New Clients Please Call239.494.3219 Existing Clients Please Call239.435.1533
Pier

Estate Planning




Recent Posts in Estate Planning Category

  • 2024 Tax Tips: 10 Strategic Tips to Consider Before Year-End

    The following is our checklist of year-end tax strategy items and matters we believe you should consider addressing between now and the year’s end. Many of these helpful tips require a discussion with your financial and tax advisors, and we are available to collaborate. Before we begin, remember that your CPA and financial advisor have invaluable information that is a simple phone call away, be ...
    Continue Reading

  • Client Alert: Corporate Transparency Act Compliance

    BOI Report Filing Deadline Approaching: December 31, 2024 File Now to Avoid Penalties As you may be aware, in 2021 Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act. One of the requirements of this legislation is that many businesses must prepare and file a Beneficial Ownership Interest Report (“BOI Report”) with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the Department of Treasury. Who ...
    Continue Reading

  • Special Needs Trusts: Getting Your Ducks in A Row

    This article was originally published in the Collier County Bar Assocation Magazine, Adverse Witness. Click here to see the original. Mr. and Mrs. Brady have come to your office for a consultation regarding their estate plan. They have two children, Bobby and Cindy. Cindy, who is 18 years old, has Down syndrome and is receiving governmental benefits, specifically SSI and Medicaid. Bobby, who is 25 ...
    Continue Reading

  • Think Twice Before Filling Out a Transfer on Death (TOD) Form

    Too often, the way we title newly acquired assets and financial accounts is too casual. The financial advisor or salesperson asks you how you wish to take the title and who you would like to be the beneficiary of the financial account. All too often, they create a TOD, which stands for transfer on death. Therefore, the account will pass directly to your heirs without any aggravation. ...
    Continue Reading

  • How to Build your "TDT" - Trust Dream Team

    Perhaps you have been in control of your finances for the majority of your life. You pay the bills, file the taxes, and make savings and investment decisions. But in the violent, chaotic, and busy world we now live in, it’s becoming more and more difficult to stay on top of the ever-changing stock markets, tax rates, and estate laws. More importantly, your golf handicap needs a bit of work. Now ...
    Continue Reading

  • Empowered Philanthropy: A Testimonial

    This article was originally published on June 15th in the Collier Community Foundation Professional Advisors Council Summer Newsletter Click here to read the entire newsletter Empowered Philanthropy: A Testimonial "As an estate planning attorney and Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP), I regularly meet with clients eager to contribute to charitable causes but unsure where to direct their ...
    Continue Reading

  • A Critical Decision in Estate Planning: To Fund or Not To Fund Your Trust

    This article was previously published in the Naples Daily News Estate Planning Council Supplement on March 3, 2024 Imagine your revocable trust as an empty box. Funding is the equivalent of placing your valuable assets inside the box to safeguard them for the future. This is achieved by renaming (retitling) ownership of an asset from yourself to the box's manager (trustee). In certain situations, ...
    Continue Reading

  • WGA Client Alert: Corporate Transparency Act In Effect as of January 1, 2024

    The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is now in effect. Initial reports are due before the end of 2024, and updates will be required annually. This overview is meant to provide a basic understanding of the law. However, we encourage you to speak with your trust advisors to ensure proper compliance. Immediate Action Required to Avoid Risk Failing to properly file under the Corporate Transparency Act ...
    Continue Reading

  • Navigating Trusts and Wills in Naples, Florida: A Comprehensive Guide

    Imagine you're setting out on a journey, one that impacts not just you but also those you care about deeply. Consider having a tool that not only guides this journey but also ensures your valued assets transfer to your loved ones according to your wishes. This tool is a trust. It's not merely for the affluent; it's a practical resource for anyone aiming to navigate their future with precision and ...
    Continue Reading

  • Charitable Giving: A Legacy at Every Income Level

    “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” – Aesop Since 2010, over 240 signatories from 29 different countries have joined the Giving Pledge, a global initiative, uniting individuals of diverse backgrounds towards the common goal of a public commitment to philanthropy. You may be familiar with some of its founders, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffet, alongside additional individuals ...
    Continue Reading

  • IRS Issues Inflation Adjustments for 2024

    The Internal Revenue Service recently announced the annual inflation adjustments for the tax year 2024. The following are the most relevant to our clients at Wollman, Gehrke & Associates, P.A. Standard Deduction: For married couples filing jointly for tax year 2024 rises to $29,200. For single taxpayers and married individuals filing separately, the standard deduction rises to $14,600, and for ...
    Continue Reading

  • Building a Family Legacy: The Power of a Multi-Life Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT)

    Previously published in the 2024 Collier Community Foundation Connector Imagine a powerful technique that seamlessly combines estate planning, financial planning, and philanthropy into one. The multi-life Charitable Remainder Trust (CRT) takes the benefits of a regular CRT and enhances them by incorporating "multiple lives." In this article, we will explore the unique advantages of a multi-life ...
    Continue Reading

