 20, 2019, Congress passed a sweeping retirement reform bill known as the SECURE Act, which changed the rules for retirement accounts in several important…
Read MoreSECURE 2.0 Act | Congress Passed New Retirement Account Reforms: Here’s What You Should Know
Congress Passed New Retirement Account Reforms: Here’s What You Should Know In December 2022, Congress passed the “SECURE 2.0 Act” as part of the 2023 $1.7 trillion omnibus spending bill, and President Biden signed it into law on December 29, 2022. Hundreds of pages in the bill pertain to retirement account reforms, so we thought…
Read MoreAdvance Health Care Directives: Living Wills and Health Care Proxies
Planning Strategies This is the second full installment in our Estate Planning Series. Our first installment covered Durable Power of Attorney. In this piece, we’ll cover advance health care directives. What Are Advance Directives? Advance Health Care Directives are legal documents that describe the extent of medical treatment you want to receive should you become unconscious…
Read MoreThe Importance of Having a Durable Power of Attorney
Planning Strategies This is the first full installment in our 2022 Estate Planning Series, covering the basics of five essential estate planning documents. A durable power of attorney is a legal document that allows you to choose someone to act on your behalf as to certain legal and financial matters in the event you are…
Read MoreBasic Estate Planning Documents Everyone Should Have
Planning Strategies When working with a trusts and estates lawyer to create a new estate plan, a client should end up with the following documents: Durable Power of Attorney Health Care Proxy (also known as a Health Care Power of Attorney) Living Will Will Revocable Trust (in some cases) In this introductory article, we will…
Read More2021 Tax Update
WHAT CAN WE EXPECT IN THE UPCOMING TAX BILL? On September 13, 2021, the House Ways and Means Committee released a list of revenue-raising items to be included in the upcoming fiscal year 2022 budget reconciliation bill.[1] These measures are designed to pay for various federal spending programs in the bill, known as the “Build…
Read MoreUpdate on Possible Tax Changes in 2021
Planning Strategies The following is a summary of recently released tax proposals by President Joe Biden as well as other Democratic leaders. It is important to remind ourselves that these are proposals and that their chance of passage is uncertain. Nonetheless, we do anticipate that the United States is entering an era of higher taxes.…
Read MoreTax Changes Under the Biden Administration
Planning Strategies President Biden campaigned on increasing taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Given the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and a Democratic majority in both houses of Congress, we expect to see some tax increases. What will they be? When will they take effect? This article addresses both of these questions. In the first half…
Read MoreTax Update: California Modifies Property Tax Rules for Parent-to-Child Transfers
Planning Strategies Proposition 13 is a California state constitutional amendment that passed by referendum in 1978. Under this rule, California property taxes are based on the purchase price of a property and are subject to small annual increases over time despite a greater rise in the property’s actual value. However, when a property is sold…
Read MorePost-Election Tax Planning Update
Planning Strategies Joe Biden campaigned on raising taxes on dividends and capital gains for persons earning over $1 million a year. He’s also pushed for eliminating stepped-up basis at death and estate tax increases. However, it remains to be seen what tax changes will actually be enacted in 2021 or when they will take effect. …
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