Estate Planning Techniques for Rising and Falling Interest Rates: Key Strategies and Pitfalls to Avoid
Intrafamily Loans, Installment Sales, GRATs, Charitable Remainder Trust, Qualified Personal Residence Trust, Charitable Lead Trust

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Estate Planning
- event Date
Wednesday, March 8, 2023
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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BARBRI is a NASBA CPE sponsor and this 110-minute webinar is accredited for 2.0 CPE credits.
This CLE/CPE webinar will provide estate planners guidance on effective estate and tax planning strategies for both a high interest rate and low interest rate environment. The panel will discuss the impact of interest rates on estate planning and provide insight as to which planning techniques work better when interest rates are at different levels.
Faculty

With more than 30 years of experience, Mr. Lipoff specializes in the delivery of domestic and international private client services to enable high-net-worth individuals and families to maximize their new or generational wealth. He provides strategic advice to his clients and their closely held businesses in the areas of income tax planning and compliance, estate planning and administration services, as well as family structure consulting. Through many years in practice, he synthesized the work of various related professionals, and their firms integrate several planning strategies into solutions that maximize value. Mr. Lipoff is a frequent lecturer and author of articles published through professional forums on topics including domestic and international - estate planning and fiduciary income taxation including constructive attribution rules for foreign trusts, Forms 3520 & 3520-A, Graegin Loans, business succession, generation-skipping transfers, Chapter 14 and carried interest estate planning for private investment fund principals, preferred freeze partnerships, and private placement life insurance.

Mr. Frederick is a Senior Manager of Taxation in the Private Client Group of LBMC, PC. He is an attorney by background and his practice at LBMC is focused on advising high net worth individuals on matters of estate planning, business succession planning, and tax mitigation. In this advisory role, Mr. Frederick guides his clients through the structures and strategies that will maximize their control, minimize their tax, and allow them to more fully reap the benefits of their lifetimes of hard work. These structures and strategies commonly include sophisticated estate planning trusts, advanced tax-exempt and charitable systems, family business transfer designs, gifting and timing options, real estate ownership systems, and numerous other wealth transfer frameworks.

Mr. Buckley is President of Buckley Financial, an independent concierge life insurance planning firm specializing in reviewing, structuring and administering life insurance portfolios for affluent families and businesses. Buckley Financial provides policy analysis and monitoring services to investment managers, family offices, law firms and tax professionals whose clients already own life insurance. Mr. Buckley is also an expert in finding value in existing life insurance policies through life settlements.

Ms. Lazo’s practice consists of representing ultra-high net worth individuals, their family offices, and closely held businesses in developing and implementing sophisticated domestic and international tax and estate plans. She has significant experience counseling global clients on inbound and outbound planning, particularly advising families with members in multiple jurisdictions on wealth transfers and on tax-efficient investment and business ownership structures.
Description
Estate planning techniques are significantly impacted by prevailing interest rates, with certain strategies being more advantageous than others in a rising or falling interest rate environment. Estate planners must recognize the impact of rising and falling interest rates and structure or modify plans accordingly to ensure the needs of clients are met and minimize adverse tax implications.
In a falling interest rate environment, planning involves utilizing lending strategies, such as intrafamily-loans, an installment sale to an intentionally defective grantor trust, grantor retained annuity trust (GRAT), or charitable lead trust (CLT), to leverage the low interest rates in order to transfer wealth while minimizing taxes. If structured correctly, these strategies will allow you to (1) freeze the value of the assets that they lend, and (2) pass the asset's appreciation to family members or trusts.
In a rising interest rate environment, the goal would be to utilize strategies, such as a qualified personal residence trust (QPRT) and charitable remainder trust (CRT), to capitalize on higher interest rates to reduce the actuarial value of a taxable gift.
Estate planners must have a complete understanding of the nuances and challenges of available planning options and determine what approach will ensure the best results.
Listen as our panel discusses the impact of interest rates on estate planning and offers insight on planning techniques that work better when interest rates are at different levels.
Outline
- Overview: impact of interest rates on estate planning
- Planning in a rising interest rate environment
- Planning in a falling interest rate environment
- Utilizing trusts and challenges
- Minimizing income, gift, and estate taxes
- Best practices for estate planners
Benefits
The panel will discuss these and other key issues:
- What are the key planning considerations in a rising interest rate environment?
- What are the critical planning considerations in a falling interest rate environment?
- What gifting strategies are available to limit or minimize gift and estate taxes?
- What are the challenges of using GRATs, CLTs, CRTs, and QPRTs?
- Other planning issues that arise in structuring or modifying estate plans in light of rising and falling interest rates
NASBA Details
Learning Objectives
After completing this course, you will be able to:
- Ascertain key estate and tax planning considerations in a rising interest rate environment
- Understand available gifting strategies to limit or minimize gift and estate taxes
- Ascertain critical planning considerations in a falling interest rate environment
- Recognize estate and tax planning challenges when using GRATs, CLTs, CRTs, and QPRTs
- Identify planning issues that arise in structuring or modifying estate plans in a rising or falling interest rate environment
- Field of Study: Taxes
- Level of Knowledge: Intermediate
- Advance Preparation: None
- Teaching Method: Seminar/Lecture
- Delivery Method: Group-Internet (via computer)
- Attendance Monitoring Method: Attendance is monitored electronically via a participant's PIN and through a series of attendance verification prompts displayed throughout the program
- Prerequisite: Three years+ business or public firm experience preparing complex tax forms and schedules, supervising other preparers or accountants. Specific knowledge and understanding of estate, gift and trust taxation including various trusts types, the unified credit, and portability.

Strafford Publications, Inc. is registered with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) as a sponsor of continuing professional education on the National Registry of CPE Sponsors. State boards of Accountancy have final authority on the acceptance of individual courses for CPE Credits. Complaints regarding registered sponsons may be submitted to NASBA through its website: www.nasbaregistry.org.
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