Is Estate Planning Dead?
No, really!! That was the front page headline on and industry publication I get called Insurancenewsnet Magazine. Without even opening up the magazine I know where the rant is headed. Never in the history of estate planning has there been more opportunity to be as creative and accomplish as much. Articles are popping up left ...read more
Estate Planning Life Insurance Finally Has Some Direction!
As of yesterday it appears that the President and Congress have reached a deal on a wide variety of tax issues. For the purposes of life insurance and estate tax the latest and most important news is the end to the repeal of estate tax and clear guidelines moving forward. I’ve been following this closely ...read more
The State Of Estate Tax Life Insurance!
We would have certainly guessed that Congress would have dealt with the estate tax issue by now but, well, we would have guessed wrong for the second year in a row. There is still a lot of uncertainty about the future of estate tax law and along with that is the very real need for ...read more
No More Holding Our Breath!
For those who were really thinking that the government would allow the estate tax repeal to continue into 2010, the year that estate taxes would simply disappear, it’s time to exhale. The House of Representatives has voted to keep the current estate tax exemption and taxation levels in place permanently. That bill has been forwarded ...read more
Die In 2010. Good Tax Planning?
As we crash toward the end of the year and one of the wackiest decades in a while, accountants for the high net worth and famous are all armed with the same good advice. 2010 is a good year to die, at least so far. What started in 2001 as one of the best tax ...read more
Did You Work All Your Life For The Government Or Your Family?
While it certainly isn’t our duty to work our tails off all of our adult lives just so we can leave the legacy of an estate to our heirs, I saw a study a few years ago that indicated that it really was the goal, a desire, of the boomer generation and our parent’s generation. ...read more
Can Your Family Raise Several Million Dollars Really Fast Or Should You Have Estate Tax Life Insurance?
If not, give this some thought! Estate taxes come due nine months after the death of the sole surviving spouse or individual whose net worth comprises the estate. While nine months may seem like a long enough time to wrap up an estate and gather the money to pay the taxes, I suspect that would ...read more
Product Restructuring Brings Renewed Interest In 2nd To Die Life Insurance!
Since the inception of 2nd to die or survivorship life insurance policies to protect estates from being pillaged by estate taxes, most of the policies were written as traditional universal life or whole life insurance. Cash value policies. When the cashless universal life with an external no lapse guarantee came along people were able to ...read more
Is Your Life Insurance Agent Missing In Action?
90% of life insurance agents cash those commission checks and forget anything they said about service. If this past year has taught us anything, we should have learned that a financial adviser that doesn’t stay on top of changes and doesn’t stay in touch can cost us tons of money, quickly. Transamerica just posted a ...read more
Holding My Breath! 7 Months Until Estate Tax Disappears!
Ok, I’m not really holding my breath, but you do realize that with 7 months left to go Congress needs to act or there will be a free estate tax ride in 2010. As the law now stands, the exemption has been rising steadily over the last 9 years from the malnourished $600,000 in 2000 ...read more
