A grantor retained annuity trust (GRAT) is an irrevocable grantor trust you can use to make large financial gifts to your loved ones while also minimizing gift tax liability. These financial gifts remove future appreciation from your estate, reducing the amount that will be subject to estate tax at your death. However, gift tax liability could apply. In this case, the trust creator would pay at the onset. You create a GRAT and then fund it with accounts and property. People expect these to appreciate over the GRAT’s term. Then, you receive a fixed annuity payment, based on the trust’s original value, for a specified time. Once the period ends, the court transfers the remainder of the trust’s accounts and property to your named beneficiary.
Author Archives: Skvarna Law
Assets, Estate Administration, Estate Attorney, Estate Planning, Trusts
Medical Equipment Left Behind
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Jul
Jul
Unless someone carefully declutters throughout their entire lifetime, it is unlikely that they will die without possessions. What’s more, when someone struggles at the end of their life with an ailment or age-related decline, they may require certain medical items:
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Jul
Founded in 1998, PayPal was not the first company to offer online payments, but it was the first to obtain widespread adoption and is the top payment application among Americans today, with around three out of four respondents saying they are active users.
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Jul
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This person is a trusted decision maker who is tasked with handling all matters that relate to your trust. Depending on the type of trust, you could be the trustee in the beginning and need someone else to act as trustee only when you are unable to manage the trust, or you could select a trustee to act immediately.
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Jul
Jul
In more recent years, states simplify probate procedures. For example, the Uniform Probate Code (UPC) consists of laws written by a group of national experts. As such, it helps to standardize and streamline probate. As a result, most states have adopted these standards. Across state lines, the probate process generally works more effectively.
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Jun
Jun
If you are in a long-term relationship with your partner but remain unmarried, you may want to take advantage of these benefits. However, joint trusts do not work for unmarried couples. This may not seem fair. However, there are some important reasons why unmarried couples should consider separate rather than joint trusts.
09
Jun
Jun
Seek out resources if you lost your job through no fault of your own. Some employers offer severance packages. And in many cases, you could collect unemployment benefits. Depending on state law and your former employer’s policy, a payout of accrued vacation and sick leave may fund source of liquidity to sustain you for a while.
Assets, California Law, Celebrity Estates, Estate Administration, Estate Planning, Trusts
Celebrity Trust: Elvis Presley
02
Jun
Jun
Born in 1968 to Elvis and Priscilla Presley, Lisa Marie followed in the footsteps of her father as far as heart trouble. While her father died from a heart attack at the age of 42, she died due to heart problems nearly 46 years later, in January 2023.
Even as the coronavirus pandemic wanes, many older adults remain socially isolated and vulnerable to financial victimization. Robocalls, emails scams, and catfishing on social media platforms, con artists bombard the elderly routinely seeking financial gain. However, the National Adult Protective Services Association (NAPSA) reports that most financial exploitation cases the organization receives are from individuals known to the victims, such as relatives, caregivers, friends, and neighbors.
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May
May
Military personnel are entitled to a host of benefits that can significantly impact estate planning. These include pensions, healthcare benefits, survivor benefits, and life insurance programs. These benefits, when properly incorporated into an estate plan, can provide a significant financial safety net for the service member’s family.