My father passed in December, leaving my mother 100% of a sizable estate. He was 84, she is 81. The total estate (of which 90% is held by one financial planning company) amounts to close to $4 million. She loves to show my brother and I (we are the only 2 children) the balance sheets, telling us how our dad has done well in taking care of us financially.
While I will be eternally grateful for the inheritance, my main question is, does she have an incentive to hold all of the estate until her passing, rather than gifting? They have set up an irrevocable trust where my brother and I will receive equal shares of the estate upon her death, but what would the tax implications be as opposed to gifting at least some of the estate ($14000 per year maximum per individual if I'm not mistaken)? She is letting the planner sit on the money, a significant chunk of change, paying maintenance / broker fees. Are there any alternatives I'm not seeing?
While I will be eternally grateful for the inheritance, my main question is, does she have an incentive to hold all of the estate until her passing, rather than gifting? They have set up an irrevocable trust where my brother and I will receive equal shares of the estate upon her death, but what would the tax implications be as opposed to gifting at least some of the estate ($14000 per year maximum per individual if I'm not mistaken)? She is letting the planner sit on the money, a significant chunk of change, paying maintenance / broker fees. Are there any alternatives I'm not seeing?
