Probate
Federal Estate Taxes
The estate tax (or death tax) is a tax on property left by a deceased person. Technically, the estate tax is imposed on all estates, but each taxpayer has a huge tax credit that corresponds to the tax on an estate of $5,490,000 (for the year 2017). The practical result is that there is no estate tax if a deceased person leaves less than $5,490,000 worth of property. In accordance with the tax plan signed by President Obama in 2011, the exempt amount is "permanently" set at $5,000,000 with an annual inflation adjustment.
With this new federal estate tax structure, avoiding estate taxes no longer needs to be a primary goal of most Californians. This means that estate planning has become simpler and more affordable for everyone.