Bad economy opens doors to estate planning opportunities

The downward spiraling economy has opened the door to some advantageous tax-savings techniques as described in Tough Times Are Good Times to Trim Estates, Wall St. J., Jan. 20, 2009.

Here are some of the strategies discussed in the article:

• low interest loans to family members
• grantor-retained annuity trusts
• direct gifts taking advantage of the lower market values of the gifted property

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) for bringing this article to my attention.