Financial Opportunities Arise with Historically Low Interest Rates

March 1, 2012 - PRLog -- Newport Beach, CA, February 27, 2012 – Estate Planning and Probate Attorney Darlynn Morgan, with Morgan Law Group, encourages all of her clients to take advantage of historically low interest rates.  Being a sound advocate of the importance of financial security, Ms. Morgan, an estate planning attorney, is referring to a recent Wall Street Journal article. In How Low Rates Can Cut Your Tax Bill, Tax Report columnist Laura Saunders points out that our current low interest rates (a Section 7520 rate of only 1.4% in October) create several unique planning opportunities:

• Loans to family members – the rate for long-term loans (more than 9 years) is only 2.95% in October. The author gives an example of a $100,000 loan from parents to a child and his spouse to buy a home: the parents could either collect annual interest of $2950 or they could forgive the loan (up to $52,000 of debt forgiveness per year) in whole or in part.

• Installment Sales — with interest rates low, more of the sale counts as capital gain than interest income (i.e., ordinary income);

• GRATs — noting that we have seen proposals to eliminate short-term GRATs, combined with low interest rates, the author urges consideration of a strategy “sanctioned by the tax code”;

• CLTs — Charitable lead trusts are more likely to pass tax-free assets to beneficiaries when interest rates and asset values are low.  Given historically low interest rates and low asset values, lifetime CLTs are also worthy of consideration, particularly for charitably inclined clients.

Orange County estate planning attorney Darlynn Morgan noted that protecting our families is not just about estate planning.  Making sound financial planning and ensuring all of our “financial ducks” are in a row is just another way to protect the ones we love if the unthinkable should happen.  

The full article is available online at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000142405297020340550457....

For more information on whole family wealth planning and Newport Beach attorney, Darlynn Morgan, and Morgan Law Group, please visit her press page at http://www.morganlawgroup.com/in-the-press or call (949) 260-1400.

ABOUT DARLYNN MORGAN – California Will and Trust Attorney
OC Trusts Lawyer Darlynn Morgan and Morgan Law Group is a Southern California Probate Attorney / Estate Planning Lawyer / Wills & Living Trusts Law Firm Serving: Los Angeles, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego & all of Southern California

Probate law firm Morgan Law Group, serves all cities in Orange County, including: Aliso Viejo, Anaheim, Balboa Island, Brea, Buena Park, Capistrano Beach, Corona Del Mar, Costa Mesa, Coto de Caza, Cypress, Dana Point, as well as estate planning in Foothill Ranch, Fountain Valley, Fullerton, Garden Grove, Huntington Beach, Irvine, La Habra, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Lake Forest, and estate planning and probate in Los Alamitos, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, and estate planning and probate law firm information in Orange, OC, Placentia, Rancho San Margarita, Rossmoor, San Clemente, Santa Ana, Seal Beach, Sunset Beach, Tustin, Villa Park, Westminster, and Yorba Linda.  

Orange County California probate law firm Morgan Law Group, serves all counties in southern California.  
For more information about Estate Planning Lawyer Darlynn Morgan, call: 949.260.1400 or visit www.MorganLawGroup.com.