Intra-family gifts can be an important method of reducing the burden of estate taxes. An estate owner whose estate already consists primarily of family lands which she wants to preserve for her children may be able to avoid a forced sale to pay estate taxes by reducing the size of her estate through lifetime annual exclusion gifts. Similarly, estate owners who simply want to take advantage of the annual exclusion but cannot spare the cash can give partial or undivided interests in real property each year. There are various met5hods and criteria generally designed to give an interest in one’s estate to another. Attorney Silberstein will discuss these with you as part of your planning.
These materials are intended to assist readers as a learning aid but do not constitute legal advice and, given their purpose, may omit discussion of exceptions, qualifications, or other relevant information that may affect their utility in any planning situation. Diligent effort was made to insure the accuracy of these materials but Attorney Silberstein assumes no responsibility for any reader’s reliance on them and encourages all readers to verify all items by reviewing all original sources before applying them. The reader should consider all tax and other consequences of any planning technique discussed.
Last updated January 2011