Board Certified, Estate Planning and Probate Law - Texas Board of Legal Specialization.
(To see this whole page, scroll down to date of last update.)
Special Note: Beginning January 1, 2010, the Federal Estate Tax expired. This is of keen interest to the survivors of anyone who dies in 2010 with an interest in an estate of $3,500,000 or more. This is good news for well-heeled families. But there is also a downside to the expiration of the estate tax. Now you do not automatically get a new income tax basis in inherited property equal to the fair market value of the property on the date of death. So if you sell the property you inherited in 2010 you may well pay a big capital gains tax that you would not have had to pay if the decedent had died in 2009 or earlier. (Some people think that the government will get more capital gains tax from the current situation than it will lose in estate tax.) This problem with the loss of new basis can be corrected in many cases if the executor of the decedent's estate takes certain steps (that are too complicated to discuss now in detail). Please just be aware that anyone who inherits something other than cash in 2010 needs to find out all about the new rules for the income tax basis of inherited property. Are you confused? Well, it gets worse. In 2011, the old Federal Estate Tax bounces back like it was when George Bush was elected in 2000. And there's a pretty good chance that Congress will step in and pass a new law that will make further changes.
I use free software. Click here to learn more about free software.
Material presented here is for your information. Get a lawyer for advice. Absent instructions, I don't release information about a client to anybody. But it's not smart to send confidential information by email. Except for email, all client information (and my business files) are on a computer that is not connected to the Internet.
This page was last updated January 3, 2009. Texas Estate Planning was revised on March 9, 2009. Estates of Decedents in Texas was revised March 6, 2009. What Liability Do I Have for my Hubby's Debts (and Vice Versa) was posted on March 22, 2004. Basic Rules for Distributions from Retirement Plans was revised March 5, 2009. Required Minimum Distributions-A Comedy in V Acts was revised on March 13, 2009. The laws are constantly changing. Ask your lawyer for an update on your situation.
Copyright 2009 by Henry C. McFadyen, Jr. All rights reserved.