I find it fascinating that of nanoscopic fraction of people marginally effected by the estate tax, a shockingly high proportion of them show up on a Houston Rockets message board to bemoan their fate. I bet we have lots of great white shark victims + Powerball winners too.
Except that the American Farm Bureau (among others) looked and they couldn't find evidence of even a single family farm being lost to the inheritance tax... http://www.nytimes.com/2001/04/08/u...-estate-tax-debate.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm
I wonder how Archer Daniels got so much land. However, IMO taxmaggedon will do the country a solid ... not at first, but down the road. I foresee a mass migration of Hollywood and the super rich at the beginning, but then when true, realistic tax reforms come about as a result of the tax inundation, normalcy will return.
umm we do have over 300 million people in this country, but Houston IS the fourth largest city in america....just about every single home owner in the galleria area....west U,river oaks,tanglewood,memorial,royal oaks country club,bellaire.....are all worth over $1M+ between home,cash,stocks, and businesses if they are business owners....quit acting like $1M is a gigantic number....this isn't 1967....I have many 25 year old buddies in PE in Houston who top 6 figures easily in salary, guys with A&M degrees. A good friend from high school finished up at Harvard Law and brings in almost $400K in NYC now at a big firm....at 26....there are tons of people in the country, but a high concentration of wealth is IN houston...one of the energy capitals of the country....so yes the rockets forum would probably possess more wealth than say a green bay packers forum....just an FYI
Making $100K does not mean you actually build up $100K in wealth. I actually bet your 25 year old buddies burn through that $100 pretty quick, if not now then definitely after they make some "heirs". See http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showpost.php?p=7189503&postcount=19 http://bbs.clutchfans.net/showpost.php?p=7189541&postcount=22 Owning a $1M house doesn't equal you actually having a $1M in equity in the house. Especially if the working individuals stop working after 65, but lives 25- 30 years after. People do reverse mortgages and etc. and actually do withdraw from their savings. Also, people with large estates family business > $1M typically do some sort of financial planning. You can form limited partnerships with your intended heirs. Have life insurance trust set up with the ownership under your heirs name and etc. Talk to a financial planner, people with > $1M in estates probably have one.
Still doesn't matter to most people, but of all the tax hikes, that's the one I think makes the smallest impact to most people anyways and I'm ok with not changing. Better way to tax, a 2% estate tax every year while they're alive for those with > $1M estate.
Hate to break it to you guys busy most "millionaires" aren't mitt Romney types with private jets chauffeurs...these guys are paying their bills like everyone else. My dad and his brother together own 10 convenience stores and 2 fast food places...neither makes $1m annually yet both are prob worth close to $10m but they still have mortgages on some properties and bills like anyone else so they work 70 hr weeks...i don't see why they should be punished with a 2% annual tax like you propose or even a 55% death tax. Do you know the amount of property tax,Tax on income,payroll tax each pays not to mention the countless licenses and permits they pay the city for to operate...they dont have blind trusts and charities like these huge hedge fund managers like Romney...I think many people assume all millionaires are in that same category...a $10m net worth is still a regular joe as far as my dads concerned we discussed this last night. He thinks the wealthy we should target are the big investment types who avoid taxes with bonuses and guys like Romney paying 13% not small business owners who make a lot through old fashion hard work and lack all the fancy loopholes...but it's all Germans bc the politicians who makes laws are the rich investor types and none of congress even knows a thing abt small business America bc those guys reinvest in businesses when they have extra cash they don't sit on it like wall street types!
If all your friends are making hundreds of thousands of dollar why don't you go do to same and stop worrying about your dad's money. This board is mostly full of high achieving Asians whose parents have probably done well for themselves. Many of us I bet didn't have to pay for college or worry about expenses. I am sure your parents put you in position to be successful so why are you worried about inheriting his money?
Im in law schools right now..and I'm sorry but even my dad feels he works hard for me the only son otherwise there's no point if he's just gonna give it away to help pay for some meaningless war or a few more peoples welfare checks...so quit telling me to work harder boss man it's none of your business if I feel the 55% inheritance tax is high
I said lets discuss....where did I say slam me for saying I think it's silly. Air Langhi likes to just say dumb stuff like, " you didn't earn it, go earn your own who cares"....I'd love to see if he cared if his parents had a nice sized small business and the prospects of it going back to the government were a real option....again I said "discuss".....I'm sorry that it's a tax that affects a small percent of society, it's a tax that means something to me and that's why I asked about it, so in that train of thought, why would I give two #$%^S about poor people bc that isn't my life right? I never said that though bc all these tax changes affect all of us directly or indirectly...everyone just talks with such disdain on the internet its crazy
I actually agree with you on the tax issue. I'm just telling you not to bring your personal stuff onto a message board and then tell someone it's not their business.
No I hear you...I apologize...I just didn't like Langhi saying I didn't earn it so I should just ignore it and what will be will be....yes I got to UH Law center and would love to build a career of my own full of success and everything I've ever imagined, but I'd also not like to throw away the businesses my father has spent the last 40 years working so hard to build since coming over from India...I don't see how or why I should just ignore such a pressing issue....the drop from $5M to $1M next year is enormous bc it encompasses alot of people who were previously not affected. I'm sorry that nobody has sympathy for those with $1M+ inheritance, just saying it's alot but the people who earn it aren't quite aristocrats with jets and mansions by any means. These are regular people who worked hard and still work hard for it go to their families when they're gone. I am a big believer in the concept of different types of millionaires and the difference between a small biz american who works hard and saves and invests his money in other american businesses vs a wealthy wall street type who earns big bucks on bonuses or capital gains that are taxed at lower rates and then parks that money in a bank account or the stock market. Now I believe those who earn the money are free to do as they wish, but yes that capital isn't in use and that's what should be taxed for those who feels millionaires just sit on money, but in my experience, small business millionaires invest all they have back into remodeling their businesses, financing new businesses to create more jobs etc and thus we shouldn't categorize all millionaires and their estates and their wealth into 1 category of high income. The $1M+ income bigwigs with stock and capital gains incomes are who we need to go after bc its their wealth that isn't being reinvested, we should reward investment in our country and then tax the money that sits to cultivate investment in this nation.....these wealthy corporate america types are the ones who take their cash and just let it sit in the market or in a bank account.
Inherited wealth destroys the motivation for the next generation to work. The children of great wealth could be some of our elimore productive citizens if we did not take away their incentives to do so. I think I read somewhere that the Walton heirs will benefit to the tune of $40 billion if they can eliminate the inheritance tax.
again the children of weatlhy magnate heirs....$1M inheritance isn't that man, neither is $5M or even $10M....yes paris hilton types I agree just go party and blow all that money, but that's not the type the average inheritance blessed child inherits
Thanks for pointing out the handful of family farm examples. It is not a reason to exempt the Walton family from an estimated $40 billion of taxes, but they thank you for your effort.
Bottom line is if the millionaires who never earned a million dollars but saved up for their child and left them just over 1 million as an inheritance and it was taxed, then the parent that saved up still leaves around 500,000 which is a lot of money to leave their child. It's bonus that child gets which very few children will receive.
