Estates and Trusts: Having a trust in place before hand can greatly reduce the stress on your beneficiaries when you pass away. You decide how and when your estate is divided.
Gifts and Gift Tax Returns: Choosing how and when to gift away some of your hard earned estate is often an emotional decision. Timing gifts to minimize taxes is smart planning. Gift Tax Returns are due when a gift exceeds $15,000 to any one person in a calendar year. Call us to discuss gift planning opportunities.
Estate Taxes: When a loved one passes away, the last thing on your mind will be filing taxes. But as an executor, some of the decision and tax elections you make in the first year will greatly impact the tax consequences resulting from their estate.
learn moreFor the year of death, generally two tax returns are required. One is the standard 1040 form, which is the U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. This must be filed to cover the part of the year the taxpayer was alive. The other form is the 1041, which is the U.S. Income Tax Return for Estates and Trusts. This form covers the period beginning on the date of death. If there was a trust in place prior to death, you may need to file a second Form 1041 for the ongoing trust.
As part of our estate tax preparation services we will:
- Meet with you to determine if a trust or estate tax return is required
- Help you understand your obligation as an executor
- Devise a plan of action to help you gather the documents you will need
- Explain the tax reporting requirements for the estate and the beneficiaries
- Prepare the required Forms 1040 and 1041
Our Testimonials
“When my brother passed away without a will he left me quite a mess to straighten out. B. W. Smith + Company walked me through the whole process and helped me understand everything I needed to do. I don’t know how I could have done it without them. I was so relieved when the estate was finally closed.”