If you have a farm or a small business, would you like to pass it on to your children when you die? Well, unless Congress does something, it is going to become much, much harder to do that starting next year. Right now, there is a 5 million dollar estate tax exemption and anything above that is taxed at 35 percent. But on January 1st, the exemption will go down to 1 million dollars and the tax rate will go up to 55 percent. A lot of liberals are very excited about this, because they believe that the government will be soaking wealthy people like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates.
But the truth is that a lot of farms, ranches and small businesses will be absolutely devastated by this change in the tax law. There are many farmers and ranchers out there today that do not make much money but are sitting on tracts of land that are worth millions of dollars. According to the American Farm Bureau, approximately 97 percent of all farms and ranches in the United States would be subject to the estate tax if the exemption was reduced to just a million dollars. That means that the children of these farmers and ranchers would be faced with a very cruel choice when it is time to inherit these farms and ranches.
Either they come up with enough money to pay the government about half of what the farm or ranch is worth, or they sell the farm or ranch that may have been in their family for generations. Needless to say, most farm and ranch families do not have that kind of cash lying around. Most of them are just barely making it from year to year. So this change in the tax law is going to greatly accelerate the death of the family farm in America. This is also going to devastate many family-owned small businesses. Many small businesses don’t make much money, but they have buildings or land or assets worth millions of dollars. Children that may have wanted to continue the family legacy will be forced to sell because of the massive tax bill that they get from Uncle Sam. This is an insidious cruelty, and it shows just how broken our system has become.
The desire to leave the wealth that you have worked so hard to accumulate all your life to your children is something that is common to virtually all human societies. We want to know that future generations will be taken care of.
Are we not slaves?
That’s the intention! They are communists! They want ALL property in the hands of the collectivity! They think the American public won’t resist the big grab. (Half of the public has its head up its a$$ and won’t care - just don’t take away their 2 1/2 Men!)
Under communism, all the means of production and all property is in the hands of the collectivity! Every day and every way the democrats are moving closer to their goal! That’s the goal. If you think otherwise you are stupid.
By calling it an inheritance “tax” many people are fooled. (head up the a$$)
It’s not a tax. It’s confiscation.
Ya thought “you didn’t build that” didn’t have consequences?
I see dead people.
Therein lies the value of planning ahead. Most farms are privately owned but could be converted to corporations with the heirs in control. When the parents are gone the corporation lives on.
if you have a farm or business... form a trust and sell the business to the trust and you and your kids into it.
the trick is... a trust is a legal entity... and cannot die
if the current head of the trust dies, another would take their place... ie: your kids
death taxes never come into the picture.
you could also have the trust hold all your property as well... again keeping the greedy fedgov from touching it
(if they move to change the laws regarding a trust... the just make a corporation with shareholders and a CEO... same result)
Couldn’t you get around this through setting up a trust, or incorporation?
Sell the farm to the kids for $1.00 before you die,save on taxes.
I read some of the comments on this thread and I see why the concept of private property actually being private and not something to redistribute, is a dead idea.
The gov’mint wants to control all food growth and all business. Food control to starve those who do not submit and business so they can tax all they want.
Yes, they are, but that is what the majority that voted, voted for. Not only that, they are going to make it impossible to own your, farm, business, or home. When obama gets through, all of those will belong to the government.
Share the wealth Baby!
You can't keep a capitalist down, all you can do is shift his/her focus from one place to another. If America wants to turn into a giant "bedroom community" then I know plenty of other folks around he world who are interested in being industrious (and living richer lives).
The collectivization of agriculture.
Steal from the red states to give alms to the blue states.
This is what it has come to folks.
That unjust law will eventually impoverish all of us. The more the government prints unbacked money to stimulate the economy, the more worthless the dollar becomes. We will become inflationary millionaires and then the government will rape us.