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Estate tax evasion

Slew Foot

Slew Foot

Lifer
So hypothetically lets say I have a friend whose parents are about to die in a manner of months. They have a decent estate whiich they are passing on but the heirs will likely take a huge hit in estate tax.

Would it be possible, hypothetically of course, over the course of the rest of their lives, to liquidate their stocks into cash, and obtain gold, silver, baseball cards, stamps, walkmart gift cards, etc... and simply hand them over to their kids without the government getting their hands on it? The kids would as needed, sell off the assets for hard cash.

This is all hypothetical of course.
 
IIRC, the estate tax only affects those estates worth over $2 million. Otherwise you would just count whatever you got as income for regular income tax. If you or your friend (hypothetically) would be hit by the estate tax, you can mitigate some of that while they are still alive in the form of gifts, but I would make sure to have an accountant advise all of you on that. The parents should have a will/plan in place to make things as easy as possible.
 
There's plenty of legal ways to avoid the estate tax, no need to really inconvienience yourself turning it all into gold and burying it in the yard.

The estate tax is immoral BTW so avoid it by any means necessary.
 
im not too wise on this stuff since im just taking the class now, but they should look into a trust setup for their heirs benefit
 
Originally posted by: Jadow
There's plenty of legal ways to avoid the estate tax, no need to really inconvienience yourself turning it all into gold and burying it in the yard.

The estate tax is immoral BTW so avoid it by any means necessary.
Click to expand...

Ditto on point 1 there. Point 2 is debatable. We had a ATPN thread on it a while back about the quote ``A meaningful estate tax is needed to prevent our democracy from becoming a dynastic plutocracy.''" from Warren Buffet. You might want to don a flamesuit if you delve into the morality of it.

Edit: linkified and fixed quote
 
if they can catch Spitzer paying for hookers with Paypal, then i think the feds would notice this type of activity as well
 
Originally posted by: MovingTarget
Originally posted by: Jadow
There's plenty of legal ways to avoid the estate tax, no need to really inconvienience yourself turning it all into gold and burying it in the yard.

The estate tax is immoral BTW so avoid it by any means necessary.
Click to expand...

Ditto on point 1 there. Point 2 is debatable. We had a ATPN thread on it a while back about the quote "A meaningful estate tax is required to prevent the establishment of a ruling class" or something like that. You might want to don a flamesuit if you delve into the morality of it.
Click to expand...

Right... I believe thats wealth redistribution and known as socialism. Here in America it should be illegal. Just like the income tax was before the amendment.
 
Originally posted by: ZeroIQ
Originally posted by: MovingTarget
Originally posted by: Jadow
There's plenty of legal ways to avoid the estate tax, no need to really inconvienience yourself turning it all into gold and burying it in the yard.

The estate tax is immoral BTW so avoid it by any means necessary.
Click to expand...

Ditto on point 1 there. Point 2 is debatable. We had a ATPN thread on it a while back about the quote "A meaningful estate tax is required to prevent the establishment of a ruling class" or something like that. You might want to don a flamesuit if you delve into the morality of it.
Click to expand...

Right... I believe thats wealth redistribution and known as socialism. Here in America it should be illegal. Just like the income tax was before the amendment.
Click to expand...

I think that is an overly simplistic view of socialism. Most that support the estate tax are hardly socialists. Wealth redistribution? Hardly. It can only be called that if said taxes are being given out in the form of entitlements to others. There, you may have a point. Capitalism must have limits or it will cause this country to devolve into something decidedly Unamerican - oligarcy/nobility. This is what Warren Buffet's point was. It is pretty well supported IIRC in the writings during colonial times.

If wealth is allowed to perpetuate wealth in a self-sustaining way by what is essentially birthright, you have just that - a ruling class. You have to earn your keep in this country. Your economic position should be based on the fruits of your labors, not your parents' labors. Whether you become a billionaire like Mr. Buffet or not, you should reap the benefits of your work. An estate tax does not prevent that. That is not socialism.
 
RE: Warren Buffet,

Really smart guy, great stock picker, I admire him a ton, however being a great stock picker doesn't make him Jesus Christ, and his support of Hillary Clinton is just baffling.
 
Originally posted by: Jadow
RE: Warren Buffet,

Really smart guy, great stock picker, I admire him a ton, however being a great stock picker doesn't make him Jesus Christ, and his support of Hillary Clinton is just baffling.
Click to expand...

Hehehe... I'll agree with you on that one.
 
Originally posted by: Slew Foot
So hypothetically lets say I have a friend whose parents are about to die in a manner of months. They have a decent estate whiich they are passing on but the heirs will likely take a huge hit in estate tax.

Would it be possible, hypothetically of course, over the course of the rest of their lives, to liquidate their stocks into cash, and obtain gold, silver, baseball cards, stamps, walkmart gift cards, etc... and simply hand them over to their kids without the government getting their hands on it? The kids would as needed, sell off the assets for hard cash.

This is all hypothetical of course.
Click to expand...

If their estate is large enough that a significant amount will be "lost" to the government, they surely can afford a really really good estate planning attorney.
 
Originally posted by: Slew Foot
So hypothetically lets say I have a friend whose parents are about to die in a manner of months. They have a decent estate whiich they are passing on but the heirs will likely take a huge hit in estate tax.

Would it be possible, hypothetically of course, over the course of the rest of their lives, to liquidate their stocks into cash, and obtain gold, silver, baseball cards, stamps, walkmart gift cards, etc... and simply hand them over to their kids without the government getting their hands on it? The kids would as needed, sell off the assets for hard cash.

This is all hypothetical of course.
Click to expand...

They might be able to get away with it. If they don't, the heirs could end up in FPMITAP for tax evasion.

Not a risk I'd take.
 
Originally posted by: Jadow
RE: Warren Buffet,

Really smart guy, great stock picker, I admire him a ton, however being a great stock picker doesn't make him Jesus Christ, and his support of Hillary Clinton is just baffling.
Click to expand...

Warren Buffett has campaigned for both Hillary and Obama.
 
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