Monthly Tips
August 2025
TIP 1 Permanent Estate Tax Increase
With the enactment of the new tax and spending bill on July 4th last month, the estate planning field saw the temporary doubling of the lifetime federal estate and gift tax credit made permanent (barring future legislation). This year the general rule is that no estate or gift tax is imposed upon the first $13.99 million in lifetime transfers. Next year it goes to $15 million, with inflation adjustments to follow. That is per person, so a married couple has the potential to shelter $30 million from the tax.
The annual exclusion amount remains the same this year at $19,000 per donee, with no limit on the number of donees.
Though taxes play a major part in estate planning, professional estate planners such as those at Garden State Trust Company, know there are many non-tax reasons for an estate plan. A couple of months ago we elaborated on our favorite three in our blogpost: Three non-tax reasons to have an estate plan. If you missed it then, it’s especially worth a read now that the legislation has passed. If you’re interested in our help with estate planning, please let us know.
https://gstrustco.com/assets/gtsc-tax-facts-2025.pdf
TIP 2 American Giving is Huge, Especially From Individuals
American philanthropy and charitable giving continues to be exceptionally strong. According to the latest report by Giving USA, it rose last year to an astonishing $592.5 billion dollars!
With numbers that big, one might think that it’s big gifts from corporations driving it, or billionaire’s bequests. Those numbers are big too, but the breakdown shows that corporations only account for $44.54 billion, and bequests $45.84 billion. The largest amount comes from individuals, because even small donations can add up to big changes with individuals donating $392.45 billion to charity!
For larger philanthropic gifts, it can be worthwhile to consult with professionals to see what the best way is to maximize the gift’s value to yourself and the charity. A charitable remainder trust might be useful if you’re planning substantial gifts. The professionals at Garden State Trust company are always pleased to discuss such plans with clients so please let us know if you are interested.
https://gstrustco.com/trusts-estates/charitable-trusts/
TIP 3 Best Places to Retire
Bankrate recently released a ranking of the best places to retire, and we are pleased to say that New Jersey and Pennsylvania ranked in the top half among the states. They used factors such as safety, taxes, and people of a similar age as some of their criteria.
Taxes and healthcare availability are important factors for choosing a retirement domicile, but Garden State Trust Company knows that personal factors are vital, ones that generalized data can’t get to. A big influence for many retirees is going to be where their family resides and having the ability to spend time with kids and grandkids. Another might be their personal life expectancy based on family history. We don’t provide cookie-cutter solutions, as each client’s profile and family makeup is unique. If you’re approaching retirement and would like to know if you are financially ready, we’d be pleased to schedule a consultation.
https://gstrustco.com/linwood/
TIP 4 Lessons From a Celebrity Estate – Jimmy Buffet
Just because you have a trust for managing an estate doesn’t mean all the problems have been solved, especially when the trustees may be managing their first trust without a lot of experience. There are cases where having a family member serve as trustee works out well for everyone, and there are cases where it doesn’t. Learn a little more about why the famed singer Jimmy Buffet might have benefited by choosing a corporate trustee in our latest blog: Lessons From Jimmy Buffet’s Estate
