Facing an IRS Tax Audit in Northern California? Go with the Best.
In the thriving landscape of Northern California, from the bustling financial hub of San Francisco to the innovative heart of Palo Alto, securing your financial legacy is paramount. For individuals and families who have worked diligently to build wealth, the complexities of estate and gift taxes can feel like a labyrinth. At Kaurtax.com, we understand that estate planning isn't just about minimizing taxes; it's about giving you complete control over how your hard-earned assets are passed down to your loved ones. A clear, concise, and strategically executed plan is crucial, and at its core lies a well-executed valuation.
Founded by Mohita Kaur, a seasoned attorney with over a decade of invaluable experience at top-tier accounting firms (including the prestigious Big 4), Kaurtax was built with one singular mission: to make taxes simple, strategic, and stress-free. Mohita’s deep experience at these leading corporations, where she was responsible for advising on the most intricate tax matters, provides her with an unparalleled understanding of wealth transfer and compliance. When it comes to protecting your legacy and ensuring your assets transition smoothly, you need to go with the best team for all your compliance needs. Our goal is to give you the relevant and authentic information you need to make sound decisions, no matter how significant they are to your future. We aim to provide the unwavering support you trust, whether for complex tax questions, proactive planning, or strategies for expanding your business. By delivering tailored, honest, and smart financial counsel, we are dedicated to transforming tax season from a source of stress into a helpful tool for growth and security. At Kaurtax San Francisco, your success is the main goal for every action we take.
Estate and Gift Tax Valuation: Trusted by Northern California Professionals
Estate and gift taxes are significant levies imposed by the federal government on the transfer of property from one person to another, either at death (estate tax) or during the giver’s lifetime (gift tax). While the federal government imposes these, it’s also crucial to remember that several states, though not California for general inheritance, may have their own nuances impacting overall wealth transfer strategies. For residents and business owners across Northern California, including those navigating the nuanced gift tax in San Francisco or understanding potential state gift tax implications, accurate valuation is the cornerstone of effective planning.
Purpose of Estate and Gift Tax Valuations
Due to the heavy scrutiny imposed by the IRS and other regulators, it is absolutely vital to accurately value a business or other property that may be needed for estate planning purposes. This valuation serves several critical functions:
Pre-Death Planning:
It helps determine the probable amount of estate or gift taxes as an aid in planning prior to the death of a business owner or significant asset holder. This foresight allows for strategic moves to mitigate tax burdens.
Estate Tax Return Preparation:
Valuation of a business, business interest, or other property owned by the estate of a deceased person is often necessary to prepare and file a federal estate tax return (Form 706).
Gift Tax Return Preparation:
For significant gifts made during a lifetime, proper valuation is essential for preparing and filing a federal gift tax return (Form 709). This is critical for residents dealing with gift tax Palo Alto or anywhere in the Bay Area.
The Kaurtax Advantage for Gift & Estate Tax Valuation
At Kaurtax, our appraisers have completed thousands of different types of valuations, equipping us to provide Gift & Estate Valuations of the highest quality. Our team of highly qualified specialists, led by Mohita Kaur, provides accurate, timely, and unbiased opinions of value that consistently withstand scrutiny by auditors, attorneys, and regulatory agencies. Our singular focus on valuation within the tax and estate planning context enables us to attain the highest level of technical proficiency and maintain the most rigorous valuation standards. This specialized expertise is critical when dealing with the IRS, ensuring your valuations are defensible and precise.
Comprehensive Gift & Estate Tax Planning & Compliance in Northern California
Wealth transfer planning for families with enough wealth to span multiple generations requires a high level of both technical and practical knowledge. Few firms can provide the depth of insight and sophistication needed to effectively address the complexities of multi-generational wealth transfer. At Kaurtax, our professionals, drawing from extensive experience with the most complex situations, routinely create sophisticated yet practical and integrated strategies designed to accomplish the unique goals and objectives of wealth creators and their families across San Francisco and Palo Alto.
Customized Holistic Approach
Our clients deeply appreciate the time we invest in truly understanding their goals and values. At Kaurtax, we take a customized, holistic approach to identifying and addressing the issues necessary to preserve, maximize, and transfer wealth among generations. Wealth transfer planning can have a dramatic impact on multiple aspects of life – not just financial, but familial and personal as well. The most effective planning emerges from a careful and thoughtful understanding of the total picture, including the many unique aspects of each client’s wealth and family dynamics. We dedicate the time required to develop this deep understanding, enabling us to provide integrated strategies that both protect your current lifestyle and ensure assets are transferred precisely according to your long-term objectives.
Proactive Quality Service
Our service doesn’t end when your attorneys complete the drafting of documents. At Kaurtax, we assist you in making sure your plan is implemented properly and that it remains consistent with your evolving objectives. Clients consistently appreciate that we keep them apprised of the status of their planning with respect to their individual wealth transfer goals, and actively help them adjust the planning in accordance with changes in their objectives, their financial and family situations, and the ever-changing tax laws. This proactive approach is a hallmark of our commitment to your enduring financial well-being.
Our estate planning professionals have extensive experience with a variety of wealth transfer situations and can create practical solutions to help you achieve your planning goals. Kaurtax provides the following comprehensive services:
Development of comprehensive plans for multi-generational wealth preservation addressing:
- Mitigation of the impact of estate and gift taxes.
- Navigating complex family dynamic issues.
- Protection from creditors and mismanagement.
- Building flexibility for changes in the law and value of assets.
- Crafting impactful legacy planning.
- Estate, gift, and generation-skipping tax compliance.
