What is the Gift Tax?
The Congress thought about this solution and they enacted the gift tax rules. Essentially, the gift tax rules limit the amount of gifts you...
Why Be Concerned Since the Estate Tax is Supposed to Disappear?
That is not a bet you should make. For even if the tax goes away, the income tax “step-up-in-basis” provision for the most part...
If You’re a Spouse Beneficiary
The spouse has more options than a non-spouse beneficiary. Here are the four options:
You can rollover the deceased’s IRA to your own. This is...
How to Work With Non-spouse Beneficiaries
Non-spouse beneficiaries cannot do IRA rollovers as per IRC Section 408(d)(3)(C). Nor can they use the 60-day rollover rule. However, they can possibly move...
You Inherit an IRA, What Do You Do?
Here are the steps, and we’ll discuss them in order of priority:
Separate your portion from other IRA beneficiaries.
Retitle the IRA.
Name a beneficiary.
Move it to...
Income in Respect of a Decedent (IRD)
Understanding the tax deductibility of income in respect of a decedent (IRD) is gaining significance as the baby boomer generation reaches retirement. Many parents...
The Problem of Being Too Rich
Unfortunately, although BAPCPA has created an exemption for all types of retirement plans, the exemption for those plans is not unlimited in all cases....
Why It’s Not Only Those Over 70½ Who Are at Risk
Retirees of any age with large IRAs must understand that their IRAs can be hit with estate and income taxes when they die. And...
Properly Naming Beneficiaries
The Stretch IRA
The stretch IRA is the ability of the named beneficiaries to spread required post-death distributions over their life expectancy according to the...
Spousal Advantages
When it comes to the spouse inheriting the IRA, the spouse gets special flexibility. (This should make you feel good that you’ll be dead...