  • Planning to Avoid Probate? Read this first

    Probate avoidance, or reducing the necessity to have your estate administered in the probate court, is a small part of estate administration. This article will address some of the major misconceptions about estate planning and, in particular, avoiding probate. Misconceptions of Probate Avoidance “If I avoid probate, I will not have any expenses when I die.” FALSE - As discussed below, you will ...
    Continue Reading

  • Portability: A Time-Sensitive Estate Tax Planning Tool for Couples With Potential Taxable Estates

    This article was featured in the Naples Daily News Estate Planning Council Supplement on March 12, 2023 When a United States citizen or resident dies, if the decedent’s estate exceeds a certain threshold amount, the estate is required to file a Form 706 Estate and (Generation-Skipping Transfer) Tax Return. This threshold amount, the Basic Exclusion Amount, is $12,920,000 for the year 2023. Even if ...
    Continue Reading

  • SECURE Act 2.0 Highlights

    SECURE Act. 2.0 was signed into law on December 29, 2022, but some of the changes it makes to the operation of retirement accounts will take effect over the next few years. Major changes include: The age at which a person must start taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMD) from his or her retirement account will be increased in the year 2023 from 72 to 73. Starting in the year 2033, the age at ...
    Continue Reading

  • 11 Year-End Tax Tips & So Much More

    The following is our checklist of year-end tax strategy items and matters we believe you should consider addressing between now and the year’s end. Many of these helpful tips require a discussion with your financial and tax advisors, and we are available to collaborate. Before we begin, remember that your CPA and financial advisor have invaluable information that is a simple phone call away, be ...
    Continue Reading

  • GENERATIONS Newsletter Summer 2022

    Dear Clients and Friends, Recently, many of our clients are approaching a time in their lives when they are making major transitional decisions. At these critical milestones, many will face having to address challenging issues/conversations - starting with themselves. - When are you going to stop driving? - When will you have the conversation with your children/heirs about your finances and ...
    Continue Reading

  • 2019 Risk Management Self-Audit: Extended Version

    Today’s world presents new and old dangers to individuals and families. Information technology, now essential to our work and private lives, makes it easier than ever for bad actors to reach out and harm us. A parade of novel financial products bid us to invest, lest we miss out on the next big opportunity, but the modern, algorithm-driven market may tank for reasons the average investor is not ...
    Continue Reading

  • Back to Basics: A Self-Evaluation of your Estate Plan

    People traditionally think of estate planning and tax savings as one and the same. Today, it is evident that saving taxes is just the tip of the iceberg. Often, estate planning documents are well-drafted but rarely reviewed after leaving the attorney’s office. However, estate planning is a dynamic process requiring continuous care and annual reevaluation. As you go through the following ...
    Continue Reading

  • Life Insurance Policy Self-Audit

    Clients often ask us about their life insurance policies and their value to their estate plans. We often hear, "Should I go or should I stay?" "Should I keep my existing policies, or should I buy more life insurance to replace the wealth that may be needed in the future to pay taxes and other expenses?" "How do you know if you have too little or too much life insurance for your estate and ...
    Continue Reading

  • 2022 SECURE Act Regulations - Navigating the Proposed Regulations for IRA Owners

    The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (or “ SECURE Act” ) was enacted on December 20, 2019. The SECURE Act modified the rules for how retirement accounts, including IRAs, are distributed to beneficiaries after the death of the original owner of the account. In February of 2022, the Department of the Treasury released proposed regulations to clarify the application of the ...
    Continue Reading

  • When Should I Review My Estate Plan?

    With so much uncertainty in the world this past year, you may be asking the question, “Do I need to review my estate plan?” and perhaps “When is the right time to review my estate plan?” If you ask these questions, you have already taken the most challenging step; getting started. Once you have designed an estate plan to meet your needs, the next step is ensuring that your documents are up to date ...
    Continue Reading

  • Special Report: Build Back Better Plan Stuck In Neutral

    As of this writing, Congress has not passed legislation to accelerate the decrease in the lifetime estate and gift tax exemption, increase taxation of capital gains, or eliminate the “step-up in basis” on capital assets upon death. Regardless of any pending legislation, it is important to note that the historically high Trump era lifetime estate and gift tax exemption will automatically decrease ...
    Continue Reading

  • PRESS RELEASE – Edward V. Smith Named Partner

    Naples, FL: Wollman, Gehrke & Associates, P.A., a boutique estate planning firm based in Naples, FL, announced that Edward V. Smith has been named Partner with the firm. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Smith led the estate planning team at Woods, Weidenmiller, Michetti & Rudnick, LLP. Smith’s practice focuses on Estate Planning, Estate Administration, Probate, Elder, and Special Needs Planning. ...
    Continue Reading

  • Customization of Trusts in Your Estate Plan

    As we have discussed, there have been several significant tax law changes, including the Tax Act, SECURE Act & CARES Act, not to mention the effects of the pandemic. Additionally, we anticipate that there will be numerous changes in the law under the current administration. Have you had any changes in your financial or personal circumstances that warrant changes to your estate plan? Is your ...
    Continue Reading
Page of 3