[Estate Planning Sidebar: Right now, the federal estate tax exemption—the amount of your gross estate at death not subject to federal estate tax—is at an all-time high. In 2022, it’s $12.06M for individuals and $24.12M for married couples. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 doubled the federal estate tax exemption, but only for a limited number of years.

Women do so much…I know from firsthand experience, because I’m a woman and I feel like I do a lot, if I do say so myself! When I was in my 20s, I traveled and worked thousands of hours with a Big 5 consulting firm, got married, and bought a house. I socked money away in my 401k and that was the extent of my financial planning. When I was in my 30s, I had children and dogs and cats and did a whole different kind of work, much of it unpaid.

One of the biggest challenges for people entering retirement is knowing how to start spending from their portfolios when they’ve spent an entire life saving. How do you even know where to begin to make sure you can do what you want, when you want, without the risk of running out of money? A good first step is taking stock of how much set income you will have in retirement from sources other than your portfolio.

Cancer. One word that no one wants to hear. As we sat around the dinner table, I clenched my husband’s hand. The cheerful sounds of the bustling restaurant faded into the background as we tried to comprehend what his parents just shared with us: my father-in-law had been diagnosed with Stage 4 Melanoma. It was fall of 2018, and we immediately knew our lives were going to change forever, and we would face a difficult road ahead.

If not, I can think of a few reasons why: Finances are private so it can be uncomfortable to talk about. Finances are complicated so it can be hard to explain details about what services you use even if you think they are valuable. It may feel pushy or “salesy” to directly connect people with your financial advisor. What if it doesn’t work out? No one wants to make a bad referral.   At Monument, we, too, make personal and professional introductions.

These are common questions that pop into our heads when we outsource parts of our precious lives to outsiders. However, it’s also why it’s imperative we find and hire professionals who are not only experts in their specialty, but also who we can TRUST. That said, even if you trust your car mechanic, you should still understand the fees they charge for their expertise and know they are reasonable compared to the rest of the marketplace.

The federal government sets a lifetime estate tax exemption amount that can be gifted during life or at death free of taxes. If the value of your gross estate exceeds the exemption amount in the year you pass away, your estate may be subject to estate taxes. Amounts above the exemption will be subject to a 40% tax (as of current law).

When you’ve grown significant wealth over the years and you want to use it to make a positive impact on the world, there are much more effective ways to do that than simple “checkbook giving” to your favorite charities. Each method of charitable giving has its own benefits and setbacks, rules and regulations, so it’s important you see all your options and understand why it’s worth considering one over another.