avrum49

If you own US stocks or ETFs through a broker like Interactive Brokers, here’s what nobody explains until it’s too late: when you die, that account doesn’t simply pass to your heirs. It gets locked. No trading, no withdrawals, nothing, until the broker receives clearance from the IRS. This is often called the estate tax freeze. It’s not your broker being difficult. It’s your broker protecting itself, and it affects many Israelis and Americans living in Israel who hold US investments. What is...

TOD = Transfer of Death POD = Payable on Death Last week, I posted on the use of trusts to avoid U.S. probate. I received the following question on Facebook from Na Hauser: Do you need to go to probate and a will if you sign a TOD with the investment company? Great Question! Here are some reasons why a Trust works better than a TOD: 1) TODs Do Not Handle Incapacity A TOD only transfers property after death. If the owner becomes incapacitated, a TOD does nothing. The account may become...

What happens if I don’t make a US Estate Tax plan? Good Question! Let me tell you about a file that I am working on. An Israeli man, we’ll call him Boaz, died with $285,000 of real estate in Georgia. He lived in Israel and died about 5 years ago. His estate was probated in the Israeli courts. The lawyer for his heirs called me and asked me to work out freeing up the real estate assets for sale. No problem- first step is to get the US Estate tax return filed. The return is ready to file, and...