Federal Gift and Estate Tax Planning- Part 2 of 7: Leveraging the Basic and Annual Exclusions

Maximizing Your Basic Exclusion The primary reason the vast majority of North Carolinians avoid estate tax is by simply using their basic gift and estate tax exclusion which is historically high. The 2024 amount is $13,610,000 per individual and $27,220,000 for a married couple who elects portability.  Although some individuals may accomplish this without any planning, if an individual has a large estate, even if it is currently below the basic exclusion, there is simple planning which can leverage their basic exclusion. This leverage is due to the future growth of the gifted assets becoming removed from an individual’s taxable … Continue reading →

Federal Gift and Estate Tax Planning- Part 1 of 7: The Unlimited Marital and Charitable Deductions

As discussed in prior blogs, North Carolina does not assess an estate or inheritance tax and the federal unified gift and estate tax exclusion as of 2024 is $13,610,000 per individual and $27,220,000 for a married couple who elects portability. Accordingly, the vast majority of North Carolinians do not have taxable estates. However, with the exclusion scheduled to sunset on January 1, 2026, and thereafter be greatly reduced to affect many more North Carolinians, I’d like to provide a summary of the most effective and popular strategies to reduce or eliminate gift and estate taxes.  In part 1, I will … Continue reading →