Now that we’re in the new year, it’s time for an estate plan checkup. Why? First, various exclusion, exemption and deduction amounts are adjusted for inflation and can change from year to year, so it’s a good idea to see if they warrant any updates to your estate plan:

	2013	2014
Lifetime gift and estate tax exemption	$5.25 million	$5.34 million
Generation-skipping transfer tax exemption	$5.25 million	$5.34 million
Annual gift tax exclusion	$14,000	$14,000
Marital deduction for gifts to noncitizen spouse	$143,000	$145,000

But inflation adjustments aren’t the only reason for an estate plan checkup. You should also review your plan whenever there are significant changes in your family, such as births, deaths, marriages or divorces. And your estate plan also merits a look if your financial situation has changed significantly.

If you want to find out if your estate plan needs updating — or if you don’t have an estate plan and would like to put one in place — please contact us. We can help you ensure you have a plan that will achieve your goals.

• Category: Other News & Info, Whalen & Company