Randall L Vonderheide PC - Logo

Attorney at Law

Phone: (765) 423-2557

Fax: (765) 423-4544

300 Main Street, Suite #500
Lafayette, IN 47901

Tax Free Gifts?


When estate planning is reduced to its simplest terms, there are only a few ways for someone to avoid paying estate tax on a large estate. These are spend it, give it away during your life, or leave it to charity.

There are many strategies used to transfer property during life. However, only a few transfers are truly tax free in that current value of the property transferred is not subject to gift tax and does not does use the exclusion amount for estate tax purposes. The most common and simplest transfer is the annual exclusion.

In 2018, an individual can make annual gifts up to $15,000 to any number of people without any gift tax on the transfers. The benefits from making $15,000 annual exclusion gifts should not be underestimated. In substantial estates, gifts of $15,000 can generate a federal estate tax savings of at least $6,000 for every transferee involved. In addition, by giving away property which is likely to grow in value, not only the gifted property, but all future appreciation on that property can be removed from the donor’s estate.

Steven Knecht helps clients plan for the management and distribution of their assets through wills and trusts. With 34+ years of experience, he is familiar with the legal wording creating a will or trust and can ensure it is correctly implemented in the event of your death. He can work with you and your family to create a legal document that works the way you want it to which may not occur with a document obtained through on-line resources. For more information concerning your estate and trust needs, call Steven Knecht for a personal consultation.

Filed to Ask a Lawyer, Estates, Wills, and Trusts

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