January 27th, 2008

Utilizing A Trust To Reduce Or Eliminate Your Estate Tax

Did you know that your heirs may have to liquidate your home or rental properties immediately after your death, unless you create an Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT)?

Most people are interested in passing their wealth to their heirs. With the demise of the baby-boomer generation, an enormous transfer of wealth will occur during the coming years. The government is poised to capture this wealth through the estate tax, which is imposed upon death.

Currently, the Federal estate tax exemption amount is $1.5 million for individuals and $3 million for married couples. Any amount over the exemption will be taxed (Federal estate taxes average around 45%). Furthermore, this tax must be paid within nine months after you die.

January 10th, 2008

Bankruptcy Alternatives

BEFORE YOU DECIDE TO FILE, THINK ABOUT THE ALTERNATIVES TO BANKRUPTCY

Bankruptcy should be the last resort to getting out of debt. It will stay on your credit report for up to 10 years, guaranteeing that you will receive higher than normal interest rates on future financing close to the bankruptcy filing. Some debts will remain anyway such as recent IRS debt, student loan debt and debt incurred through fraud just to name a few. Bankruptcy may be better for someone who has little income, extremely high liabilities and no realistic way of paying those liabilities back within a reasonable time period.


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