Throughout our lives the goal is to accumulate financial resources. This is not just a self-serving endeavor; if you have a firm financial underpinning you will be in a position to provide opportunities to your family members and perhaps even engage in philanthropic activities that benefit the community as a whole.
While it could seem as though financial success is nothing but positive, the fact is that you must be careful as you are planning your estate if you have been fortunate enough to find yourself in possession of significant resources. This is because of the potential asset erosion that exists in the form of the federal estate tax.
Inventorying your assets in an effort to see where you stand is key, and the sooner you get started the better so you can take appropriate actions to gain estate tax efficiency if necessary. With this in mind you would do well to understand the fact that your life insurance policies would be considered part of your taxable estate if you own them personally.
A possible response to this would be to have your insurance policies purchased by a life insurance trust rather than buying them and owning them yourself as a taxpayer. If you go this route the policy proceeds will not be a part of your estate for tax purposes.
The creation of a life insurance trust can be a viable solution to those who are concerned about the ravages of the federal estate tax. To gain more information about these trusts in particular and estate planning in general, simply take a moment to arrange for a consultation with a seasoned, savvy Indianapolis estate planning attorney.
Mr. Kraft assists clients primarily in the areas of estate planning and administration, Medicaid planning, federal and state taxation, real estate and corporate law, bringing the added perspective of an accounting background to his work.
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