Estate Planning Services

We specialize in estate planning for the accumulation, conservation, and enjoyment of wealth, as well as estate distribution. Our specialized tax experts tailor solutions to protect your personal financial legacy and honor your charitable requests. We are also privileged to serve third and fourth generation clients and believe it is a testament to the time-honored trust we have built.

Our professional advisors provide unparalleled assistance to identify your needs and crystallize your financial objectives. We create targeted long-term planning solutions designed to help you achieve your individual and family goals. At HSA, we view the estate tax as a voluntary tax that with proper planning and strategy can be greatly reduced or eliminated.

Estate Planning falls into one of these categories:

  1. To remove property from a decedent’s gross taxable estate.
  2. Maximize usage of estate’s applicable exclusion amount, and minimize taxes.

Estate Planning Techniques

Revocable Living Trust

The individual creates a trust and transfers assets to the trust, but retains rights and control over the assets, commonly used to avoid probate and retain privacy.

Bypass Trust (also known as the Credit Shelter Trust)

The Bypass Trust usually pays income to the surviving spouse for life, and upon his or her death the remainder of the income is distributed to the children or others.

Qualified Terminable Interest Property (QTIP) Trust

To provide income for his or her spouse during the spouse’s lifetime.

Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts (ILITS)

ILITS removes ownership of life insurance policies from the insured’s estate, so that upon the insured’s death the proceeds will not be subject to estate taxes.

Family Limited Partnerships

The family members wishing to transfer assets out of their estate contribute property to the partnership; and over time family members transfer their ownership interest in the partnership to other family members.

Lifetime Gifting

Annual gifts of less than the annual exempt amounts, to each done are excluded from gift tax.