Retirement
My mother wants to give early inheritance to children and grandchildren. Are there limits and rules.
Thank you.
Terry Says
That is rarely a good idea. I say that because no one is going to rush out to support her if she lives longer than she planned, and if she runs out of money.
She needs an estate planning attorney who will advise her about these issues. I highly recommend Kerry Peck of https://www.peckbloom.com/kerry-peck.html if she lives in Illinois.
If not, here’s the search website of the American Academy of Estate Planning attorneys: https://search-attorneys.com/
She needs to create documents like those described in this video: https://www.terrysavage.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Terry-Talks-Wills-Trusts-Estate-Planning.mp4
You wrote to me, so I’m going to assume you are the sensible one. Yes you and your siblings probably have good uses for her money right now — college for your children, weddings, debt payoffs, etc. But early distribution of assets can cause big fights later on. And it may have negative tax consequences if she sells assets now, instead of waiting for them to be distributed after her death. Please take my advice.
