Does Your State Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?

There is a lot of focus recently on the federal estate and gift tax and the potential for changes due, and rightly so.  The tax rate is 40% of amounts gifted and left at your death above the exemption amount, which is likely to go down.  But, what a lot of people don’t consider is that some states have their own estate taxes, and in a few cases, inheritance tax.  Texas has neither, but I thought a blog on state estate and inheritance taxes would be a good follow-up to my recent blog on issues to consider when moving to a new state.  See that here:  https://galligan-law.com/should-you-update-your-estate-plan-if-you-move-to-a-new-state/

Although it has fallen out of favor recently, many states still have either an estate tax, inheritance tax or some combination.  According to The Tax Foundation’s recent article entitled “Does Your State Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?”  17 states and the District of Columbia all apply some or both of these taxes.  Hawaii and the State of Washington have the highest estate tax rates in the nation at 20%, and there are 8 states and DC that are next that apply a top rate of 16%. Massachusetts and Oregon have the lowest exemption levels at $1 million, and Connecticut has the highest exemption level at $7.1 million.    For the New York readers, the estate tax exemption is at nearly $6 million and applies rates from about 3% up to 16% depending on how far you exceed the exemption.

6 states have inheritance taxes.  Inheritance taxes, unlike estate taxes, apply a tax rate based relationship of the decedent to the beneficiary, meaning it applies even if the estate is relatively small.  Nebraska has the highest top rate at 18%, and Maryland has the lowest top rate at 10%. All 6 of these states exempt spouses, and some fully or partially exempt immediate relatives.  For you Pennsylvania readers, this could be anywhere from 0% to spouse and 15% to individuals who aren’t close family members.

Estate taxes are paid by the decedent’s estate, prior to asset distribution to the heirs. The tax is imposed on the overall value of the estate less the exemption applicable to that state. Inheritance taxes may be due from either the estate or the recipient of a bequest and are based on the amount distributed to each beneficiary.

As I mentioned earlier, most states have been steering away from estate or inheritance taxes or have upped their exemption levels because estate taxes without the federal exemption hurt a state’s competitiveness. Delaware repealed its estate tax at the start of 2018, and New Jersey finished its phase out of its estate tax at the same time, though it still applies its inheritance tax.

Connecticut still is phasing in an increase to its estate exemption. They plan to mirror the federal exemption by 2023. However, as the exemption increases, the minimum tax rate also increases. In 2020, rates started at 10%, while the lowest rate in 2021 is 10.8%. Connecticut’s estate tax will have a flat rate of 12% by 2023.

In Vermont, they’re still phasing in an estate exemption increase. They are upping the exemption to $5 million on January 1, compared to $4.5 million in 2020.

DC has gone in the opposite direction. The District has dropped its estate tax exemption from $5.8 million to $4 million in 2021, but at the same time decreased its bottom rate from 12% to 11.2%.

So, it is of course a good idea to consider reviewing your estate plan when relocating, but especially if you move to states that have estate or inheritance tax.  Talk to an experienced estate planning attorney about how estate and inheritance taxes affect you in your new state.

Reference: The Tax Foundation (Feb. 24, 2021) “Does Your State Have an Estate or Inheritance Tax?”

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Should you Update your Estate Plan if you Move to a New State?

Moving to a new state might mean estate plan changes for legal reasons, but more likely because of your change in circumstances.

I recently had a discussion with a client regarding whether and how they should update their estate plan if they move to a new state.  That conversation comes up frequently, so I thought it would be a great topic for a blog article.

The U.S. Constitution requires states to give “full faith and credit” to the laws of other states. As a result, your will, trust, power of attorney, and health care proxy executed in one state should be honored in every other state.  However, even if they are “valid” in another state doesn’t mean they will work well under that state’s laws or that they will work as well in practice, as described in Wealth Advisor’s recent article entitled “Moving to a New State? Be Sure to Update Your Estate Plan.”

Your last will should still be legally valid in the new state. However, the new state may have different probate laws that make certain provisions of the will invalid or no longer ideal.  By way of example, Texas has a unique form of probate in which there is an independent executor.  This minimizes court involvement in the probate which is what most clients prefer.  We often revise wills of clients moving to Texas to authorize independent executors.  Similarly, other states might have other unique provisions that you would want to utilize in that state.

This can also happen with revocable trusts, however trusts tend to be more portable.  Once a trust is funded, you can change any provisions you need to ensure it works in that state and you can elect that state’s laws.  So, it might need to be updated, but often is more portability.

You may also want to update your estate plan if you move to a new state to change your powers of attorney and health care directives. These estate planning documents should be honored from state to state, but sometimes banks, medical professionals, and financial and health care institutions will refuse to accept the documents and forms.  Each state has very specific roles on how these are created and what they can accomplish, so it is typically advisable to create new ancillary documents based upon the law of the new state.

