Thoughts about Au/Ag as an estate planning tool?

[Sanford02]

I am not up to speed on all the tax stuff surrounding estates and inheritances...so maybe this is just irrelevant...but I have been thinking....hypothetically of course.

Seriously, this is hypothetical, because I don't really have any wealth to pass on.

But for the fun of it, I have been thinking about what happens to assets when people die. Most people die with no PMs....rather, their assets are in the form of real estate, tangible goods, IRAs, 401(k)s, Checking and Savings accounts...etc. In other words, accounts with financial institutions, real estate, and household belongings. What if, instead of passing on IRAs and such, we passed on some AGEs and ASEs that no one knows about in the safe. Would it change things for our heirs and how they could deal with the assets from a tax standpoint?

Is there any advantage in passing on bullion vs. accounts with finance institutions?

[Diggin4copper]

I think one positive will be that it flies under the radar and can be liquidated quickly without any probate etc... I'm sure my wife will have it all in the td Bank coin machine down the street in a day or two...and my kids will be on vacation within weeks.....

[Morsecode]

No paper trail = no probate. Your wife (or someone you trust) should already know what to do in the event you go unexpectedly.

If their consciences' won't allow them to receive tax free bullion let them worry about it.

[AGgressive Metal]

It gets complicated if there are many different heirs. You only need one to fuss and it ruins it for everyone because the executor will have to get everything appraised and sold over the table to split the money. If you have a few heirs (or just one) and they are chill and on the same page then it would work. Safe deposit boxes will not work for this if they are in the name of the deceased, as the bank or IRS may wish to have someone present when its opened....

Of course this is not tax advice - the income may need to be reported, technically.....

[Rodebaugh]

Depends on the state.....Federal exemption is 5.3mil.
Most of us will be safe.

http://taxfoundation.org/blog/state-est ... taxes-2014

[fansubs_ca]

Canada has no inheritance tax but...

...capital gains/losses have to be accounted for in the year of death
on the final tax return.

Some assets like TFSA or RRSP can be transfered to a spouse as is.
(Kinda meaningless if the heir is some other family member or a
friend though.)

Very rarely will a person who inherits gold or silver hang onto it that
long anyways so most would probably rather the executor liquidate
it for them and just hand them a check.

A friend of mine recieved 2 Silver Eagles when his mom died, she
pretty much willed everything to him so there are no competing heirs.
She had never told him she had them, he just found them when
cleaning out her house after she died. He sold them to me pretty
quickly. (He wasn't completely sure what they were when he first
told me about them.) Although I've discussed inflation risk with him
he thinks he'll die before the system falls apart in any serious way
so he doesn't see any reason to hang onto any metal.

Unless the heirs do a "private sale" like my friend did with me there
will be a paper trail of the sale of metal they can't explain the source
of. A small amount may not be noticed but a large amount sold in
any kind of short time frame will probably draw attention.

[highroller4321]

Depends on the state.....Federal exemption is 5.3mil.
Most of us will be safe.

http://taxfoundation.org/blog/state-est ... taxes-2014

The federal exemption is high but the states have their own tax.
From your article.
"Hawaii and Delaware have the highest exemption threshold at $5,340,000 (matching the federal exemption). New Jersey has the lowest, only exempting estates up to $675,000."