The IRS recently extended the period of time during which a surviving spouse can make a “portability election,” which enables the surviving spouse to reduce or eliminate federal estate taxes that otherwise may be due at the surviving spouse’s death. In 2022, every person has a federal estate tax exclusion amount – an amount that can be gifted...
When engaging in the estate planning process, it’s easy to focus exclusively on the big assets such as real estate, retirement assets, investment accounts, and life insurance. It’s equally easy to discount the importance of planning for items of personal property. This is a mistake, because personal items can often times carry value far beyond...
The City of Milwaukee has sent its 2022 “Notice of Assessed Value – Real Property” to all City of Milwaukee property owners. Almost every year the City revalues properties, which is the case again for 2022 after having performed a maintenance assessment for 2021. The recently released 2022 assessments are effective as of January 1, 2022, and...
For nearly a year, various proposals and so-called “frameworks” have been debated in Congress regarding changes to the federal estate and gift tax laws. Nearly all would have (i) reduced the amount that individuals could gift during lifetime or bequeath at death before application of federal transfer taxes, (ii) eliminated the so-called “step...
On April 28, 2021, President Joe Biden presented his proposed “American Families Plan” in an address to the nation. The address set forth hoped-for “once in a generation” investments focused on benefits to American families. These investments included expanded government-funded education, increases in various child and earned income credits, paid...
Davis|Kuelthau Estate Planning Attorney Patrick Furman will present to members of the Fox Valley Apartment Association (FVAA) on May 11, 2021 at the Stone Toad. Real estate ownership is a great way of accumulating wealth during your lifetime. During this seminar, Attorney Furman will discuss how your estate planning affects your real estate and...
On April 28th, 2021, President Biden revealed a slew of tax proposals. One of these proposals involved curtailing the use of a long-standing planning tool -- the Tax Deferred Like-Kind Exchange. Flowing from Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code, Section 1031 exchanges are a key component of the investment real estate market, especially for...
Over the past twenty years, there has been a dramatic change in the Estate tax laws. Given the Democratic control established in Washington, D.C. this month, additional Estate Tax reform is now a distinct possibility. Currently, each person can give away during lifetime, or distribute at death, an amount of $11.7 million without being subject to...
Following the recent November 2020 elections, individual tax planning faces further uncertainty for the remainder of this year and into the beginning of 2021. While it appears that Democrats will control the House of Representatives and the White House, under a Joe Biden presidency, it is not clear which political party will control the U.S....
"Do as adversaries do in law, strive mightily, but eat and drink as friends." William Shakespeare, The Taming of the Shrew, Act I, sc. 2 In the aftermath of the historic and divisive election, many of us welcome an end to the besiegement of ads, media commentaries, Facebook and Twitter postings, etc. that are not only uncivil, but in many cases...
