Returning Value Blog

Last month, an article was posted, " How to Leave Your Home to Your Children." The article was not specific to the state of Alabama. Jan Neal, an attorney with Jan Neal Law Firm, LLC, offered to give us advice more specific to the State of Alabama. The state has specific rules, and below is Jan Neal's article:

Homes are one of the greatest and most expensive assets many people have. As a parent, you want your children to have your home after you die, but to ensure that your children are left with your home, there are some important steps that you must take.

Tax Strategist Insight

For individuals seeking to minimize taxes while also transferring wealth to the next generation, the income tax benefits provided under Internal Revenue Code Section 1202 can match up well with estate planning efforts. Section 1202 permits a taxpayer other than a corporation to exclude from taxable income a specified percentage of gain – and potentially the entire gain – from the sale or exchange of “qualified small business stock” (QSBS) held for more than five years. In addition, with proper planning, each recipient of a gift of QSBS is also eligible for the gain exclusion.

The Treasury Department, on April 26, 2022, released proposed regulations limiting the anti-clawback rule previously published on November 26, 2019. The proposed regulations – REG-118913-21 – address certain situations in which an estate could be taxed on gifts made by a donor after 2017 and before a reduction in the basic exclusion amount (BEA), wherein the gifts were free of gift tax when made.

If you have a will instead of a trust, choosing the right person to serve as the personal representative should be made only after careful consideration. While many of us have clarity on who our beneficiaries are, we often do not take considerable concern into the pivotal role of a personal representative.

Ways the new tax law affects federal estate taxes.

The “sandwich generation” accounts for a large segment of the population. These are people who find themselves caring for both their children and their parents at the same time. In some cases, this includes providing parents with financial support. As a result, estate planning — which traditionally focuses on providing for one’s children — has expanded in many cases to include aging parents as well.

If you’re planning on buying a home that you one day wish to pass on to your adult children, a joint purchase can reduce estate tax liability, provided the children have sufficient funds to finance their portion of the purchase. With the gift and estate tax exemption now set at an inflation-adjusted $10 million thanks to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, federal estate taxes are less of a concern for most families. However, the high exemption amount is only temporary, and there’s state estate tax risk to consider.