Wills & Estate Planning

Help Your Parents Bypass Estate Taxes By Jeff Fleming ThirdAge Money Expert Question: My parents are in their late 80s and only have individual wills to each other. Mother has assets totaling about $500,000, and Dad over $1.6 million. They don't like trusts for the cost. I am afraid their estate will lose over 50 percent above the $675,000 deduction. What can I tell them to do immedi...Read more

Intricacies of Gifts Explained Question: I understand that I can give up to $10,000 to a child without incurring a gift tax. The child assumes the original basis of the stock. Let's say I have some stock I purchased at $50 a share. Now it is at $70 a share. If I gift 100 shares of stock to one child, is it considered a $7,000 gift or a $5,000 gift? Do I pay capital gains tax on ...Read more

Is It Time to Change Your Will? Experience teaches us that the only constant in life is change. But we don't always keep up with the important details -- such as updating wills and other important legal documents -- that should accompany big changes in our lives. Your will should always be tailored to your current life situation, not the one you faced five years ago, or maybe eve...Read more