- Assistance with fiduciary accounting.
- Valuation of assets for various purposes.
- Representation and support in federal or state tax audit scenarios.
- Succession planning for family-controlled entities.
- Assistance with family meetings and education of family members regarding objectives and operations of the plan.
- Strategic business succession planning.
- Integration of charitable and philanthropic planning.
Need Help Preparing Your Gift Tax Returns in San Francisco or Palo Alto?
Understanding when and how to file a gift tax return can be overwhelming. Under a certain amount, some monetary transfers between individuals may be considered a gift and are not subject to taxes. According to the IRS, "Any transfer to an individual, either directly or indirectly, where full compensation (measured in money or money's worth) is not received in turn" is considered a monetary gift. In other words, a "gift" is any sum of money transferred between two or more people not expected to be paid back by the receiver(s). However, there can be many exclusions, complications, and other circumstances that make filing a gift tax return complex. For this reason, it is highly recommended that you retain the counsel of an experienced gift tax lawyer.
As a comprehensive estate planning law firm, Kaurtax.com assists with all matters involving gift taxes, including the meticulous preparation of gift tax returns. While many estate planning attorneys refer tax return preparation to outside accountants, our dual-licensed gift tax planning attorney, Mohita Kaur, is also a certified public accountant (CPA). This unique certification allows our firm to handle estate and gift tax return preparation in-house. This integrated approach ensures that our clients’ tax issues are being handled properly, efficiently, and with a unified strategy, whether you're dealing with gift tax in San Francisco or navigating gift tax Palo Alto regulations.
Are There Any Exclusions To Gift Taxes?
Are There Any Exclusions To Gift Taxes?
According to the IRS, "The general rule is that any gift is a taxable gift." That said, as with many rules, there are important exceptions that must be considered when filing a gift tax return. Typically, a gift tax return is required when you have made or received cash, fractional interests in real property (i.e., your house, business, and the physical property each is on), and business interests that you are not required to pay back.
There are, however, several common exclusions to be considered when filing a gift tax return. For example, did you know that there is a generation-skipping transfer tax on gifts to minors? This is generally triggered when grandparents transfer gifts to grandchildren or great-grandchildren, effectively skipping generations in between. Understanding this and other nuances is crucial for strategic planning, especially when considering state gift tax San Francisco implications.
The most common exclusions to federal gift taxes include:
- Gifts to spouses.
- Gifts of funds under the yearly exclusion amount (which changes annually).
- Certain transfers to minors (e.g., through a 529 plan or UTMA/UGMA accounts).
- Some educational, political, charitable, and medical transfers (e.g., direct payments to an educational institution or medical provider).
What Is The ‘Lifetime Exemption’ For Gifts?
This exemption refers to the total amount that a person can gift over the course of his or her lifetime without incurring federal gift tax, beyond the annual exclusion. If you are considering gifting someone a substantial sum of money, be aware that this limit changes regularly with inflation and legislative changes. It is critically important to research the current amount deemed by the IRS if you are planning to give continuous gifts over the span of years (or one very large gift).
If planned correctly, you can give a large sum of money (up to the gift tax exclusionary amount, of course) as a gift every year and potentially never be in danger of hitting this lifetime limit. However, that is only if you go through the proper motions and documentation when giving monetary gifts. Note that this lifetime exemption amount is effectively doubled for married couples giving "joint gifts" (also commonly referred to as a "split gift"), allowing for even greater tax-free transfers.
Since the lifetime exemption amount is subject to change, and often does, the best way to ensure that your gift plan and/or tax return maintains its legality and effectiveness is to hire a certified gift tax lawyer. Mohita Kaur can use her extensive resources and up-to-the-minute knowledge to ensure that you are never in danger of exceeding this amount, providing peace of mind for your wealth transfer strategies in San Francisco and Palo Alto.
Mohita Kaur: Your Trusted Advisor for Gift Tax in Northern California
Our talented gift tax lawyer, Mohita Kaur, has been offering expert legal tax advice to fellow Californians for over a decade. Her experience spans preparing all kinds of gift tax returns, and her primary aim is to help every client avoid gift tax controversies with the IRS. When controversies do occur, Mohita Kaur, along with our firm serving San Francisco, Palo Alto, and the wider Northern California region, offers full-service representation. We will work tirelessly to achieve a favorable outcome for each client, dealing directly with the IRS on our client’s behalf and/or assisting with the strategic and meticulous management of an appeal or audit.
Mohita's background at the "Big Five" (now often referred to as Big 4) accounting firms for over 10 years, where she was responsible for giving advice on complex tax matters to top leading corporations, sets her apart. This deep, practical experience means she understands the intricacies of tax law from both a legal and an accounting perspective. When you are in front of the IRS, you need to go with the best talent, and Mohita Kaur is that talent. Her respected standing within the IRS community often results in faster, more favorable outcomes for her clients.
Questions About Filing Your Gift Tax Return? Call Us Today
If you have questions concerning gift taxes, estate planning, or your gift tax return in Northern California, do not hesitate to seek expert counsel. Contact our office to schedule a consultation with Mohita Kaur today. Our tax attorneys and CPAs serve clients throughout the San Francisco area, Palo Alto, and all of Northern California, providing the strategic support you need to secure your financial future.
Get Started and Grow: Fill out our contact form to send your contact information to one of our valuation experts. We will review your details, and then follow up with you to start your valuation and comprehensive planning process.
To schedule a confidential consultation and discuss your tax audit concerns, please call us at (415) 287-7075 or complete our contact form.