Los Angeles Probate Sirkin Law

What opportunities does estate planning unveil for your family?

Estate planning is a doorway to review your investments, plan for the future, and resolve family conflicts before death.   The process of estate planning generally starts with viewing your assets, and determining how they should pass to your loved ones.

As you review your assets, you may discover other things which may be opportunities to you, without you even knowing it.   First, review if you have assets which will produce enough income in your future years.   Next, determine how to pass the assets to your heirs and loved ones with the minimum capital gains tax.

Most people are not familiar with “step-up in basis.”   A step-up in basis occurs at death, which essentially means that the pre-death gains get extinguished, when the asset in inherited.   What assets qualify for a step-up in basis depend on the manner they are received.  If you give an asset to your child during your life, it does not receive the step-up in basis.   But, if your child inherits it from your trust, she/he does get the step-up in basis which may make possible hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings.

What about resolving family disputes in estates?  When you prepare a will or trust, discussing your feelings about your children, and your loved-ones, and not-so-loved ones lets the estate planning attorney better prepare your estate documents in your case.   Feelings are the basis for creating plans, no matter how you feel about your relatives.   Some people love their in-laws and treat their son or daughter-in-law like a child.  Others will tell the estate planning attorney that their goal is to save their child’s inheritance from the greedy hands of their son/daughter-in-law.

Invested asset generally have a rate of return.  You can estimate your rate of return when reviewing your assets.   This opens the door for you to talk to your investment advisor about your future goals.   Talk to us about how you intend to have your beneficiaries receive the assets. We will also discuss with you how you can avoid conservatorships.

In Los Angeles California: By: Mina Sirkin is a wealth planning attorney in Los Angeles and Woodland Hills Ca, who is Board Certified as a Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law in California. Ms. Sirkin frequently writes about planning your estate for wealth protection and future growth.  Call 818.340.4479 or email us here.