It is also helpful to keep in mind that it is practically important to redo ancillaries documents because lawyers and judges aren’t the ones reviewing them.  Court systems will know how a will or trust applies under that state’s law because lawyers are involved in the process.  Incapacity documents such as the power of attorney and health care directives are reviewed by non-legal professionals such as title companies, doctors, bankers or their support staffs.  So practically speaking, it is easier to give them what they expect to see as they won’t have the expertise to recognize whether an out of state document is valid.

You should also know that the execution requirements of your estate planning documents may be different, depending on the state.

For example, there are some states that require witnesses on durable powers of attorney, and others that do not. A state that requires witnesses may not allow a power of attorney without witnesses to be used to convey real estate, even though the document is perfectly valid in the state where it was drafted and signed.

When you move to a different state, it’s also a smart move to consult with an experienced estate planning attorney because interstate moves often mean another change in circumstances that would necessitate a change to the estate plan.  For example, the move might have been because of a change in income, marital state or to support a family member in ill health.  You can see here for other reasons to consider updating your estate plan at that point.  https://galligan-law.com/when-to-update-your-estate-plan/

Moreover, there may be practical changes you want to make. For example, you may want to change your trustee or agent under a power of attorney based on which family members will be closer in proximity or to someone familiar with the new property.  This is also a good time to review trust funding as you will have new assets.

For all these reasons, when you move out of state it’s wise to have an experienced estate planning attorney in your new home state review your estate planning documents.

Reference: Wealth Advisor (Jan. 26, 2021) “Moving to a New State? Be Sure to Update Your Estate Plan”

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What’s the Best Way to Go with Loans to Family?

Loans to family must be treated like real, enforceable loans to third parties if you don’t want to run afoul of gift and estate tax.

Loans are a terrific way for parents to foster a child’s independence, encourage responsibility and signal their confidence that their child can succeed on their own.  They also don’t use any of your lifetime gift tax exemption ($11.58 million per person).  But, loans to family highlight some important tax and family concerns you should be aware of.

Kiplinger’s recent article entitled “Gifts vs. Loans: Don’t Be Generous to a Fault” tells the story of Mary Bolles. The case illustrates that parents’ actions and expectations as to repayment of the loan can recharacterize the “loan” to a taxable “gift.” That can mean unintended gift tax consequences. Mary was the mother of five who made numerous loans to each of her children. She kept copious records of each loan and any repayments. Between 1985 and 2007, she loaned her son Peter about $1.06 million to support his business ventures — despite the fact that it soon was clear he wouldn’t be able to make any more payments on the loans. None of the loans to Peter was ever formally documented, and Mary never tried to enforce the collection of any of the loans.

In late 1989, Mary created a revocable living trust, which specifically excluded Peter from any distribution of her estate when she died. While she later amended her trust to no longer exclude him, she included a formula to account for the “loans” he received in making distributions to her children. After her death, the IRS said that the entire amount of the loans, plus accrued interest, was part of her estate. They assessed the estate with a tax deficiency of $1.15 million.  The estate said the entire amount was a gift.

At trial, the court considered the factors to be weighed in deciding whether the advances were loans or gifts. Noting that the determination depends not only on how the loan was structured and documented, the court also explained that in the case of a loan to family, a major factor is whether there was an actual expectation of repayment and intent to enforce the debt.

The court compromised and held that any advances prior to 1990 were loans (about $425,000), since the evidence suggested that Mary reasonably expected that Peter would repay the loans, until he was disinherited from her trust in late 1989. The court said that the money given to Peter after he was disinherited — from 1990 onward — were gifts.

The decision shows that if you’re considering taking advantage of the elevated gift tax exemption before it sunsets, review any outstanding family loan transactions. You should see the extent to which those loans may have been transmuted into gifts over the years—which may adversely impact the amount of your remaining available exemption. The safest way to do this would be to consult an experienced estate planning attorney, who can help you safely navigate these complex rules.

When making a gift there are other considerations.  If you will make such a loan, treat it as such.  Have a lawyer prepare a loan agreement.  Create a reasonable expectation that the loan will be repaid and that you’ll enforce it.  This isn’t just for tax reasons, it is to maintain family harmony.  Giving a “loan” to one child may not sit well with the others, so make sure it is honored.  You should also consider the impact this will have on state taxes, income taxes, and long-term care planning if relevant to you.

To be safe, follow these simple steps:

  1. Document the loan transaction between the lender and borrower.
  2. Charge interest based on the government rates (AFR), which are published monthly.
  3. Make sure the borrower will have enough net worth to likely repay the loan.
  4. Get a copy of the borrower’s financial statement.
  5. If the loan sets out periodic payments, make certain these are made on time.
  6. Report the interest income you receive from the borrower on your income tax return.

Make sure that you do any intra-family loans properly to avoid any future issues.

Reference: Kiplinger (Oct. 7, 2020) “Gifts vs. Loans: Don’t Be Generous to a Fault”

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