Yes, if he recovers, I’ll tell his bookkeeper in case he ever mentions to her he’s going to do it. He doesn’t need two funerals paid for.
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We planned and prepaid my dad’s funeral when we arranged my step mom’s funeral. My sisters and I just did it, and believe me, it helped a lot when he actually died, and that wasn’t something we needed to then do.
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Back in the 1980s when the price of silver went up, many people were selling the silver to be melted down. Some of the pawn shops were buying it for slightly more than the per pound price. I bought some pieces of my mother’s pattern at a pawn shop, and when they got more of that pattern, they called me and I bought more. Her pattern was from the 50’s and not popular, especially in Baltimore where most people had patterns from a company made there (all ornate, not plain at all, so not my mother’s style). I later bought 8 place setting off ebay, and it was not expensive. Now, I could sell on ebay for 3x what I paid for it. And sell hers for 10x what they paid for it in 1954. Or just have you all over for dinner and we’d have plenty of silver.
So look on ebay to see what it is going for.
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My father was a coin collector. I paid for a semester of college using $77 silver dollars that had no collector value. The silver was “worth” more than the face value.
When he died, I ended up selling most of the collection but kept all the coins from the year I and my sister were born.
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We went to a 75-minute seminar on a proprietary electronic trust set up, with Nevada as the state (which is set up for electronic signatures etc - so you can continually update the trust you set up, and also easier arrangement to funding the trust). Evidently there are 7 companies/products like the one we were pitched. We have a follow up appointment with the local financial person.
Email info back from our financial advisor is that under current tax laws, excluding probate loses step-up tax basis on appreciated assets. He also stated that he only recommends having a trust involved if there will be issues with beneficiaries like minors.
We are planning on seeing a local CPA about our particular situation and gaining his advice.
Wondering if others have used a product like this for setting up a trust.
What other’s experiences are with a trust.
My parents had a A-B Trust in WI set up in the 1990’s – dad died in 1995 and mom died in 2010. The trust worked beautifully. They remained in WI/same town. Attorney group was solid.
We only plan to remain in our current state another 8-10 years; might still stay in state at another location but most likely move to where DD1/Grandkids are (and they may stay in TX - and we once lived in TX years ago, have relatives there too). DD2 is in FL and at this point DH says he will not live in FL.
Besides minor/special needs dependents, whether one needs a Trust depends on primarily on state of residence when you pass and any state where you own property.
Would an attorney still be involved? Is the only benefit electronic signatures instead of ink/US mail?
I wouldn’t think a well-drafted trust would require continuous updates. I think most people considering a trust are best served working with an attorney well-versed in the law where the client owns property. Boilerplate trust templates rarely work as people think they will (in my experience).
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Assigning children as asset beneficiaries can work beautifully too. The advantage I might see with a trust is that over time it could be adjusted to adapt if there are evolving estate planning priorities as grandchildren appear.
Question: If you update the terms of a trust, do you need to go back to each asset to re-associate to the newest version/terms of the trust?
Typically you will not need to reassociate to the newest version as any amendment to the original will typically state that it is both a restatement of and amendment to Sabaray’s trust dated June 1, 2011 (for example). You will want to make sure your fiduciary has the most recent document. In my case, my attorney and financial planner both have a copy.
One of the simplest and cleanest tax strategies we used was disclaiming our inheritance in favor of our kids. No mess with “ generation skipping” tax consequences by our parents attempting to do this in their wills/trusts. No need to get more out of our estate to avoid added taxes if we should die sooner than expected (G-d forbid). Of course you have to be in a position that you have plenty of assets. But I am surprised how often in our estate planning practice wealthy clients will be surprised when we mention this strategy. Or that one can disclaim a portion of the inheritance.
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It isn’t clear what type of trust is being set up but for the most common kind, a revocable trust, there is a step-up for assets in the trust. See https://www.mayslawplc.com/post/irs-changes-step-up-in-basis-rules-in-2023-how-will-this-affect-you
Interesting. If people have assets in an irrevocable trust and have concerns about the lack of step-up advantage… they would be stuck (since not changeable)…. true?
yes, true, not generally changeable.
(it’s possible to unwind/terminate some irrevocable trusts, but takes some doing and can result in a tax hit.)
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We are continuing to ‘fact find’ on our situation and figuring out what actions we need to take. FA stated “under current tax laws excluding probate loses its step-up basis on appreciated assets” and “with retirement accounts, only recommend having a trust involved if there will be issues with beneficiaries like minors.” My next step is get CPA input looking at our total financial picture.
We attended a seminar with an electronic trust situation (filing in Nevada), but want to unturn many stones first, including some reading on the subject.
Any words of wisdom here?
In the 1990’s, in WI, my parents had a AB Trust, and that worked well at the time. Dad died in 1995 and mom died in 2010. The law firm they had used wrapped everything up fairly easily with our two Co-executors once we sold/unloaded all the real estate. I took a FL lot as part of my money to help clear out the real estate and settle out the estate.
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seek legal estate counsel in your own state.
Some folks setup a trust for their adult kids to keep your assets out of the spouse’s ownership. (early death of your child, divorce), so it goes direct to grandkids. If you still own the property in FL, that can be tricky from OOS.
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If the assets are held in an irrevocable trust and not included in the estate, then there generally is not a step up in basis, but if the assets are held in a revocable trust or with a beneficiary designation, then there generally is a step up in basis.
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I was looking on ebay for pricing for my inherited intricate sterling silver place settings / service settings and although they list a price, they don’t seem to sell. If they do, you don’t know what they actually sold for, or I can’t figure it out anyway. When I was checking into selling it for the value of the silver I weighed it and then learned that only part of the knife is actually sterling silver, the handle. The blade is something else which is standard on silverware. Plus they weigh differently than just putting it on a scale, I can’t remember the term but you kind of have to trust they are being honest with you. It’s all still in it’s case under my small chest in the dining room. I use my regular stainless steel for my formal dining, it’s better looking and I don’t have to polish it.
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In their advanced search you can choose “sold items” and it should let you see what you are looking for.
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There are several Facebook groups whose members are antique dealers and silver experts. If you post photos front and back and a clear photo of the Hallmarks someone will tell you what your set is worth and how to sell it.
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