Legal Question in Real Estate Law in California

Re: living trust

It depends upon the value ofthe estate and when she dies. There is no tax this year on estates up to $2 million, and next year it will be $3.5 million. So, you tell me.

Re: living trust

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Re: living trust

Possibly, but no one can tell you for sure; the inheritance tax has been fiddled with by the administration and Congress to the extent that it entirely depends upon the year of death and/or future tinkering with the tax threshold and rate. For most small and middle-class estates, the likelihood is that it will be below the minimum and not be taxable. The inheritance tax is also tied to some extent to whether and how much gift tax was paid during the decedent's lifetime.

My advice is that if your mom is somewhere between well-to-do and rich, she should see an estate planner, or since she already has a trust, have a fresh chat with the planner every couple of years to keep up with new developments, but if her total estate is likely to be under a million bucks, it's probably not worth worrying about the estate tax.